Analysis of The Gardener XXVIII: Your Questioning Eyes

Rabindranath Tagore 1861 (Kolkata) – 1941 (Kolkata)



Your questioning eyes are sad. They
seek to know my meaning as the moon
would fathom the sea.
    I have bared my life before your
eyes from end to end, with nothing
hidden or held back. That is why you
know me not.
    If it were only a gem, I could break
it into a hundred pieces and string
them into a chain to put on your neck.
    If it were only a flower, round and
small and sweet, I could pluck it from
its stem to set it in your hair.
    But it is a heart, my beloved.
Where are its shores and its bottom?
    You know not the limits of this
kingdom, still you are its queen.
    If it were only a moment of pleasure
it would flower in an easy smile, and
you could see it and read it in a
moment.
    If it were merely a pain it would
melt in limpid tears, reflecting its
inmost secret without a word.
    But it is love, my beloved.
    Its pleasure and pain are boundless,
and endless its wants and wealth.
    It is as near to you as your life, but
you can never wholly know it.


Scheme ABCDEFGHEIJKLMKNOPJQRSTUMVWXY
Poetic Form
Metre 11001111 111110101 11001 11111011 11111110 101111111 111 1101001111 1010101001 1010111111 1101001010 10111111 11111011 11101101 11110110 11101011 1011111 11010010110 1110011010 111101100 10 110100111 10110101 1100101 1111101 11001110 0101101 1111111111 11101011
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 971
Words 200
Sentences 15
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 29
Lines Amount 29
Letters per line (avg) 25
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 729
Words per stanza (avg) 198
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:00 min read
144

Rabindranath Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore FRAS was an Indian polymath—poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He reshaped Bengali literature and music as well as Indian art with Contextual Modernism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. more…

All Rabindranath Tagore poems | Rabindranath Tagore Books

7 fans

Discuss this Rabindranath Tagore poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Gardener XXVIII: Your Questioning Eyes" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 20 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/29591/the-gardener-xxviii%3A-your-questioning-eyes>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    May 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    11
    days
    11
    hours
    39
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Who wrote the poem "Fire And Ice"?
    A Robert Frost
    B Edgar Allan Poe
    C Gerard Manley Hopkins
    D Johann Wolfgang von Goethe