Where the mind is without fear by Rabindranath Tagore is one of his famous and most discussed poems. The poem was initially composed in Bengali possibly in 1900 under the title “Prarthana”, which means prayer. It appeared in the volume called ‘Naibedya’ in 1901. Later in 1911, Tagore himself translated the Bengali poem into English. That translation appeared as poem 35 in his Nobel winning anthology “Gitanjali” (Song Offerings) published by the Indian Society, London in 1912.

Ahead, is one of the best poetic pieces of literature that I have read in a long time. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

In this poem, Rabindranath Tagore expresses his love for his country and prays to God for its well being and enlightenment. In his prayer, the poet says that his countrymen should live without any kind of fear or oppression and hold their heads high with pride, dignity and self-reliance. There should be no discrimination based on caste, creed, race or religion. India must reach its goal of attaining freedom and being an ideal nation. The countrymen must possess noble thoughts and do away with all the superstitious beliefs that defy logic and reason. He also asks God to help his countrymen have noble thoughts and actions. He asks God to awaken them into this heaven-like place of an independent nation.

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