WRT: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mukto-mona/message/27169

I feel like breaking my head ...

Sada Kamail's write up on Mrinal in Stir Patra is completely bogus, that I have
proved in my rebuttal..( firstly Mrinal did launch enough verbal salvo against
her husband and co..her state ment was just a satire..secondly, she was looking
for supreme liberation..as it will be clear from the end of her letter ...)
http://www.mukto-mona.com/Articles/biplab_pal/Rabi2.pdf

Secondly, I am surprised that he mentioned Tagore as 'prominent poet'.....!!!!
Can he name any writer from Bengal who can seat in the league of Chekov, Gorky,
Tolstoy, Moravia..??

Thirdly, Tagore never preached a religion. What is there to be apologetic if
Sada Kamali himself never understood Tagore! Question of being apologetic can be
raised only if he is interpreted correctly...

Finally, in Tagoere's lecture on Ramabai, what I understood is simple:

[1] His 'feudal-like' thinking is a result of 'forced extension' of spiritualism
in the family and society. Muhammad, Christ..all the preachers did the same
mistakes of creating a religion by 'imposition of spiritualism' into the
society--thus consolidating the base of feudalism from socio-economic
perspective. However, note that, he said it is his humble opinion!

Problem is, based on just this piece, we can not call him feudal either because
there are 'n' number of examples where he advocated for socialism.

[2] His anti-feminist attitude in this piece has nothing to do with
Victorian..not even by furthest imagination.

It is quite clear, he is basing his arguments on 'Karma Yoga' i.e...Hindu
concept of salvation through treating your job or assigned duty as equivalent to
true worshiping and prayer..There is nothing Victorian about it. However, as he
extends this spiritual logic in relationship to how a wife should accept her
husband as her master, he definitely sounds feudal.This was his mistake in this
piece because in true sense, he was not that pro-feudal (indeed, he exposed the
cruelty of Bengal Zamindari system more than anybody...)

[3] Thirdly, Tagore didn't and could not influence Bengalis as much as we are
thinking. Only middle-class Bengalis who comprise of may be 30-40% of the
population know who he is and perhaps only between 2-5% of the Bengali's opinion
and mindset have been seriously influenced by Tagore.

Shri Chaitanya, who is the forefathers of all the Baishnavites, Bengali-Sufis,
Baouls..etc..Sahajia culture has much deeper penetration among lower and poor
Bengalis.

-Biplab