Category: Gitanjali

To give thee my all – Gitanjali 50

Posted on by Samrat Kar

I had gone a-begging from door to door
In the village path,
When thy golden chariot appeared in the distance,
Like a gorgeous dream
And I wondered
Who was this King of all kings!

My hopes rose high and me thought,
My evil days were at an end,
And I stood waiting for alms to be given
Unasked and for wealth scattered o all sides in the dust.

The chariot stopped where I stood.
Thy glance fell on me
And thou camest down with a smile.
I felt that the luck of my life had come at last.
Then of a sudden,
Thou didst hold out thy right hand and say,
“What hast thou to give to me?”

Ah, what a kingly jest was it
To open thy palm to a beggar to beg!
I was confused and stood undecided,
And t hen from my wallet I slowly took out
The least little grain of corn and gave it to thee.

But how great my surprise
When the day’s end I emptied my bag,
On the floor to find a least little grain of gold,
Among the poor heap.
I bitterly wept and wished that,
I had had the heat to give thee my all!

– Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore