The day was when I did not keep myself

by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941)

Translation by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941)

The day was when I did not keep myself

Language: English after the Bangla (Bengali)

Our translations: GER

The day was when I did not keep myself 
in readiness for thee; 
and entering my heart unbidden 
even as one of the common crowd, 
unknown to me, my king, 
thou didst press the signet of eternity 
upon many a fleeting moment of my life.

And today when by chance 
I light upon them and see thy signature, 
I find they have lain scattered 
in the dust mixed with the memory 
of joys and sorrows of my trivial days forgotten.

Thou didst not turn in contempt 
from my childish play among dust, 
and the steps that I heard 
in my playroom are the same 
that are echoing from star to star.

About the headline (FAQ)

Text Authorship:

by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941), no title, appears in Gitanjali, no. 43, first published 1912 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Based on:

a text in Bangla (Bengali) by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941), no title, appears in গীতাঞ্জলি (Gitanjali), no. 43 [text unavailable]
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Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

[ None yet in the database ]

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

Also set in Dutch (Nederlands), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Aleidus Coenen.
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Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Claus Ogermann.
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Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2005-01-17
Line count: 17
Word count: 111