My Reminiscence — Class 8 English (Samacheer Kalvi)
TN State Board (Samacheer Kalvi) Class 8 English, Prose 4, by Rabindranath Tagore. A poet's tender memories of the river and the beauty of Bengal.
1. About the lesson
My Reminiscence is an autobiographical prose piece by Rabindranath Tagore, written and published in his fiftieth year (1912). In it he recalls his childhood memories of the river Ganges and the beauty of Bengal.
2. Summary
After returning from his second voyage to England, Tagore went to stay with his elder brother Jyotirindra at Chandernagore in West Bengal. From his round tower room he could see only the treetops and the open sky. He recalls the lovely riverside days, comparing them to lotus blossoms floating down the stream, and the moonlit river.
For Tagore, the beauty of Bengal and the Ganges served as food and drink — it nourished his imagination and soul. The piece reveals him as a sensitive, observant, imaginative and deeply emotional person who saw nature not as mere scenery but as nourishment for the spirit.
3. Theme
The lesson celebrates the deep bond between a sensitive mind and nature — how natural beauty can feed the imagination and the soul like food and drink.
4. Glossary
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| reminiscence | a memory of the past |
| nourish | to feed and help grow |
| imagination | the power to form images and ideas in the mind |
| stream | a flowing body of water |
| sensitive | quick to feel and respond |
5. Book-back questions (Samacheer Kalvi)
A. Read and answer
- Who wrote My Reminiscence? — Rabindranath Tagore.
- With whom did Tagore stay at Chandernagore? — His brother Jyotirindra.
- What could Tagore see from his round tower room? — Only the treetops and the open sky.
- To what does Tagore compare his riverside days? — To lotus blossoms floating down the stream.
- What served as "food and drink" to the author? — The beauty of Bengal and the Ganges.
B. Think and answer 6. What kind of person does Tagore appear to be? — Sensitive, observant, imaginative and deeply emotional. 7. How did Tagore view nature? — Not as mere scenery but as nourishment for the soul.
6. Common mistakes
- Mistake: Saying Tagore stayed with his father. Fix: He stayed with his brother Jyotirindra at Chandernagore.
- Mistake: Taking "food and drink" literally. Fix: It means the beauty of nature nourished his imagination and soul.
- Mistake: Naming the wrong river. Fix: The lesson centres on the river Ganges and the beauty of Bengal.
7. Quick revision
- Prose 4 · My Reminiscence by Rabindranath Tagore (written in his 50th year, 1912).
- Tagore stays with his brother Jyotirindra at Chandernagore; sees only treetops and sky from his tower room.
- He recalls riverside days like lotus blossoms on the stream; the moonlit Ganges.
- The beauty of Bengal and the Ganges is "food and drink" — nourishment for the soul.
- Theme: nature feeds the sensitive, imaginative mind.
