....Revisiting Tagore
The letter just quoted was to C.F. Andrews, and Bhattacharya's frequent use of the correspondence with Andrews is an aspect of his book all Tagore scholars can take note. From his moving section headed “Spells of Depression” (pages 48-53) we learn that Andrews was someone to whom Tagore could speak more candidly about his inner life than to anyone else. It is tempting sometimes to dismiss Andrews as a sycophant, but it must have been deeply helpful to both Gandhi and Tagore to have among their friends a man whose Christian religion was rooted in suffering. In May 1914, only six months after the triumph of the Nobel Prize, it was Christian imagery that Tagore reached for when he wrote to Andrews: “I am struggling on my way through the wilderness. The light from across the summit is clear; but the shadows are slanting and deep on the slope of the dark valley. My feet are bleeding and I am toiling with panting breath…” (page 49).
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