by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941)
Translation by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941)

The child who is decked with prince's...
Language: English  after the Bangla (Bengali) 
Our translations:  GER
The child who is decked with prince's robes
and who has jewelled chains round his neck 
loses all pleasure in his play; 
his dress hampers him at every step.

In fear that it may be frayed, 
or stained with dust 
he keeps himself from the world, 
and is afraid even to move.

Mother, it is no gain, 
thy bondage of finery, 
if it keeps one shut off 
from the healthful dust of the earth, 
if it rob one of the right of entrance 
to the great fair of common human life.

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Einsicht", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2010-11-03
Line count: 14
Word count: 91