On 27th April, Rabindranath with his party started for the Forbidden City to the dethroned king of China. In 1911 when China became Repubilic the six year old King Puyee of Manchu dynasty was removed from the power and kept under confinement. An English home tutor named Rejinald Jonston was appointed for him. He gave him the name Henry.For that he was known as ex-king Henry Puyee. This learned man took the initiative of inviting Rabindranath and his party.
It was about one mile from gate to the palace. They had arranged two well decorated sedan-chair, one for Rabindranath and the other for his twocompanion Grechen Green and Miss Phyllis Lin. The rest of his company went by foot. Rabindranath offered his two female accompaniment lucky conchs as amemento. The rest too offered the king different gifts. The also offered Rabindranatha costly Budhists Statue and a trapistry.
In the evening the intellectuals of Peking offered a dinner to Rabindranath and his party in Navy Club. The learned persons like Liang Chi chao, Lin Chang Min and Fun Yuan Lian, Dr Hu Shi were present on the occasionMr. Lin in his Welcoming address said that they were not welcoming Rabindranath as a sageor Reformer. They took him as a great revolutionary poet. It is their bad luck that they could not come across his original works, still his poetry played an effective role to reconstruct the structure of their verses. " We cannot tell him how moved and touched we are by his presence.His appearance , his eyes, his deportment, his beard, his clothes - everything about him is poetic.He is in fact poetry itself . We hope our poet will give us strength, courage, and audacity. We hope that he will reveal to us the reality of truth, the beauty of moral courage and sacrifice. "
In reply to this welcoming address Rabindranath said;
" We try to find our own country even going to a foreign one and we see it in the surplus of the emotions of the people of that country. Lin said that the Chinese literature is tied in old coverage - similarly, the literature of his country was bound by the classical Sanskrit literature and was only approachable to a few learned persons.At the same time a folk literature for the illiterate villagers was circulated parallel amongst the local people. The writer of the classical literature usually collected their ingredients and inspiration from those literature. Those local languages was gradually changing without keeping any sample of it.
But some local dialect gradually changed to a higher level to give rise to literature.Here is Mr Kshitomohan Sen who always practiced medievel period Indian Literature and capable of informing you about the omprovement of liture from the 13th to 16th century. He has come to know that literature with his help. and " I was amazed to discover how modern thy wer, how full of genuine and earnest feelimg of life and beauty. All true things are ever modern and can never become obsolete."
In this long speech he described nicely the nature and sources of his literature. He pointed out something new which he did not mention anywhere earlier.His attempt to read Dante, to translate Hyne from its original writings by knowing German language, the failure of reading Foust of Gette etc were only expressed in this lecture.His role in writing songs and literature were marked as revolutionary. Lastly he said with pride;
" Please donot think I am vain. I can judge myself objectively and can openly express admiration for my own work, because I am modest. I donot hesitate to say that my songs have found their place in the heart of my land, along with her flowers that are never exhausted, and that the folk of the future, in days of joy or sorrow or festival, will have to sing them. This too is the work of a revolutionist."
It was about one mile from gate to the palace. They had arranged two well decorated sedan-chair, one for Rabindranath and the other for his twocompanion Grechen Green and Miss Phyllis Lin. The rest of his company went by foot. Rabindranath offered his two female accompaniment lucky conchs as amemento. The rest too offered the king different gifts. The also offered Rabindranatha costly Budhists Statue and a trapistry.
In the evening the intellectuals of Peking offered a dinner to Rabindranath and his party in Navy Club. The learned persons like Liang Chi chao, Lin Chang Min and Fun Yuan Lian, Dr Hu Shi were present on the occasionMr. Lin in his Welcoming address said that they were not welcoming Rabindranath as a sageor Reformer. They took him as a great revolutionary poet. It is their bad luck that they could not come across his original works, still his poetry played an effective role to reconstruct the structure of their verses. " We cannot tell him how moved and touched we are by his presence.His appearance , his eyes, his deportment, his beard, his clothes - everything about him is poetic.He is in fact poetry itself . We hope our poet will give us strength, courage, and audacity. We hope that he will reveal to us the reality of truth, the beauty of moral courage and sacrifice. "
In reply to this welcoming address Rabindranath said;
" We try to find our own country even going to a foreign one and we see it in the surplus of the emotions of the people of that country. Lin said that the Chinese literature is tied in old coverage - similarly, the literature of his country was bound by the classical Sanskrit literature and was only approachable to a few learned persons.At the same time a folk literature for the illiterate villagers was circulated parallel amongst the local people. The writer of the classical literature usually collected their ingredients and inspiration from those literature. Those local languages was gradually changing without keeping any sample of it.
But some local dialect gradually changed to a higher level to give rise to literature.Here is Mr Kshitomohan Sen who always practiced medievel period Indian Literature and capable of informing you about the omprovement of liture from the 13th to 16th century. He has come to know that literature with his help. and " I was amazed to discover how modern thy wer, how full of genuine and earnest feelimg of life and beauty. All true things are ever modern and can never become obsolete."
In this long speech he described nicely the nature and sources of his literature. He pointed out something new which he did not mention anywhere earlier.His attempt to read Dante, to translate Hyne from its original writings by knowing German language, the failure of reading Foust of Gette etc were only expressed in this lecture.His role in writing songs and literature were marked as revolutionary. Lastly he said with pride;
" Please donot think I am vain. I can judge myself objectively and can openly express admiration for my own work, because I am modest. I donot hesitate to say that my songs have found their place in the heart of my land, along with her flowers that are never exhausted, and that the folk of the future, in days of joy or sorrow or festival, will have to sing them. This too is the work of a revolutionist."
