K. J. Somaiya

Rabindranath Tagore has introduced mythical themes in his dramas with spiritual, materialistic, political and historical perspectives. A close study of Tagore’s major plays reveals that he probed deep into the mythological tales, legends and folklore and presented a wide range of fundamental human emotions. The plays Chitra, Karna and Kunti, Gandhari’s Prayer, etc. are based on mythical stories from Mahabharata, the great Indian epic. On the other hand, the themes of plays like Chandalika, Natir Puja are drawn from old Buddhist legends. The simple and sometimes bald episodes from the mythology are transformed by Rabindranath Tagore into vibrant and rich dramatic expressions full of deep psychological insight and vivid imagery. Tagore’s allegorical, philosophical and symbolic plays observe the theme of the realization of truth through the suffering and sorrow in the light of the ideology of Vaishnavism, Upanishads, Jada Bharata, Sankhya philosophy, finite and infinite. Keywords: Mahabharata, Buddhist legends, Vaishnavism, Upanishads, Jada Bharata, Sankhya philosophy, finite and infinite.