My Reminiscences

What It's About

My Reminiscences is Rabindranath Tagore's memoir of his early life, written in his fifties as a series of impressionistic recollections rather than a strict chronological record. He recalls his childhood within the large, culturally prominent Tagore household in Calcutta, his unconventional and often unhappy schooling, and the gradual awakening of his love for nature, language, and poetry.

Key Concepts

The book is shaped by Tagore's belief that memory works through vivid, isolated impressions rather than complete factual narrative, and it offers a window into the Bengal Renaissance, the intellectual and artistic flowering of 19th-century Bengal in which his own family played a central role.

About the Author

Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941) was a Bengali poet, writer, composer, and philosopher. In 1913 he became the first non-European to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. He was born into a prominent Calcutta family closely tied to the cultural and social reform movements of his era.

About This Edition

This is a 1917 translation by Surendranath Tagore.