The Heart of God: Prayers of Rabindranath Tagore

By Rabindranath Tagore

Book Overview

Awarded the Noble Prize for Literature in 1913, Rabindranath Tagore (1861-- 1941) is considered the most important poet of modern-day India. He was also a distinguished author, educator, social reformer, and philosopher. Today, Tagore along with Mahatma Gandhi is prized as the foremost intellectual and spiritual advocates of India's liberation from imperial rule.

This inspiring collection of Tagore's poetry represents his "simple prayers of common life." Each of the seventy-seven prayers is an eloquent affirmation of the divine in the face of both joy and sorrow. Like the Psalms of David, they transcend time and speak directly to the human heart.

The spirit of this collection may be best symbolized by a single sentence by Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the renowned philosopher and statesman who served as president of India: "Rabindranath Tagore was one of the few representatives of the universal person to whom the future of the world belongs."

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0804835764
• ISBN13: 9780804835763
• Release Date: July 2004
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
• Length: 87 Pages
• Weight: 0.36 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 4.9" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

The Heart of God

Fabulous collection from many of Tagore's books. Herbert Vetter has done a superb job. More importantly it brings out the greatness of Tagore. Short simple to read but very poignant.

The Heart of God: Prayers of Rabindranath Tagore

this is a wonderful bedside book...the poems are what i would call in depth minimalist style writings...this might be a contradiction in terms but every word is positioned just right in tagors syntax...he is i guess what you would say famous for his going to the core of what he is trying to say...yet he excludes nothing and every poem is titled well...so you can a navigate the book with ease...this is my first tagore book and i have another...fireflies...on the way...pleasant reading

Timeless Prayers of Tagore

This collection of seventy-seven poems of the Nobel Laureate poet of India is taken from seven sources of his poetry. The editor has skillfully degenderized and introduced contemporary language where he deemed appropriate. The beauty of Tagore's spirit and his eloquence will be augmented for some by the editor's gifts. Long familiar with Tagore's own translations of his poetry, I find in this collection extreme satisfaction in accessing the presence of the poet in images of rare beauty. This book is an important addition to the literature, providing fresh acquaintance with a master poet.

The Heart of God: Prayers of Rabindranath Tagore

In prayers and poems of depth and simplicity,Tagore expresses his very soul...which is somehow the soul of each of us. Obviously a spiritual master, he speaks for each of our hearts with a depth of compassion and honesty that embraces universal and timeless themes. Human struggle, delight, quest, hope, trust, joy, despair, and peace are expressed in a compelling commitment to Love which draws him only into deeper intimacy with the Beloved. Tagore puts into words a love which surpasses understanding, time, or any methodology. He speaks in his writings a very human, very real, very tender love letter to the Divine.I liked this book because it draws me also into the heart of God.

read this if you have a tender heart or in quest of one

everyone will have something to worry about,some unfulfilled ambitions. This is a collection of the poet's mystic prayers.I am sure this will move anyone with a tender heart. He was the composer of the Indian national anthem and was also a social reformer and a romantic. This makes me wonder if he wanted to address these questions to god. My immediate goal is to learn bengali and read his poems in his own language. I am also looking forward to read his gitanjali which got him the nobel prize.