"The present volume is the updated version of papers presented in an international conference in 2013 at Visva-Bharati, which was jointly funded by the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), New Delhi, and Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan"--Preface.

This volume explores the multifaceted genius of Rabindranath Tagore in rescuing the stagnant cultural life of Bengal from its many inhibitions. He was an ardent supporter of women's participation in dance and drama. He was a precursor of Indian abstract art. In education, he was heavily influenced by the New School Movement, teaching young children to live in harmony with nature. His works often explore the relationship between human experience, and the landscape and atmosphere and he mobilized the energy of his dedicated children (bratibalakas and bratibalikas) for rural resuscitation. A bitter critic of the aggressive nationalism of the West, he acted as a cultural mascot for the 'submerged nationalities' of war-ravaged East Europe. In this collection of essays, our contributors explore the works and legacy of a man much ahead of his time.