Pseudo Renouncement And The Conflict Between The Finite And The Infinite In Rabindranath Tagore’s Sannyasi Or The Ascetic

Abstract

Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, a worldly acclaimed literary giant, seems to write the Sannyasi or the Ascetic with a sole purpose to represent the pseudo renouncement of and detachment from the material world. He tries to convey the idea that the finite and the infinite are inseparable. Just renouncing the mundane world and keeping one-self aloof from the worldly responsibilities is not at all detachment and this does not lead to any spiritual height of ascetic achievements. It appears that through the myth of Jada Bharata in Vishnupurana, Tagore wants to tell the world that the Infinite cannot be achieved by the negation of the Finite. In other words, it can be said that to achieve the spiritual goals one has to go for the earthly means.

Keywords: - Renouncement, Conflict, Detachment, Ascetics, Spiritual height,