Lesson 2/45 min
Bangla literature (1): medieval poets to Tagore
Medieval period and the 19th century
| Line | Poet |
|---|---|
| Listen, brother: above all stands the human being; there is nothing above | Chandidas |
| If the unlucky one wants it, even the sea runs dry | Mukundaram Chakrabarti |
| May my child always have milk and rice | Bharatchandra Raygunakar |
| When a city burns, does the temple escape? | Bharatchandra Raygunakar |
| Bengal is so broken, yet full of mirth | Ishwar Chandra Gupta |
| Jewels and gold are vain; love of one's homeland is the greatest treasure | Ishwar Chandra Gupta |
| Who wishes to live without freedom? | Rangalal Bandyopadhyay |
| The birds all sing; the night is over | Madan Mohan Tarkalankar |
| Rising in the morning I tell myself: may I behave well all day | Madan Mohan Tarkalankar |
| Can the ever-happy ever understand the pain of the afflicted? | Krishnachandra Majumdar |
| Why stop at thorns when you wish to pluck the lotus? | Krishnachandra Majumdar |
| Whoever is born must die; who has ever been immortal? | Michael Madhusudan Dutt |
| O Bengal, your treasury holds many jewels | Michael Madhusudan Dutt |
| O river, you are always in my mind | Michael Madhusudan Dutt |
| Traveller! Have you lost your way? | Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay |
| Rich in grain and flowers is this earth of ours | Dwijendralal Roy |
| All of us live for all; each of us lives for others | Kamini Roy |
| God stands before you in many forms; why seek Him elsewhere? | Swami Vivekananda |
Rabindranath Tagore
| Line |
|---|
| This morning, how did the sun's ray enter my heart? |
| I do not wish to die in this beautiful world; I want to live among humans |
| No room, no room: my small boat is already full of my golden paddy |
| Deep is the cry “I shall not let you go”, yet one must let go |
| We want food, life, light and free air |
| Within the finite, You, the infinite, play Your own tune |
| Let my name be known only as: I am one of you |
| Truth is hard; I loved the hard, for it never deceives |
| O fond mother of seven crore children, you kept us Bengali and did not make us human |
| Save me from danger — that is not my prayer |
| May Your scorn burn like straw both who do wrong and who endure it |
| I listen for the voice of the poet who stays close to the soil |
| First lay the foundation of Bangla, then build English learning on it |
| In education, the mother tongue is like mother's milk |
Watch out: “Above all stands the human being” is credited to Chandidas. One exam (JU 2023-24) printed the answer “Baru Chandidas”; the other options were Tagore and Dwija Chandidas.
Check yourself
Who wrote “Bengal is so broken, yet full of mirth”?
At a glance
- 1
“Above all stands the human being, nothing above” — Chandidas.
- 2
“Bengal is so broken, yet full of mirth” — Ishwar Chandra Gupta.
- 3
“Rising in the morning I tell myself...” and “Pakhi sab kare rab” — Madan Mohan Tarkalankar.
- 4
“Whoever is born must die; who has ever been immortal?” — Madhusudan Dutt.
- 5
“First lay the foundation of Bangla” and “the mother tongue is mother's milk” — Tagore.