The reception of Tagore in Finland has been somewhat different from other European countries. At the time of his Nobel Prize in 1913 Finland was a remote country, far away from the metropolises of the world. It was small and poor and did not feel superior to others. It never had any colonies, either. India and its culture were always highly respected in Finland.

I have seen some arrogant attitudes in the writings of some other European countries, even not so long ago.

In most countries Gitanjali was the first book published. It gave a religious image of Tagore, also because of the editing work of William Butler Yeats. Even the Nobel Prize in Literature Presentation speech by Harald Hjärne in 1913 gave an impression of the importance of Christianity, Western missionaries and British culture in India.

In Finland the first impression of Rabindranath was based on The Gardener. It was the first book to be translated and for four years after the Nobel Prize it was the only book of Tagore available in Finnish.

Gitanjali was not translated into Finnish until 1917. The novels and short stories of Tagore were translated in the 1920s. The poems of The Gardener have been performed on the radio, festive occasions and recitals more than those of Gitanjali.

The image of Tagore has not been an image of a prophet, not to mention him being seen as a product of Western culture. He was known as a remarkable Indian poet and writer. His work as a social reformer and a reformer of art have become better known in recent years.

Tagore never visited Finland but was thinking about the country in some occasions.

In the Centenary Volume Rabindranath Tagore 1861-1961, published by the Sahitya Akademi, there’s a ‘Chronicle of Eighty Years’, written by Prabhatkumar Mukhopadhyaya and Kshitis Roy. This highly detailed text says that in 1940 Tagore wrote an essay protesting against Soviet Russia’s aggression in Finland. I have not heard about this essay before. I wonder if it still exists somewhere? It would be interesting to read it.

The poem Apaghat in which Tagore mentions Finland was written at the turn of the year 1939-40 in Kalimpong and published in the collection Sanai (1940). Tagore did not translate this poem into English. I translated it into Finnish via the English translation by William Radice and it was published in the collection Tähtitaivaan runot in 2008 (Memfis Books; the book is sold-out).

Here is the poem in English and in Finnish. The source of the English translation: Rabindranath Tagore: Selected Poems translated by William Radice, Copyright © William Radice, 1985 & Penguin Books Ltd.

BOMBSHELL

Translated by William Radice

The sinking sun extends its late afternoon glow.
The wind has dozed away.
An ox-cart laden with paddy-straw bound
For far-off Nadiyā market crawls across the empty open land,
Calf following, tied on behind.
Over towards the Rājbamsī quarter Banamālī Pandit’s
Eldest son sits
On the edge of a tank, fishing all day.
From overhead comes the cry
Of wild duck making their way
From the dried-up river’s
Sandbanks towards the Black Lake in search of snails.

   Along the side of newly-cut sugar-cane  
 Fields, in the fresh air of trees washed by rain,   
        Through the wet grass,  
            Two friends pass  
        Slowly, serenely –   
   They came on a holiday,  
 Suddenly bumped into each other in the village.  
   One of them is newly married – the delight

Of their conversation seems to have no limit.
All around, in the maze
Of winding paths in the wood, bhāti-flowers
Have come into bloom,
Their scent dispensing the balm
Of Caitra. From the jārul-trees nearby
A koel-bird strains its voice in dull, demented melody.

           A telegram comes:  
   ‘Finland pounded by Soviet bombs.’

POMMI

Re-translated by Hannele Pohjanmies

Myöhäinen iltapäivä. Auringon hehku himmenee,
tuuli torkkuu.
Autioiden peltojen halki
raahustavat härkävankkurit täynnä riisilyhteitä,
matkalla kauas Nadiyan markkinoille.
Kuorman perässä kulkee vasikka, sidottu kiinni narulla.
Köyhien korttelin suunnalla, vesialtaan laidalla
Banamali-pandiitin vanhin poika
istuu aamusta iltaan ja kalastaa.
Korkealla pään päällä villihanhet huutavat
matkalla joen kuivuneilta särkiltä
Mustallejärvelle kotiloita etsimään.

         Sokeriruoko on vasta leikattu.   
    Kaksi ystävystä kulkee verkkaan   
            pellon laitaa kosteassa ruohossa,   
    ilmassa on sateen jälkeen puiden tuoksu.  
         He ovat lomalla  
    ja tapasivat sattumalta kylätiellä.  
         Toinen heistä on juuri mennyt naimisiin –

iloinen rupattelu jatkuu tauotta.
Metsän polkujen viidakoissa
kaikkialla nuoret rasterikin kukat tuoksuvat,
se lumoaa, on chaitra, kevään kuu.
Lähistöllä kukkivissa puissa
koel, tumma lintu, takoo puuduttavaa säveltään.

         Sähke saapuu:  
    ”Neuvostoliiton pommit moukaroineet Suomea.”