I cannot remember my mother - Tagore

1. - Rabindranath Tagore

2.  He composed India’s
national anthem.
 He received noble prize
for literature in 1913 for
his collection of poems
called ‘Gitanjali’
 Tagore wrote primarily in
Bengali, but translated
many of his works into
English himself.

3.  Tagore’s writing is highly
imagistic, deeply religious and
imbued with his love of nature
and his homeland.
 His works are classics, renowned
for their lyrical beauty and
spiritual poignancy.
 His poems are actually song texts
as he composed a melody for
them.
 The musical aspect of poems is at
times lost in translation.

4. -Rabindranath Tagore

5. Tagore’s Childhood
Rabindranath Tagore was born in Calcutta in a
wealthy and prominent Brahman family. His
father was Maharishi Debendranath Tagore.
His mother Sarada Devi, died when he was very
young - her body carried through a gate to a
place where it was burned and it was the
moment when he realized that she will never
comeback.
Tagore started to compose poems at the age of
eight.

6. Shiuli flowers
A common small white flower which
appears around Puja season (September-
October), known as Chamomile in
English.

8. the tune of some song that she used to
hum while rocking my cradle.
I cannot remember my mother
only sometimes in the midst of my play
a tune seems to hover over my playthings,

10. I cannot remember my mother
but when in the early autumn morning
the smell of shiuli flowers floats in the air
the scent of the morning service in the temple
comes to me as the scent of my mother.

12. I cannot remember my mother
only when from my bedroom window I send
my eyes into the blue of the distant sky,
I feel that the stillness of my mother’s gaze on my face
has spread all over the sky.

14. READ AND ANSWER........
I cannot remember my mother
only sometimes in the midst of my play
a tune seems to hover over my playthings,
What is the poet doing when he
remembers his mother?
Ans. The poet was playing with his playthings
while he
remembers his mother.

15. I cannot remember my mother
only sometimes in the midst of my play
a tune seems to hover over my playthings,
What reminds him of her?
Ans. The sight of his playthings reminds the poet
of a tune hummed by his mother. This tune
reminds him of her.

16. I cannot remember my mother
only sometimes in the midst of my play
a tune seems to hover over my playthings,
When did his mother hum that song?
Ans. His mother hummed that song when she
rocked his cradle.

17. when in the early autumn morning
the smell of shiuli flowers floats in the air
the scent of the morning service in the
temple
comes to me as the scent of my mother.
What happens in the autumn which
reminds the poet of his mother?
Ans. Shiuli flowers bloom in autumn. Their
fragrance reminds the poet of his mother.

18. when in the early autumn morning
the smell of shiuli flowers floats in the air
the scent of the morning service in the
temple
comes to me as the scent of my mother.
What do you think the poet’s mother did
with the shiuli flowers?
Ans. She offered them in a prayer in the morning
service in the temple or wore them in her hair.

19. when in the early autumn morning
the smell of shiuli flowers floats in the air
the scent of the morning service in the
temple
comes to me as the scent of my mother.
What do you think would constitute “the
scent of the morning service in the
temple”?Ans. The fragrance of shiuli flowers and of the
incense burnt in the temple.

20. Why do you think the poet does not
remember his mother?
Ans. The poet probably lost his mother when he
was rather young, so he cannot recall her face.

21. Why does the poet say ‘I feel that the
stillness of my mother’s gaze on my face
has spread all over the sky?
Ans. On a clear day, when the sky is peaceful
and serene, the poet feels the presence of his
mother and imagines that she is gazing down
lovingly at him.

22. Which of the following activity does not
remind the poet of his mother?
a) Humming a song
b) Praying in the temple
c) Looking at the image of his mother
d) Gazing at the sky

23. I cannot remember my mother
only when from my bedroom window I send
my eyes into the blue of the distant sky,
a) Blue sky
b) Bedroom window
c) Blue
d) Sky
Where did the poet lookat?

24. when in the early autumn morning
the smell of shiuli flowers floats in the air
the scent of the morning service in the temple
comes to me as the scent of my mother.
a) Smell of shiuli flowers
b) Smell of autumn leaves
c) Smell of morning service in the temple
d) Both (a) and (c)
Which smell reminds the poet of his mother?

25. Poetry is a powerful way of
expressing feelings and ideas.
Poets use a variety of devices to
convey these feelings and ideas

26.  Imagery or use of description to create an
image in the mind of reader is the poetic
device used in this poem.
 Imagery gives sensory impressions and lends
vividness to the poem.
 In this poem the poet creates beautiful
images related to sight, sound and smell.

27. Visual images Aural images Images related to
smell
The child’s playthings The tune of some song
that the mother used
to hum while rocking
the child’s cradle
The smell of shiuli
flowers
Mother rocking his
cradle
The scent of morning
service in the temple
The blue of the distant
sky
The scent of his
mother