Santiniketan was under the open sky, liberating students in the lap of nature. But Visva-Bharati’s purpose is bigger. Forgetting the differences of race and religion, spreading universal knowledge is the practice. At the inaugural meeting of the Visva-Bharati Parishad at Santiniketan Amrakunj on 8 Poush 1326 (23 December 1921), Rabindranath Tagore , the poet expressed his desire to hand over Visva-Bharati to his friends: “I will hand it over to those who have benefactors of Visva-Bharati all over India and outside India, who have the same mindset, who will not hesitate to accept it.” It consists of the Visva-Bharati Parishad and the Visva-Bharati Management Executive Committee or ‘Sangsad’; the Constitution of Visva-Bharati was adopted. The meaning of the name ‘Visva-Bharati’ in the speech of the Brajendranath Seal Explanation: “Today is the day of the rise of Visva-Bharati here. According to Visva-Bharati, by that we mean that Bharati, who has been working unnoticed for so long, has come to light today. But there is another phonetic meaning in this too — the world will come to India, make that world Indian, soak it in our blood, inspire the great soul of India and present that soul to the world again. That is how the name Visva-Bharati has significance. ”
In the mind of the poet for a long time, the imagination of Visva-Bharati was germinating little by little, he said: The seed of this determination was rooted in my subconscious consciousness, which has gradually sprouted and awakened …. The ideology of this organization has awakened from the life I have lived since childhood. ” October 11, 1918 wrote to son Rathindranath from Los Angeles, Shantiniketan School is necessary to make India a source of connection with the world, to establish a center for the practice of international humanity there. The era of ethnic narrowness is coming to an end, “The first international gathering for the future will be held in the desert of Bolpur. I remember making that place past all ethnic geography — the first flag of all mankind will be planted there. ” In 1901, he established the Brahmacharya ashram at Santiniketan. In the planning phase of Visva-Bharati, he felt that human beings should be connected not only with nature, but also with human beings. He dreamed of a liberal meeting place without any distinction between country, nation, religion and language, where the light of knowledge would shine in the light of self-sacrifice of all nations. 8 th Poush 1325 (1918) Visva-Bharati was founded in Santiniketan. After chanting Vedic mantras, the poet throws rice, water and flowers in the pit of the foundation and men and women of different countries represent the world in the pit. The professors of Santiniketan and the men and women of the ashram were the students at that time. Even Rabindranath used to be present in some discussions. Within a few days, he wrote in a letter: “There is a lot of study and teaching here these days. Pali Prakrit Sanskrit Sinhalese Bengali English Philosophy Grammar Ornaments etc.”
The poet himself has joined the teaching work. It is good to remember the poet did not think that only the practice of pure knowledge will be the vehicle of education, he also added pictures and songs with it from the beginning. The idea of a complete form of humanity in the combination of knowledge and art was working in his mind. At the inception of Visva-Bharati, he resolved that if Visva-Bharati was established, Indian music and painting would be its main organ. In the first stage, the two met under the name of ‘Kalabhavan’, the illumination of two innate arts, the manifestation of one at the behest of the other. These later became separate ‘buildings’, art halls and music halls. One of the most important events of the establishment was the arrival of the French scholar Sylvan Levy at the request of the poet. He was the first foreign guest-professor in Visva-Bharati. He had taught French, Chinese, Tibetan and other subjects. In the field of education here, the poet wanted to invite the scholars of the East and the West who are engaged in the work of, discovery and creation with their own energy and pursuit. Naturally, the source of knowledge will come out in their meeting, the true university will be established. That institution will not be a fake of any foreign university. On the other hand, the university will cultivate, raise cows, weave cloth and adopt a cooperative system for its own financial gain and will be closely associated with the students, teachers and the people of the surrounding areas.
The poet’s intention was to build an open, all-encompassing field of learning; “I have proposed to name such an ideal school ‘Visva-Bharati’.” He hoped that the alumni would help to keep Visva-Bharati alive. He did not expect money from them; He simply said: “If in the future the ideal becomes weakened, the former should keep its vitality alive, succeed in its work with devotion and respect — I can go in peace only with this assurance. ” Money was constantly bothering him with the idea of defending the ideology of Visva-Bharati. It was not enough to meet the needs of the people from outside. The old poet was traveling around the country with his acting team for money. On one such trip (Delhi, 1936) Gandhi handed over a check for sixty thousand rupees collected from one of his fans to the poet. He said that it is not appropriate for a poet to go around for money at this age. Rabindranath has always known Gandhiji as a benefactor of Visva-Bharati. The last time Gandhi visited Santiniketan in 1940, a year before the poet’s death, the two discussed the future of Visva-Bharati. On the day of Gandhiji’s departure (February 19), the poet requested in a letter that in his absence, Gandhiji should keep an eye on Visva-Bharati; Gandhiji promised to help as much as possible in the letter. He showed the poet’s letter to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. When Maulana Azad was the Education Minister in independent India, he was reminded of that again. In this way and with the sincere interest of the poet’s son Rathindranath, Visva-Bharati became the first Central University of India in 1951; Acharya is Jawaharlal Nehru, Vice Chancellor Rathindranath. As the Prime Minister of India, Acharya, the solution of financial problems became much easier.
The shape and nature of Visva-Bharati has changed over time. Rabindranath understood that Visva-Bharati would not be the same in the future as it was at the beginning, or that the resolution which was started one day could not be repeated in the future. But he has repeatedly said that external adversity or change should not overwhelm the main goal. In India, the identity of his wholeness is found in the fragmentary identity of different nations. The full identity of the Indian is the identity of the diverse creations that have arisen in the combination of Hindu-Muslim in Indian literature, art, architecture, etc. In order to realize his complete identity in the education of India, one needs to pursue a place, whether that place of pursuit is Visva-Bharati. It was never the wish of the founder to make Visva-Bharati a mere traditional university; It is important to remember that this is not a success in competing with other universities. Visva-Bharati will be the meeting place of all nations-religions-languages, this is his purpose. Spatial-meeting in the second year for the smooth running of Visva-Bharati, Nasik-Sabha, Shikshasamiti, Karmasamiti etc. were formed. It is to be noted that the members of all these meetings and associations are not only the professors and staff here, but also the benefactors of Visva-Bharati and various dignitaries of the East and West are invited for various membership. Visva-Bharati’s international relations with the outside world gradually developed.
The poet interacted with eminent academics, many of whom later received hospitality from Visva-Bharati. Among them are Winternitz, Lesny, Bagdanov, MarkCollins etc. Numerous books and magazines came from France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, China, Japan, and the Visva-Bharati library was filled. The young Tan-Yun-shan came from China in 1928, mainly due to his efforts to establish the China-India Cultural Center China Bhavan (1937) in Visva-Bharati with Chinese money. Rabindranath thought that Visva-Bharati, like other universities in the country, would not be bound by the syllabus; Outside all the regimes of the university, it will become a meeting place of omniscience freely. The curriculum he proposed for the students in the hope that the students would take charge of it in the future is consistent with his plan a few years ago: all Indian learning, such as Vedic mythology, Buddhism, Jainism, etc., should be practiced in a timely manner in Visva-Bharati. Education will be true and complete only if all other education is based on the education of our country. He got the inspiration of this thought from Bidhusekhar Shastri.
All he wanted was Visva-Bharati will be the center of cultural practice. With a view to the full development of the mind, “I will acknowledge that all kinds of art, dance, lyric, drama and all the education and practice required for rural welfare belong to this culture,” said the poet. He believed that Visva-Bharati would connect India with the world in terms of culture. In this context, the performance of ‘Natir Puja’ at Jorasanko’s Thakurbari is a memorable step in the cultural history of Visva-Bharati and Bengal. The students here have been dancing for so many days. The choreography was confined to the confines of Santiniketan; This was the first time a girl from a decent family has been seen dancing on a public stage. The audience congratulated Nandalal’s teenage daughter Gauri Basu for her role as the actress in the play, which was performed with the help of Visva-Bharati. The size of Visva-Bharati has increased. Professors and staff have come from home and abroad, many students have come. This was first found in an educational institution, where one was teaching from school (Eastern Division) to undergraduate level (Northern Division) The final examination was conducted under the supervision of Calcutta University and followed the examination rules. The poet had to make this compromise in spite of his reluctance to keep pace with the conventional education system of the society. But the current management system does not always satisfy the poet. Visva-Bharati was not just an institution for him, it was creation, the most beloved creation.
Sources
https://journalsofindia.com/vishwa-bharati-shantiniketan-and-tagores-ideas-on-education/