Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high; / Where knowledge is free;
This is poem 35 of Gitanjali, a prayer for a country in which the mind is free of fear. It ends, “Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.” This is Tagore’s own English prose version, published in 1912.
I have had my invitation to this world’s festival, and thus my life has been blessed.
On the seashore of endless worlds children meet. The infinite sky is motionless overhead and the restless water is boisterous.
Thou hast made me endless, such is thy pleasure. This frail vessel thou emptiest again and again, and fillest it ever with fresh life.
A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.
A house divided against itself cannot stand.
The rank is but the guinea’s stamp, / The Man’s the gowd for a’ that.