Gitanjali and The Flame: A Comparative Study
Dr. Sudhir K. Arora
*From The Poetic Corpus of Stephen Gill’s Poetry by Dr. Sudhir K. Arora.
Prakash
Books,
While
going through a text, a critic attempts to trace out the similarities and dissimilarities
with a particular text that he has already evaluated or read. Comparison and analysis are the two
equipments that allure him to dig the text though he is well acquainted with
the fact that the text, which he compares with the other text, is penned in
different environment with a different motive. The comparative study opens a
new vista of imagination as he explores the space for his critical insight
which divulges the text displaying the layers of meanings which would have
remained unexplored if the technique had not been applied. Stephen Gill’s
poetic volume The Flame opens the new
avenues for a comparative study. It is a long poem that diagnoses the
destruction caused by the maniac messiahs. It also
suggests the cure through the peace therapy. Gitanjali for which Rabindranath Tagore got the Nobel Prize for
literature is a collection of song offerings to the Creator focusing the Indian
bhakti-cult
with the message of peace—peace to the soul that ultimately librates to make a
union with God. The critics while going through The Flame trace out some points of similarities with Tagore’s Gitanjali in spite of the fact that both
the texts—Gitanjali and The Flame are penned in different
environments with the different motives. What makes them alike is the thread of
peace. Gitanjali talks of peace
through the union of soul with God or the Supreme Soul and, hence, favours for the liberation of soul from the worldly world
while The Flame talks of peace
through the harmonious relationship among men and, hence, favours
the liberation from the tyranny of the maniac messiahs who rule the world
through the religious robots. Gitanjali
reflects Tagore’s spiritual vision of his yearning for merging with God who,
for him, becomes the bridegroom, the master musician, the traveller,
the sailor or the guest who visits unexpectedly. The Flame reflects Gill’s belief that “the eternal flame knows no
occupation, faith nor complexion and cannot be imprisoned within human bonds” (The Flame 28). It diagnosis the
destruction caused by the maniac messiahs, yearns for the loss, extols the
virtues and finally recommends to be devotional with the intention of spreading
peace in the world.
Gitanjali, a
collection of one hundred three songs in the service of God, is an original contribution
of Rabindranath Tagore who, “like the Indian civilization itself” is content
“to discover the soul and surrender himself to its spontaneity” (Gitanjali xiv). It is he who has counterpointed “his life with that of those who have lived
more after our fashion, and have more seeming weight in the world and always
humbly as though he were only sure his way is best for him” (Gitanjali xiv). Gill’s The Flame is an epical poem consisting
eight parts with sixty two cantos that offer the spirit of devotional as well
as temporal world. Gill himself admits that he has written these cantos in the
belief that “maniac messiahs are misled individuals who generate the blizzard
of fear and panic” (The Flame 7).
Further he adds: “The Flame is my
humble offering to serve peace in my own poetic way. It is a collection of the
flowers whose cultivator has roots in the centuries –old culture of the
subcontinent of
Gitanjali opens with the poet’s
gratefulness to God who has made him immortal. He calls himself a frail vessel
which has been emptied as well as filled with fresh life by God. “Thou hast
made me endless, such is thy pleasure. This frail vessel thou emptiest again
and again, and fillest it ever with fresh life” (Gitanjali 01). He thinks himself a
little flute of a reed and feels God’s immortal touch resulting in the birth of
the utterances that remain ineffable. “At the immortal touch of thy hands my
little heart loses its limits in joy and gives birth to utterances ineffable” (Gitanjali 01). Tagore is much obliged to
God for giving him infinite gifts. The Flame is the substitute for God in
Stephen Gill’s The Flame. Calling the
Flame the imperishable harmony, he has a strong desire to sip the inspiring
wine from her cup of peace. He knows that the wine of peace will give him
pleasure. The Flame opens with Gill’s
invocation to the eternal Flame.
You are the imperishable harmony
that reaps unparalleled prosperity.
From the chalice of your peace
I long painfully to sip
the invigorating wine of fruitful returns. (The Flame 32)
Gitanjali ends
with the note of surrender to God. Tagore spreads his senses that will touch
the world at God’s feet in one salutation. He likes to weave the various songs
into one current so that it may flow to God who is a sea of silence in one
salutation. He sings: “Let all my songs gather together their diverse strains
into a single current and flow to a sea of silence in one salutation to thee” (Gitanjali 68). Gill also wishes to move
to the shores where pure bliss flows. As the pure bliss comes from the Flame,
he will like to take a dip in the mysterious stream that meanders. He is ever
devoted to the Flame, and for her, he will sing for getting her favour. Mark the Gill’s surrender before the Flame for
getting her favour as he longs for peace:
To direct my steps
towards the shores of the pure bliss
of your peace
I shall dip in the esoteric stream
that meanders along the woodlands
of my absolute fidelity. (The Flame 152)
Tagore compares himself to a flock of homesick cranes. As homesick cranes return finally to their nests, he also wishes to return to his eternal home, i.e. God or the Supreme Soul in one salutation. Mark Tagore’s longing: “Like a flock of homesick cranes flying night and day back to their mountain nests let all my life take its voyage to its eternal home in one salutation to thee” (Gitanjali 68). Gill also likes to pursue his journey without caring of the caves and reptiles. He will not be tempted by the allurements on the way as the smell of his lilac is more animating than the tempting promises. He is confident of what he has to do. He has come here for a purpose and, hence, will not go from this world until he completes his mission for which he has been sent. Very boldly he states his determination: “I shall pursue my odyssey / through the barren regions of the moor” (The Flame 152).
Tagore
traces out the spiritual poverty in him and, hence, prays to God, his Maker to
remove it. He prays to strike at the root of the spiritual poverty which is in
his heart. He prays to God for making him spiritually strong so that he may
bear joys and sorrows. He may be helpful in serving his fellow beings with love
and sympathy. He may embrace the poor people and never surrender before the
powerful. He wants to surrender himself with love to the will of God. Mark the
excerpt for Tagore’s prayer to God for ennobling his mind so that he may be
useful for his fellow beings and surrender to His will gladly:
This is my prayer to thee, my lord—strike, strike at the root of penury
in my heart.
Give me the strength lightly to bear my joys and sorrows.
Give me the strength to make my love fruitful in service.
Give me the strength never to disown the poor or bend my knees before
insolent might.
Give me the strength to raise my mind high above daily trifles.
And give me the strength to surrender my strength to thy will with love.
(Gitanjali 21)
Just Tagore prays to God for giving him strength, Gill also
prays to the Flame for her light. Sample the excerpt for Gill’s prayer to the
Flame for the softness of her light for removing evils from the world so that his
vision of peaceful world may come to true:
We need the softness of your light
to weed out the spite
the dark
the frowning evil
the war
the misery
the hard days
and for dialogue to guide
the good to lead. (The Flame 110)
The
poet in Gill seeks for the grace of the Flame’s presence so that he may “weed
out bigotry / the cruelty / the fanatic howls / the fear / the sickness” (The Flame 110). He is worried over the
loss of fair and firm beliefs which he wishes to revitalize by the grace of the
Flame. Like Tagore, Gill also prays to the Flame for making him strong
spiritually so that he may be helpful for others.
Tagore
sees a vision—vision of free
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;
Where knowledge is free;
Where the world has not been broken up into fragmented domestic wall;
Where words come out from the depth of truth;
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary
desert sand of dead habit;
Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and
action—
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake. (Gitanjali 20)
Tagore sees a vision of an Independent India where people
will be fearless and self-respecting; where there will be no limitation in
getting education ; where his country will not be divided on the basis of
caste, colour and creed, where people will strive and
stretch their arms for work without feeling tiredness ; where people will be
progressive ; where people will not be lost in the conservative quagmire ;
where the people will be led by God with a spirit of fusion between thought and
action and where people will be inspired to act for freedom to turn India a
heaven of freedom under the guidance of Father. He spiritualizes the very soul
of Indians so that they may prove themselves as ideal citizens and contribute
in the progress of the country. The poet in Gill also sees a vision—a vision of
a peaceful world. As he wishes for a peaceful world where “soul is free” (The Flame 145), he has a vision of the
world. In the world of his dreams, he wishes for a life that will be free from
the zealots. As he longs for the blessings of the Flame, he is careful lest the
bears of disharmony should spoil the peace. Mark the excerpt for a world of his
dream:
Where the horns of life
are not entangled in the bushes
of the zealots
and bears of disharmony
do not roam around
that shore of yours (The Flame 145)
He
dreams of a world where “the cactus of shame” (The Flame 145) will not mushroom and “the evil birds of the
bloodshed” will not defile the nest of his vision. As he yearns for peace, he
wants to see the dove flying high in the sky without any fear. He craves for
the flowers of justice so that he may feel comfortable in writing the songs for
the Flame. Mark the excerpt for his vision of a world where there will be peace
and justice:
Where the dove flies without fear
and the lilies of justice
blossom for
all
that domain of yours
assures a comforting niche
for the
songs I write
for you. (The
Flame 146)
He
visualizes the future world where “the streams of youth” will continuously flow
and despair will not touch “the greenery of the dreams” (The Flame 146). As love is the basic emotion, he wishes for its
shower in the world. He dreams of a world “where love is not suffocated / and the
twigs are not damaged / by the trotting swarm of savages” (The Flame 146). As Tagore wishes for the blessings of God, Gill
longs for the gentle warmth of the Flame. He seeks the guidance of the Flame
and prays to her for her presence so that the world of his imagination will
remain illumined and there will be no chances of crushing of the creeds and the
crop of fanaticism will not be grown. He believes that the Flame will defend
freedom of the world from the vultures of war. Mark the excerpt for Gill’s concern
for a peaceful world:
Where creeds are not crushed
and human gods do not feed
the vultures of war
that island of yours
defends the dignity of freedoms
that are distinctive and charming. (The Flame 146-47)
Tagore’s vision of
As Tagore is a humanist and spiritual realist, he talks of embracing life with its activities, not of its rejection. It is participation in the activities of day to day life for the realization of God. Work is the thread that will lead to the path where God can be found. For him, work is worship. Hence, he asks the worshipper to leave chanting, singing and telling of beads because God cannot be realized through this way. He asks him to open his eyes to see whether God is before him or not. Mark the excerpt for Tagore’s advice to the seeker of God: “Leave this chanting and singing and telling of beads! Whom dost thou worship in this lonely dark corner of a temple with doors all shut? Open thine eyes and see thy God is not before thee!”(Gitanjali 7). Hence, Tagore advises the worshipper to leave this ritualistic worship as it cannot help him in his yeaning for God-realization. He asks him to come out from the temple to the place where the tiller is tilling the ground and the path maker is breaking the stone. He can meet God among the lowly men who are shedding the sweat. It does not matter if his clothes are tattered or stained as God’s garment is also covered with dust. He states: “He is there where the tiller is tilling the hard ground and where the path maker is breaking stones. He is with them in sun and in shower, and his garment is covered with dust. Put off thy holy mantle and even like come down on the dusty soil!”(Gitanjali 7). The poet in Gill meditates over the Flame in order to have her view in her inner self but when he does not find her, he retreats. Mark the excerpt for Gill’s retreat from his deep meditation:
I open eyes
from my deep meditation
at the wilderness of my retreat
because I find you not there. (The Flame 107)
As he
does not find the Flame, he opens his eyes from mediation and stops “counting
the beads / in the cycle of monotony” (The
Flame 107). The seeker in him is drowned “into the well of emptiness” (The Flame 107). As Tagore sees God with
the lowly persons who are working, Gill sees the Flame among the orphans. Mark
the excerpt:
Who shall see you sweating
preparing beds
of refreshing sleep
for the orphans
who have lost their mothers
to those who esteem
the creeds of sadistic tribes. (The Flame 108)
The
Flame can be seen sweating among the orphans for whom she prepares bed so that
they may sleep. These are the orphans who have lost their mother at the hands
of maniac messiahs. Tagore’s God works with the poor and the humble while
Gill’s Flame works with the orphans who have lost their parents in the
destruction caused by terrorists. Both the poets make their Supreme power work
with and for the needy as the poor and the humble need the hands of someone so
that they may feel that there is someone with them. The orphans who have lost
hope with the death of their parents due to destruction yearn for the care of
the Flame’s loving hands.
Tagore
considers himself a flute in the hands of God, the master musician. When he
feels the touch of master musician on him, his joy knows no bounds. The ecstasy
of pleasure gives birth to the inexpressible utterances. Sample the excerpt for
the pleasure that the poet in Tagore feels at the immortal touch of God: “At
the immortal touch of thy hands my little heart loses its limits in joy and
gives birth to utterances ineffable” (Gitanjali
01). The poet in Gill wishes “to snuggle under that shade” where the eyes of
the Flame express the ineffable. He feels a kind of magical effect that comes
from her gaze—the gaze that “breaks chains of confusion” (The Flame 45). Tagore feels the immortal touch that gives
inexpressible joy to the heart while Gill feels the effect of the magic chant
of the gaze of the Flame that ends all the confusion. The poet in Tagore waits for God and lives
“in the hope of meeting with him; but this meeting is not yet” (Gitanjali 9) while the poet in Gill is
surprised at the impenetrable mystery as he has not met her yet he is never
apart from her. He states: “What an impenetrable mystery / we do not meet / yet
are never apart” (The Flame 115).
Tagore waits for the meeting and, hence, is restless for having union with God
while Gill who has not met her feels inseparable from the Flame. Both the poets
are devotional in spirit and attitude. Tagore who knows very well that he can
meet God only through singing, states: “I know thou takest
pleasure in my singing. I know that only as a singer I come before thy
presence” (Gitanjali 2). He is lost
in singing to the extent that he forgets the difference between him and God and
begins to call him his friend. This is the devotion that counts. Mark the
excerpt for the love that Tagore has for God: “Drunk with the joy of singing I
forget myself and call thee friend who art my lord” (Gitanjali 2). He is saintly in spirit wholly devoted in the service
of God. He is ready to surrender himself at the feet of his Lord. He wishes to
be humble and simple like a flute of reed so that God may fill him with music.
Mark the excerpt for his devotional and surrendering attitude before God: “O
master poet, I have sat down at thy feet. Only let me make my life simple and
straight, like a flute of reed for thee to fill with music” (Gitanjali 5). The poet in Gill is also
devoted to the Flame and, so, wishes to adopt the spirit of a sufi
who makes himself lost in the Supreme power. He states: “I wish to swing /
under the wings of our affinity / on the steps of a sufi”
(The Flame 137). He wishes to be “a
mad prophet in painful ecstasy” so that he may take a bath “in the mystical
falls of those regions / that are steeped in the melody” (The Flame 147). Tagore prays to his Maker for guidance and mercy.
He prays for showering the rain of mercy when his heart is parched up. For him,
grace in life is essential and when it is missing, He should come with the
divine melody. He prays for peace and rest. Mark the excerpt:
When the heart is hard and parched up, come upon me
with a shower of mercy.
When grace is lost from life, come with a burst of song.
When tumultuous work raises its din on all sides shutting me out from
beyond, come to me, my lord of silence, with thy peace and rest. (Gitanjali 22)
The
poet needs support from the Flame as he feels himself “a battle unending”. As he is “a rose tethered”, he needs tenderness
and hence, asks her to caress him carefully. He needs wine because he is “a
wound attended” Mark Gill’s prayer to the Flame for her protection and
guidance:
Hold me ardently
I am a root unprotected
I need the breeze.
………………..
Accept me readily
I am a lamb unclaimed
I need a good shepherd. (The Flame
129)
Tagore considers himself a bride and Death a bridegroom. He courts Death, the last fulfillment of saying: “One final glance from thine eyes and my life will be ever thine” (Gitanjali 60). On the other hand, the poet in Gill, being romantic is much impressed by her look and smile. “Your look / mysterious / a knife so sharp /your smile / takes my life” (The Flame 122). It is the genius of Tagore that he makes the abstract concrete and the reader is lost in the charm of the packed lines that console soul providing him a pleasure never felt before. Sample the lines for the soothing effect: “The flowers have been woven and the garland is ready for the bridegroom. After the wedding the bride shall leave her home and meet her lord alone in the solitude of night” (Gitanjali 61). On the other hand, Gill sees a place of peace and quiet in the eyes of the Flame and makes the reader mentally prepared for such a feast of peace. Sample the lines for their peace-providing impression: “Your eyes / a seaside retreat / where mystic flames reign / and / nature courts the night’s favor / for a feast of peace” (The Flame 37).
Tagore
who longs for a meeting with God receives a call from Him. He gropes for the
way but fails to trace out because of the darkness and, hence, wishes for light
so that he may find out the way that will lead him to God with whom he wants to
have union. He asks: “Light, oh where is the light?” and receives the answer:
“Kindle it with the burning fire of desire!” (Gitanjali 16). He feels that he
can see in the night which is as “black as a black stone” only through the lamp
of love. If the lamp of love burns in his heart, he will be able to see the
path. “Kindle the lamp of love with thy
life” (Gitanjali 16). This longing of
sacrifice in love will make his union possible with God. Again, the poet in
Tagore sings the songs of praise and thankfulness in honour
of light. Light becomes a symbol of the joy of God in his creation. It is light
that brings beauty to the world; provides pleasures to the eyes; soothes the
heart and makes laughter pass over the earth. The butterflies dance on sea of
light and flowers bloom on the crest of the waves of light. Mark the excerpt
for Tagore’s hymn to light:
Light, my light, the world-filling light, the eye-kissing light,
heart-sweetening light!
Ah, the light dances, my darling , at the centre of my life; the light
strikes, my darling, the chords of my love; the
sky opens, the wind runs wild, laughter passes over the earth.
The butterflies spread their sails on the sea of light. Lilies and
jasmines surge up on the crest of the waves of light.
The light is shattered into gold on every cloud, my darling, and it
scatters gems in profusion.
Mirth spreads from leaf to leaf, my darling, and gladness without
measure. The heaven’s river has drowned its banks and the flood of joy is
abroad. (Gitanjali 37-38)
It is
the light of the Flame that inspires the poet in Gill who cannot think of his
existence without her grace. Flame is light and “the undying glory / of the
prismatic creed / that blossoms peace” (The
Flame 41). He calls the Flame “a pyramid of justice” (The Flame 98) as she binds each to the other and solaces the people
in their troubles. Mark the excerpt for Gill’s belief in the cementing force of
the flame:
Flame
is the binding force
for families, planets
every atom
and every part of every individual. (The Flame 135)
As he
sings in praise of the Flame, he sees her everywhere because of his firm belief
that “Life disintegrates / where the rays of flame / do not reach” (The Flame 135). For him, the Flame is
“the spectacular sight / of the first appearance of light / that dissolves
discomforts / of the pilgrims of peace” (The
Flame 35). Both the poets—Tagore and Gill sing the songs in praise of Light
and seek for her grace in their lives so that they may serve the humanity
through their contributions in spreading peace and prosperity in the world by
helping the fellow beings.
The
comparative study of both the texts—Gitanjali
and The Flame opens the new portals
that offer the readers fresh approaches through which new meanings and
interpretations are explored. Both the texts have their own significance and,
hence, cannot be overemphasized at each other’s cost. A line from Gitanjali makes the reader forget himself taking him to the world of God. He forgets his
suffering under the impact of the fluid of bhakti flowing in the songs.
While a reading of The Flame makes
the reader think of the harmful effects of terrorism and, hence, appeals to his
conscience or heart that longs for peace through the peaceful methods under the
guidance of the eternal Flame. The rhythmic and tonal monotony in Gitanjali is well compensated by the
incantatory rhythmic prose that echoes Tagore’s Indian sentiments, reflections
and descriptions. With colloquial expressions, it is a striking fusion of
simplicity and sublimity. Monosyllabic words, which contain more vowels,
enhance the text with musical touches making it more melodious. The reader is
lost in the text which soothes him from the hullabaloo and, then, he does not
want to entangle himself in the mess of grammatical errors, of which Tagore is
sometimes guilty. The music of Gitanjali
is incomparable. Gill himself praises Gitanjali
for its music as well as for its poetry. He states: “Whereas all poetry may
have music, it is not necessary for all music to have poetry. I consider Gitanjali lyrics as well as poetry” (Glimpses 187). Grammatical accuracy of The Flame surprises the reader who finds
the text almost faultless. Gill has made his text more poetic with fresh images
as he is against the repetition. The
Flame burns continuously and smoothly without any obstacle reflecting the
path that leads to the world of peace which will provide a space for the human
beings who can bring heaven on earth with their united attempts checking all
the destructive forces.
Gill’s The Flame makes the union of soul to
soul possible while Tagore’s Gitanjali
guides the path of soul for making a union with the Supreme Soul (God). The
Light becomes the Flame when it makes itself pure through sacrifice. Tagore’s
questioning spirit: “Light, oh where is light?”
(Gitanjali 16) inspires
Stephen Gill who succeeds in tracing it in The
Flame. Gitanjali becomes Gill’s
motivational drive culminating in The
Flame, which positively is “the binding force / for families, planets /
every atom / and every part of every individual” (The Flame 135). The excerpt: “From the words of the poet men take
what meanings please them; yet their last meaning points to thee” (Gitanjali 50) is quite applicable to
both the texts as their ultimate aim is peace and both the poets direct their
steps “towards the shores of the pure bliss” (The Flame 152).
Works Cited:
Gill, Stephen. The Flame (
Manchanda,
Madan Lal. “Love is the
Eternal Passion”, Glimpses (
Tagore, Rabindranath. Gitanjali (Madras:
Macmillan India Limited, First edition 1913, reprinted 1985).
About the Contributor:
Sudhir K. Arora (b.1968) teaches English at