Abhisara; The Tryst by Rabindranath Tagore is a profound poem that presents a fascinating contrast between the physical, material world, and the spiritual world. It explores themes of impermanence, the transient nature of all of life’s experiences, and compassion and empathy being the true wealth in life. Tagore, through beautiful contrasting imagery, presents an idyllic setting to the poem to elucidate how great men are not made by wealth and power, but by their ability to be compassionate and kind.
Abhisara; The Tryst | Summary & Analysis
Abhisara; The Tryst | Lines 1-7
UPAGUPTA,
the disciple of Buddha, lay asleep in
The dust by the city wall of Mathura.
Lamps were all out, doors were all shut, and stars
were all hidden by the murky sky of August.
Whose feet were those tinkling with anklets,
touching his breast of a sudden?
The poem begins with Upagupta, one of the disciples of Buddha, sleeping on the dust. The setting is an August nighttime in Mathura, and he is sleeping by the city wall. According to the Sanskrit text Ashokavadana, Upagupta is considered to be the spiritual teacher of the Mauryan emperor Ashoka; he is thus, what one can understand as a ‘great’ man. One gets a clear picture of his lonely life as an ascetic who lives aloof from the buzz of the city. Tagore begins the poem on a serene note; the image of a monk sleeping is tranquil and evokes divinity. Upagupta’s sleeping on the dust portrays how he has discarded all worldly pleasures and is content. Suddenly, one hears the tinkling of anklets and someone’s feet touch his chest. It is clear that some woman has stumbled upon the sleeping Upagupta.
Abhisara; The Tryst | Lines 8-12
He woke up started, and the light from a woman’s
lamp fell on his forgiving eyes. .
It was Vasavadatta the dancing girl, starred with jewels,
Clouded with a pale blue mantle, drunk with the wine of her youth.
She lowered her lamp and saw the young face, austerely beautiful.
Upagupta wakes up abruptly when he sees a woman standing with a lamp. By mentioning “forgiving eyes”, Tagore highlights the merciful nature of the monk and the calmness in his eyes. The woman who had stumbled on his body was Vasavadatta, the famous dancing girl. She was well known for her beauty and famed for her dance. She is “drunk with the wine of her youth”, meaning that she is proud of her youthful body and carries it in resplendent jewels. The poet describes Upagupta’s face as “austerely beautiful”; time and again, Tagore emphasizes the serene and tranquil aura of the hermit.
Abhisara; The Tryst | Lines 13-18
‘Forgive me, young ascetic,’ said the woman,
‘Graciously come to my house. The dusty Earth is not a fit bed for you.’
The young ascetic answered, ‘Woman, go on your way;
When the time is ripe I will come to you.’
Suddenly the black night showed its teeth in a flash of lightning.
The storm growled from the corner of the sky, and the woman trembled in fear.
Vasavadatta apologizes for tripping over his body and politely invites him to her house. She says that the dusty road is not a fit bed for a great man like him. Upagupta, however, asks her to go home and tells her that he will meet her only when the time comes. The statement is followed by a storm, which startles Vasavadatta; Tagore uses what Eliot notes as an objective correlative to foreshadow a future event. The weather suddenly becomes violent with Upagupta’s ominous words. This moment reveals Upagupta’s unwavering commitment to the spiritual path that he has undertaken, which is a reflection of his character.
Abhisara; The Tryst | Lines 19-24
A year had not yet passed.
It was evening of a day in April, in the Spring.
The branches of the wayside trees were full of blossom.
Gay notes of a flute came floating in the warm spring air from afar.
The citizens had gone to the woods for the festival of flowers.
From the mid-sky gazed the full moon of the shadows of the silent town.
Tagore then takes the reader to a blossoming spring scene a little shy of a year later. It is April, and trees are blossoming in nature. There is an ongoing festival of flowers, someone is playing a flute from afar. The scene is a happy one.
Abhisara; The Tryst | Lines 25-31
The young ascetic was walking in the lonely street,
While overhead the love-sick koels uttered from the mango branches their sleepless plaint.
Upagupta passed through the city gates, and stood at the base of the rampart.
What woman lay at his feet in the shadow of the mango grove?
Struck with the black pestilence, her body spotted with sores of smallpox,
She had been hurriedly driven away from the town
To avoid her poisonous contagion.
Upagupta is walking on the empty path and passes the city gates. It is here the reader encounters Vasavadatta again, but Tagore contrasts it with the imagery of spring in the previous lines; she is no longer the famed beauty, but a social pariah who is afflicted with smallpox, which has reduced her radiant skin to “black pestilence”. She is ailing and lonely, and her condition serves as a reminder of the transient and fleeting nature of life. Her material wealth is now no longer useful. What once was beautiful has now been reduced to dust.
Abhisara; The Tryst | Lines 32-36
The ascetic sat by her side, took her head on his knees,
And moistened her lips with water, and smeared her body with balm.
‘Who are you, merciful one?’ asked the woman.
‘The time, at last, has come to visit you, and I am
Here, Vasavdatta,’ replied the young ascetic.
Upagupta is not deterred; he remains unnerved by Vasavadatta’s present condition. He sits by her and comforts her, applying balm all over her body. He is kind and compassionate to her. While she has been driven away from society fearing contagion, Upagupta’s ominous words about ‘meeting her at the right time’ now spring to mind. His act of selflessness shows his profound understanding of the stark reality of life, the truth in Buddha’s teachings; change is the only constant, and thus all beings must be treated with compassion.
Abhisara; The Tryst confronts the reader with the harsh realities of life; the poet draws many contrasts throughout the story to portray human nature and the transience of material wealth in this world. It sheds light on the impermanence of worldly pleasures and emphasizes human qualities like kindness and compassion.
About the Poet
Rabindranath Tagore was born on 7 May 1861 to Debendranath Tagore and Sarada Devi. He belonged to the illustrious family of Tagores who were at the apex of the Bengal Renaissance. Tagore’s contribution to literature is unparalleled; he won the Nobel prize for his collection of poems, Gitanjali, the preface of which was written by William Butler Yeats. His famous works include Chokher Bali, The Home and the World, Gora, The Boat-Wreck, etc. He wrote poetry, songs (now known as Rabindra Sangeet), novels, short stories, non-fiction pieces, drama, and even dance dramas. He remains a much-celebrated literary icon, in India and abroad.
