Between Battle and Bhakti: Cognitive Crisis and Spiritual Rebirth in Tagore’s Gitanjali and the Bhagavad Gita

Abstract

Rabindranath Tagore, a Nobel laureate and one of the defining voices in world literature, frequently engaged with India’s philosophical and spiritual heritage, drawing deeply from foundational texts like the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita. This research paper closely examines Tagore’s interpretation and creative recontextualization of the Bhagavad Gita, focusing especially on how he weaves its core themes into his poetry, prose, and broader philosophical outlook. By delving into textual comparisons, intertextual resonances, and Tagore’s own writings—most notably “Gitanjali”—this study demonstrates both Tagore’s fidelity to and his innovation upon the Gita’s teachings. Through a synthesis of spirituality, universalism, and poetic imagination, Tagore refashions the Gita’s doctrine of duty, detachment, and devotion for the modern world, emphasizing an inner transformation that transcends sectarianism, ritualism, and fatalism. The analysis traces the evolution of central ideas—dharma and cognitive crisis, the human-divine relationship, creative evolution, and the poeticization of surrender—illustrating Tagore’s singular role in rendering ancient Indian wisdom both globally accessible and existentially relevant.