I Am Restless
I am restless.
I am athirst for far-away things.
My soul goes out in a longing
to touch the skirt of the dim distance.
O Great Beyond, O the keen call of thy flute!
I forget, I ever forget,
that I have no wings to fly,
that I am bound in this spot evermore.
I am eager and wakeful,
I am a stranger in a strange land.
Thy breath comes to me whispering an impossible hope.
Thy tongue is known to my heart as its very own.
O Far-to-seek, O the keen call of thy flute!
I forget, I ever forget,
that I know not the way,
that I have not the winged horse.
I am listless,
I am a wanderer in my heart.
In the sunny haze of the languid hours,
what vast vision of thine takes shape in the blue of the sky!
O Farthest end, O the keen call of thy flute!
I forget, I ever forget,
that the gates are shut everywhere in the house
where I dwell alone!
-Rabindranath Tagore
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Lover's Gifts IV: She Is Near to My Heart
She is near to my heart
as the meadow-flower to the earth;
she is sweet to me
as sleep is to tired limbs.
My love for her is my life
flowing in its fullness,
like a river in autumn flood,
running with serene abandonment.
My songs are one with my love,
like the murmur of a stream,
that sings with all its waves and current.
-Rabindranath Tagore
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Death
O thou the last fulfilment of life,
Death, my death, come and whisper to me!
Day after day I have kept watch for thee;
for thee have I borne the joys and pangs of life.
All that I am, that I have, that I hope and all my love
have ever flowed towards thee in depth of secrecy.
One final glance from thine eyes
and my life will be ever thine own.
The flowers have been woven
and the garland is ready for the bridegroom.
After the wedding the bride shall leave her home
and meet her lord alone in the solitude of night.
-Rabindranath Tagore
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