About Nobel Laureate, Rabindra Nath Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), was an Indian poet, philosopher, and Nobel laureate. He was born in Calcutta, into a wealthy family, the son of the philosopher Debendranath Tagore. He began to write poetry as a child; his first book appeared when he was 17 years old. After a brief stay in England (1878) to study law, he returned to India, where he rapidly became the most important and popular author of the colonial era, writing poetry, short stories, novels, and plays. He composed several hundred popular songs and in 1929 also began painting.

A dedicated internationalist and educator, Tagore established a school (1901) in his estate, Santiniketan, in Bengal, to teach a blend of Eastern and Western philosophies. In 1921 his school was expanded into an international university, Visva-Bharati. He also traveled and lectured throughout the world.

Tagore wrote primarily in Bengali, but translated many of his works into English himself. Critics agree that his works are much more effective in the original. Tagore's writing is highly imagistic, deeply religious and imbued with his love of nature and his homeland. He was awarded the 1913 Nobel Prize in literature.

(Adapted from an article in Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia)