Rabindranath Tagore was a believer in universal humanism and internationalism.

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Rabindranath Tagore was a believer in universal humanism and internationalism. Elaborate.
Approach:
  • Briefly Introduce with Tagore
  • Discuss the concept of humanism and Tagore as Humanist
  • Discuss his notion of internationalism
  • Conclude Appropriately
Model Answer :
Rabindranath Tagore is the versatile personality of Indian literary scholarship, and is considered as the Rishi, the Gurudev and the Maharshi. He was a multi-dimensional personality and the underlying theme of his creations was the love for man.
Tagore as a humanist
Humanism refers to a rationalist system of thought attaching prime importance to human rather than divine or supernatural matters. Humanism emphasizes the value and agency of human beings, individually and collectively, and generally prefers critical thinking and evidence over established doctrine or faith.
Tagore was a humanist, a prophet of love, sympathy, fellow feeling and cooperation. His humanism was based on spiritual foundations. Tagore’s universal humanism is mainly expressed through his concept of interpersonal relationship. Tagore’s concept of man/human personality is expressed in terms of finding the realization of the feeling of intimacy with nature. Nature is not alien but is essentially related to man, and in the vastness of nature, we are not unknown strangers; we are her kith and kin.
Tagore favoured the higher ideology of universalism, as opposed to nationalism and patriotism, which he thought were constricting the higher ideals of oneness of humankind and a world without borders.
Rabindranath’s notion of internationalism and humanism    
  • Tagore’s humanism led him to universalism and internationalism.
  • Tagore’s internationalism was basically the critique of the narrowly defined concepts of nationalism and patriotism. Tagore denounced nationalism, deeming it among humanity’s greatest problems.
  • According to his internationalism, all human beings to be treated equally regardless of the country or nation to which they belonged. He also did not want barriers between people even within the same nation like those of caste, race, and religion.
  • Tagore’s internationalism was built on the spiritual underpinnings. He said that the supreme truth of life is not merely to live, but also to know our existence and realize the self through love and sympathy with others.
Rabindranath Tagore was a true humanist and believer in internationalism. His song ‘Jana gana mana’  invoking the same goal of a larger humanity was chosen as our national anthem and remains a symbol of modern India’s legacy of universal humanity.