Nirodbaran

Talks with Sri Aurobindo

Volume 1

10 December 1938 – 14 January 1941

18 February 1940

Purani brought a collection of Nandalal Bose’s and Abanindranath Tagore’s paintings for Sri Aurobindo’s inspection.

Sri Aurobindo (after seeing one or two of Abanindranath’s): Obviously, on the whole he is a greater artist than Nandalal.

Purani: Jayantilal says that in some individual paintings Nandalal has shown greater genius, and he considers him potentially a greater artist than Tagore but his potentialities haven’t fulfilled themselves.

Sri Aurobindo: Abanindranath has more force of imagination and a greater power of expression.

Purani: Jayantilal says that he doesn’t hold the modernist view of art.

Sri Aurobindo: Art for the mass?

Purani: Yes, he is more aristocratic and conservative. How do you find Gaganendranath Tagore?

Sri Aurobindo: He has rather a brilliant fancy than true imagination. Sometimes he is imaginative, but mostly he is fanciful. In Bengal art, these are the three great artists.

Purani: Gandhi is now going to Shantiniketan. It seems the tie between Gandhi and Tagore will get stronger now. You know that it was through Gandhi that Tagore got Rs. 60,000 for his Shantiniketan. When Gandhi went to Delhi and saw that Tagore had come there at such an old age to collect money, he said to him, “You go back. I will arrange for the money.” And he asked Birla to pay the sum. In America people generously donate money for such public things.

Sri Aurobindo: Yes.

Nirodbaran: But in America people who give away their wealth are businessmen.

Sri Aurobindo: Yes, but they know something of life too.

Purani: Gandhi has come out with a strong comment on Zetland’s statement. He says, “If such is the mentality of Englishmen I don’t see why I should pray for their victory.”

Sri Aurobindo: I see! Zetland is making blunders. If he had left it to Linlithgow, he would have managed it much better.