Sarama and Her Children

by Bibek Debroy

  Dogs are depicted sympathetically in Rabindranath Tagore’s works, although there is no explicit record of Tagore having ever possessed a pet dog of his own. They exist implicitly. In an account of his childhood in Chelebela, there is of course mention of a family dog named Johnny. But in the main autobiography, Jibansmriti, there is no mention of a pet dog. However, one of Tagore’s teachers, when he went abroad, was a gentleman named Barker, and Barker’s wife possessed a dog. When Barker wished to punish his wife, he punished this dog. This anecdote is presented slightly differently in the essay “Europe Pravasir Diary”. Tagore describes his stay as a paying guest in his teacher’s household. The teacher had a dog named Tiny and vented all his rage on Tiny rather than on humans. Tiny was always kicked and scolded if he moved. Jibansmriti also tells us that Tagore managed to secure an essay titled “Yama’s dogs” from Rajendralal Mitra, for publication in the magazine Bharati. Referring to an earlier period, when Tagore was still a child, Jibansmriti talks about Tagore imagining how to fight his enemies and one possible option was to train and use fierce animals like tigers and dogs in his imagined army. Nirmalakumari Mahalanobis’s reminiscences also mention Tagore’s fondness for dogs. Nirmalakumari Mahalanobis was Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis’s (1893–1972) wife and this was also a brahmo family. She talks about a red-coloured stray named Lalu. Lalu was not a pet, but Tagore adopted him and named him Lalu because he was red in colour. Lalu would come at breakfast time and wait for Rabindranath Tagore to finish his breakfast. As long as Tagore’s breakfast was going on, Lalu would look away at the road, pretending not to be interested in the food. Once his breakfast was over, Tagore would call Lalu and offer him a piece of bread, which he would accept and quietly go away. And Lalu was very sensitive. If anyone called him greedy or scolded him, Lalu would refuse food. Once, when Lalu was called greedy, he disappeared for an entire day. When Tagore came to visit the Mahalanobis family, he often scolded them for not taking their pet dog with them when they went out. The poor dog would be miserable and would go out to the balcony, waiting for the couple to return. For all he knew, his owners had left him and gone away. Tagore thought that one should not keep a dog if the pet was going to be subjected to such miseries.

  In one of Tagore’s songs, a young girl possesses a dog named Kalu. A boy named Madho has a dog named Batu and together, they chase lizards and squirrels. In another poem, a young boy asks his mother, ‘What would have happened had I been a puppy and tried to eat the rice off your plate? Would you have shooed me off?’ In many poems, there are references to neighbourhood dogs. In the collection Kanika, there is a poem about a dog being envious if anything in the universe attempts to attract his master’s attention. The master’s lap is meant for the dog alone and the only thing in the world that should move is the dog’s tail. And if other things in the world move, the dog barks in protest. In the collection Palataka, a dog sorrows over the disappearance of his master and companion. This imagery of a dog without a master occurs in several of Tagore’s poems. In a nonsensical poem in the collection Khapchara, Beni’s car is being driven by Mukherji. In an attempt to save a dog, the car goes and hits a lamp-post. There is a poem by Tagore, about Guru Ramananda. It is dawn and Guru Ramananda has gone to the Ganga to have a bath, accompanied by his disciple. But the bath is incomplete, as the guru still thinks he is impure inside. Eventually, Guru Ramananda climbs out of the river and much to the consternation of the disciple, heads towards a village populated by outcastes, cobblers and leather-workers. You can smell leather, and a lean dog chews on a bone. Appalled, the disciple stays outside the village. But Guru Ramananda embraces a cobbler named Bhajan and is purified inside. He had committed the error of bypassing the village on his way to the Ganga and now that he rectifies this error, there is no need to go to the temple any more. The dogs in Tagore’s poems are usually dogs in rural settings, Indian and indigenous dogs, often strays. This is in marked contrast to dogs in his novels and short stories. The novels usually depict urban and foreign dogs. In terms of sympathies, Tagore clearly was fonder of stray and indigenous dogs. Perhaps his attitude is best expressed in a poem titled “Cheleta” in the collection Punashcha. The last lines of this poem are, ‘Have I ever been able to write the true account of the frog or the tragedy of that stray dog?’

  There are dogs in eight of Tagore’s novels—Gora, Chaturanga, Naukadubi, Bou-Thakuranir Haat, Malancha, Jogajoga, Rajarshi and Shesher Kabita. Dogs have no major role in Rajarshi, although they are mentioned several times in passing, often in derogatory tones and in conjunction with jackals. There are even fewer references in Bou-Thakuranir Haat, and again, in conjunction with jackals. In Chaturanga, there was only an indirect reference to dogs. Naukadubi has a passing reference to village dogs, but Yogendra possesses a dog named Punch and Yogendra is a brahmo. Malancha has a couple named Niraja and Aditya, Aditya being described by his friends as a ‘lucky dog’ when he got married. The couple possessed a dog named Dolly. Actually, Dolly belonged to Aditya. Once Aditya got married, Dolly had to share Aditya with Niraja and became more attached to Niraja than to Aditya. Dolly would not like it when Aditya and Niraja went out for a drive and would wait near the door for their return. When they were late, Dolly would raise her head and howl. Dolly fell ill and died, with her head in Niraja’s lap. This happened towards the beginning of the novel and the dog had no further role in the story. In Jogayoga, Vipradasa possessed a terrier, named Tom, apart from references in the novel to neighbourhood dogs, or a puppy being tied up in a neighbour’s stable. When a railway station was described in the novel, there was also a description of a three-legged stray dog, the kind of dog that occurred in Tagore’s poems. There is a nomadic tribe known as the bedes, and Jogayoga also has a rhyme attributed to the bedes, about dogs licking a weed. This rhyme was important enough for Tagore to also cite it in his autobiography, that is, the part concerning his childhood (Chelebela). The weeds Conyza lacera and Blumea lacera are supposed to be liked by dogs. In another place in the novel, an oil painting is mentioned, with a scene of a stag being chased by hunting dogs. Tom slept under Vipradasa’s chair or his bed and there is a description of Tom greeting Kumu when she returned home. Indeed, Jogayoga ends with a reference to Tom. Kumu has gone away and Tom is crying under the bed. He has seen Kumu go away and has understood something, but is unable to express what he has understood. In Shesheer Kabita, Katy possessed a dog named Tabby, the description suggesting that it was an Apso. When Tabby dirtied other people’s clothes, Katy tapped him on the nose and said, ‘Naughty dog.’ When Katy was upset at being slighted, she did take it out on the dog by tweaking his ears. There are passing mentions in Gora also, for instance, references to cats and dogs. But a dog plays a more important role in Gora. Satish asks Binoy, ‘By the way, Binoy-babu, don’t you have a dog?’ ‘Dog, no, I don’t have a dog,’ Binoy smilingly replied. ‘Why, why didn’t you keep a dog?’ asked Satish. ‘I have never thought of a dog,’ replied Binoy. However, Satish possessed a small dog, black and white in colour and with fuzzy hair. This dog was named Khude (small) and on a subsequent occasion, Satish showed Binoy all the tricks that Khude could perform. He could raise a paw and salute, bow down on the ground and perform pranam and beg for a biscuit. Satish appropriated all the credit. Khude did not mind. He wanted the tangible biscuit more than the intangible credit. In a subsequent part of the novel, it became clear that this dog was actually a puppy and it also became clear that dogs like Khude were not exactly welcome everywhere. However, Khude was always with Satish and perhaps one should highlight the fact that Satish was brought up as a brahmo. When Binoy got married, there was a special invitation card for Khude, written on red paper. Reflecting the milieu described, the owned (as opposed to stray) dogs in Tagore’s novels are urban rather than rural and foreign and pedigreed, rather than indigenous. And their names are therefore Dolly, Tom and Tabby, Khude being an exception.

  Fifteen of Tagore’s stories—Karuna, Namanjur Galpa, Pratham Chithi, Badnam, Vijnani, Vidus
hak, Minu, Megh O Roudra, Rashmanir Chhele, Laboratory, Sampatti Samarpan, Se, Guptadhan, Haldargoshthi, Aapad—have dogs. In “Karuna”, whenever Narendra returns to his village, he brings two or three dogs with him, presumably of the foreign and pedigreed variety, and these dogs prove to be a general nuisance in the neighbourhood. However, in “Namanjur Galpa”, we have a stray and diseased dog of the indigenous variety, which seeks refuge in the verandah. Its hair has fallen off, the bones can be seen under its skin and it is close to death. In “Pratham Chithi”, when the husband is abroad, there is a passing reference to four English women and two dogs, out on a walk. In “Badnam”, the inspector’s wife, who does not have any children, possesses a dog that only eats cutlets and puddings. In “Vijnani”, there is a pet dog that tears up slippers. In “Vidushaka”, there is only a stray reference to dogs and jackals. In “Minu”, Minu used to love and feed all the dogs in the neighbourhood, including both owned dogs and strays. There was one particular dog that had its nose bashed in and was therefore known as Bhonta (blunt). Minu made a beaded necklace for Bhonta to wear around his neck. In “Megh O Roudra”, there is only a passing reference to a British joint magistrate visiting a village, with constables, cooks, horses and dogs in tow. In “Rashmanir Chhele”, there is again a passing reference to dogs and jackals and to food being rendered unsuitable for eating because a dog has touched it. In “Laboratory”, Professor Mallik returns home to find his wife Sohini bathing and towelling a stray dog that has lost its hair and has only bones to show. It was run over by a car and Sohini has bandaged its broken leg. This, according to her, is a far better way of performing dharma than sacrificing goats to the goddess Kali, and Sohini plans a hospital for blind and lame dogs and rabbits. In “Sampatti Samarpan”, there is only a passing reference to dogs barking. In “Se”, there are references to neighbourhood dogs barking and two specific dogs—Tommy and a bulldog named Freddy. In “Guptadhan”, Mrityunjaya has got interred in search of wealth and is going to die. He remembers the world and his home, where it is now evening. The village wives are lighting evening lamps and bells are ringing in the temples. Their dog Bhola is sleeping in the courtyard, curled up, so that his tail is touching his head. In “Haldargoshthi”, Banwari owns a dog, obviously of the foreign and breeded variety. He remembers that when the dog was newly bought, it would often have to be whipped. One day, the whip was lost and Banwari could not find it. But the dog found the whip and brought it to Banwari, wagging its tail in anticipation. Since then, Banwari has never been able to whip the dog. The novels usually depict urban and foreign dogs. In “Aapada”, Nilkanta has a pet Indian dog, which is actually described as a gramya (rural) dog. When he is angry, he takes it out on the dog by unnecessarily kicking it. The way this story ends is very similar to the way the novel Jogajoga ends. When Nilkanta goes away, that pet rural dog gives up its food and wanders around, near the banks of the river, howling and searching. Dogs do not have a major role to play in the short stories, but they are a part of the scene. Narendra’s, the inspector’s wife’s, the joint magistrate’s and Banwari’s dogs are of the foreign variety. The rest are indigenous, often strays.

  Ten of Tagore’s plays, Arupratan, Kaler Jatra, Grihapravesh, Goray Galad, Natir Puja, Rakta Karabi, Raja, Shodhbodh, Daakghar and Falguni mention dogs. In Arupratan, there is only a passing reference to dogs through the standard phrase pather kukur (dogs on roads). In Kaler Jatra, there is again only a passing reference to cats and dogs, in an independent piece titled “Kabir Diksha”. In Grihapravesh, Mani has a puppy and feeds it milk through a syringe. There are references to Mani throwing balls into the water and the puppy fetching it and references to other dogs, such as dogs stealing food if the larder door is left often. In Goray Galad, there is a metaphorical allusion to dogs that frequent cremation grounds and feed on dead bodies. In Natir Puja, there is an allusion to forms of punishment where one’s flesh is torn apart by dogs and in Rakta Karabi, there is only a single reference to dogs being whipped. In Raja, dogs are mentioned as instruments of punishment and there are also references to roadside dogs. In Shodhbodh, Nellie owns a dog named Tom, whom she indulges. In Daakghar, Amala describes a home scene that is exactly like the scene imagined by Mrityunjay in the short story “Guptadhana”. In the afternoon, after everyone has eaten, the uncle goes out and the aunt goes to sleep, after having read the Ramayana. In the courtyard, their small dog sleeps, tail tucked into its mouth. In Falguni, there is only a mention of a faraway dog barking in a horrible voice.

  The lame dog recurs in Tagore’s essays. In Anubad-Charcha, he discusses the use of conjunctions in Bengali and uses the example: ‘He is a schoolmaster and he has a lame dog.’ In the same essay, dogs are also used to show other examples of conjunctions. Dogs also figure in the essays “Dhanyatmak Shabda”, “Bangla Krit O Tadhitt”, “Bangla Chhander Prakriti”, “Strilinga”, “Sahityer Swarup”, “Dub Deoa”, “Tarkik” and “Tero”. In “Manusher Dharma”, there are references to cats and dogs, and to puppies playing with their tails. In “Rasikatar Phalaphala”, mad dogs are mentioned. In “Sriniketaner Itihas O Adarsha”, a companion with dogs is made to illustrate the villagers’ subservience. In “Sarojini Prayan”, there are references to lean village dogs, as well as a plump and well-fed pet dog, sleeping on a doormat. In “Chithipathra”, when discussing Sita’s following of Rama, the question is asked whether Sita followed Rama unquestioningly, like a dog following its master. In “Dharmer Adhikar”, while discussing untouchability, dogs are mentioned.

  The essays also have references to dogs or attitudes in other countries. In “Abhyasajanita Parivartan”, there is a mention of Herbert Spencer’s views, to the effect that if dogs or horses with good pedigrees lose a limb or become lame, they can still be used for breeding and the defect does not pass on to the next generation. In “Sangeet O Bhav”, repeated in “Sangeeter Utpatti O Upayogita”, Spencer is quoted again. When a tied-up dog sees its master from a distance, it gently wags its tail, in the hope of being released. As the master nears, the tail is wagged more and the body begins to shake. When the master touches the leash in a desire to free the dog, the dogs jumps around so much that it becomes impossible to free it. And when it is eventually completely released, it jumps around all over the place in delight. In “Engraj O Bharatbasi”, the British cantonments are compared (this is not Tagore’s own comparison) to oases in the middle of a vast Indian desert and the deserts are populated, among other things, by pariah dogs. In “Engrajdiger Adab-kaida”, there is the advice that one should not take one’s favourite dog along when going to visit someone. The dog may soil a lady’s gown or sleep on the velvet couch or fight with the host’s cat, not to forget unnecessary barking. In “Chine Maraner Vyavasah”, when the opium trade is being discussed, the metaphor of the English calling off their dogs is used. In “Java Jatrir Patra”, there is a mention of village dogs in Java. In “Vaijanik Sambad”, it is mentioned that mosquitoes in Alaska are so dangerous that they often kill off dogs. Eskimo dogs are discussed at great length in “Anubad Charcha”. In “Dharmabodher Drishtanta”, the practice of letting dogs loose after American slaves is mentioned. In “Norman Jati O Anglo-Norman Sahitya”, Tagore mentions a Hungarian king’s blessings to his daughter, a daughter who is about to get married. Among other things, the princess will get several pet dogs to play with. In “Bhikshayam Naiva Naiva Cha”, it is mentioned that when the Germans invaded Paris during the Franco-Prussian war, the Parisians were forced to eat dogs and horses.

  Tagore used dogs in his textbooks Engraji Path, Engraji Sopan and Engraji Sahajsiksha. The first two parts of the textbook Sahaj Path are by Tagore. The illustrations are by the famous artist Nandalal Bose (1882–1966). The letters U and UU are in the form of dogs and are barking. There is a picture post card, sent by Nandalal Bose on 22 September 1966, with the picture drawn by the artist himself. This shows a mother dog with two sucking puppies. Incidentally, Nandalal Bose also painted a picture known as Yudhishthira’s ascent to heaven and
this shows the dog also. Nandalal Bose’s friend and contemporary was the painter Priyanath Sinha. One of Priyanath Sinha’s paintings shows the dialogue between Yama and Nachiketa, with Yama accompanied by Shyama and Shabala.

  The tenth lesson in the first part of Sahaj Path has the dog Bhonda, and Bhonda is chased away by a stone. The tenth lesson in the second part of Sahaj Path has a puppy that is howling so much that one cannot sleep. The third and the fourth parts of Sahaj Path are not by Tagore alone. But they are published by Visva Bharati, so that these textbooks have official sanction. In the third part of Sahaj Path, there is a lesson by Tanayendranath Ghosh, about the evolution and use of dogs. This lesson especially focuses on the Collie and the St Bernard as breeds. The message that comes across for students is that the dog is a friendly and useful creature. In the fourth part of Sahaj Path, there is a lesson by the same author, almost like a sequel. This lesson focusses on the Pointer and the Bulldog. In children’s nursery rhymes, dogs do not figure as much as other animals do. But they are there. Tagore collated some of these rhymes in a collection known as Chelebhulono Chara. In one of these rhymes, a stray dog sleeps on a pile of ash. In another, a black dog sleeps in a straw hut.