Question

Summary of endless time by rabindranath tagore

Answer 1

Time is endless in thy hands, my lord.

There is none to count thy minutes.

Days and nights pass and ages bloom and fade like flowers.

Thou knowest how to wait.

Thy centuries follow each other perfecting a small wild flower.

We have no time to lose,

and having no time we must scramble for a chance.

We are too poor to be late.

And thus it is that time goes by

while I give it to every querulous man who claims it,

and thine altar is empty of all offerings to the last.

At the end of the day I hasten in fear lest thy gate be shut;

but I find that yet there is time.

– Rabindranath Tagore

Background:

Rabindranath Tagore is one of the greatest poets and writers in modern Indian literature. In this poem he speaks about the nature of time. We mortal beings believe that time has certain limitations and we usually feel the need to accomplish a lot before our life comes to an end as we believe that there is time only till we meet our death. The poet presents the idea that time is endless and is in the hands of the almighty, who is the creator. He further adds that for God there is no limit to time as he has seen centuries pass by and will continue to do so for centuries to come. Time is infinite for the almighty. We mortals seem to be in a hurry to do as much as possible, fearing that we might be late to do certain things and may lose out on certain opportunities. In doing so, we tend to get impatient when we feel like time is running out of our hands and yet there is a lot to achieve. The poet wants to convey that time is divine, yet one must not cling to it. We must value time as it is a precious thing but must also learn to live for the moment.

Structure:

The poem has been written in Early Modern English as we can see the use of words like ‘thy’, ‘thou’ and ‘thine’. It has no rhymes or a regular rhythm.

Metaphor has been used in the poem. The comparison of passing of ages to the ‘blooming and fading of flowers’ and centuries passing by like a ‘small wild flower’, are two such examples.

The poet uses a sarcastic tone in the stanza where he says ‘we have no time to lose’ as he is indicating the impatience of men and is actually speaking about the infinite nature of time.

The last line of the poem leaves the reader with a sense of uncertainty as the poet might hint at the metaphysical aspects of reincarnation or afterlife. He may also simply mean to say that the doors of God are always open for everyone.

Answer 2

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$\huge\bf\orange{Time}$

The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough.

Time is a wealth of change, but the clock in its parody makes it mere change and no wealth.

Let your life lightly dance on the edges of Time like dew on the tip of a leaf.