Tagore letter to philosopher Shishir Kumar Maitra going under the hammer for first time
Times of India | 28 August 2025
Kolkata: A handwritten and signed letter from Rabindranath Tagore, dated Oct 29, 1921, is going under the hammer for the first time. Addressed to philosopher Shishir Kumar Maitra—then recovering in Darjeeling—the Bengali letter, preserved with its original envelope, Santiniketan postmark, and 1 Anna green India postage stamp, is both personal and profound. In the letter, Tagore praises Maitra's essay on his philosophy and also voices his frustration with English translations of his work, calling British readers "an insular race" and expressing a preference for publishing in German. Written just weeks before Visva-Bharati's inauguration, the letter reflects Tagore's evolving vision for global education.
The estimated price of this letter at the AstaGuru Manifest auction on Aug 29-30 is between Rs 10 lakh-Rs 12 lakh. Tagore scholar Pabitra Sarkar described this letter as a "historically important document". "It must be preserved well. Visva-Bharati must have a copy of this letter too," said Sarkar.
Addressed to the young philosopher Shishir Kumar Maitra — then recovering at Lowis' Jubilee Sanitarium in Darjeeling — this letter responds to an essay Maitra had written on Tagore's thought process. "Maitra was a notable Indian philosopher who offered insightful interpretations of Sri Aurobindo's spiritual and metaphysical vision and engaged deeply with Western philosophy, drawing on thinkers such as Bergson, William James, and Whitehead to connect traditions effectively. Maitra was shaped by the influence of his father — a liberal-minded professor of English literature at Dacca, Presidency, and Ravenshaw Colleges, and an admirer of Tagore. As head of the department of philosophy and later dean of the faculty of arts at Banaras Hindu University, Maitra contributed significantly to shaping philosophical discourse in modern India. Bridging tradition and modernity, Maitra brought Indian thought into dialogue with global ideas and left behind a legacy of intellectual rigor and spiritual insight," said Sunny Chandiramani, director, client relations, AstaGuru.
| Gold Rates Today in Kolkata | Silver Rates Today in KolkataIn the letter, Tagore writes: "Many have spoken and written about my words, but I have not come across anything that addresses them so succinctly and with such clarity.
" He notes that Maitra's essay closely mirrors a recent institutional document he had written on Visva-Bharati and promises to send a copy. Shifting from intellectual praise to cultural critique, Tagore expresses his discomfort with English translations of his work, offering a pointed assessment of British readers: "They are an insular race. If you remove as much foreignness as possible... they will understand and appreciate it—otherwise, they tend to reject it outright". He connects this observation to CF Andrews, who had carried Maitra's English writings to East Africa. Tagore speculates that Andrews, whom he describes jokingly as a representative of English sensibility, may have dismissed the translation due to this cultural insularity.
His conclusion proves revealing: he expresses growing reluctance to publish English translations, preferring instead to publish in German and circulate his work on the European continent first. This strategic pivot illuminates Tagore's evolving approach to translation and reception in the post-Nobel years. The letter's date falls just weeks before the formal inauguration of Visva-Bharati as a university on Dec 7, 1921 — a moment that marked Tagore's transition from poet and thinker to institution builder. "At this time, he was intensely focused on articulating Visva-Bharati's ideals as a space for global and indigenous learning outside the colonial university system. Few surviving documents encapsulate with such intimacy and depth the spirit of a moment when Tagore's personal reflections intertwined with the institutional and cultural milestones that would shape his enduring legacy," Chandiramani added.
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