We cannot design a festival;
if opportunity comes,
then
we can discover a festival.
Wherever Truth Manifests
in a beautiful way,
there, verily, is a festival.
That Manifestation -
when Is It ever stopped!
The bird becomes busy
since pre-dawn -
every single day -
to make it to its morning music festival,
in response to the everyday invitation it had had received earlier.
And,
to decorate the Morning Assembly of Joy
a Person in Darkness
makes so many secret arrangements
all night -
is there any limit to that!
Before getting into bed,
if we but see for once -
then
do we not see
the Huge Banner
of the Everyday Festival of the World -
spreading the Whole Sky -
someone has hung It all across?
Among these,
when is our festival?
The day we can make time -
on that day.
The day we suddenly realize
that
we have an Invitation
and
That Invitation is Dying every day.
That day we take a shower,
we dress up,
and we quickly get out of the house.
On that day,
in the morning of the festival day -
we look up towards the Sky, and say:
'Wow, today the light is so sweet, so pure!'
Hey Stupid,
when was this light not sweet,
when was it not pure?
You have emblazoned
a special sign
on a special day -
is that the only reason
why
the lamp of the Sky has burned brightly!
Nothing else -
today we have come to make the Invitation,
other days we haven't -
that's the only difference.
The arrangements
were just like this -
every day;
they are just like this -
every day.
That This World Is the Form of Bliss1 -
today I shall see This,
that is why I have come,
leaving all chores behind.
Not just that -
I, too, have given a release
to my Blissful Essence as well;
today I've said,
let the wrangling between credit and debit be ceased for a day -
let the distinction between 'I' and 'others' be obliterated for a day,
let all miserliness die today,
let all the opulence that is there be out today.
The Joy that Reigns everywhere
in water,
in land,
in sky -
That Joy
today I shall see
in the midst of my House of Joy.
The Festival that is the Festival of All -
That Festival
today I shall
make my own festival.
Not just in a single house of this Universe.
Its sundry houses
have made arrangements
for
sundry kinds of festivals.
With people -
without people -
in sundry places
the Festival has several different Moods -
several different Icons of Joy.
In the midst of this meadow -
spread out under the blue Sky -
the everyday festival of this
lovingly shaded, secluded hermitage -
we the residents of that hermitage -
have we ever participated
in That Festival
with the Sun and the Stars -
with the Rows of Trees and Plants?
Have we ever seen This Hermitage
in All Its Truth and Beauty?
We haven't.
Even while residing in the midst of This Hermitage,
every day morning
we have woken up in the midst of the World;
and every day night
we have lain down
in the lap of the World only.
364 days after -
today,
we the residents of the hermitage,
have come to see This Hermitage.
When the Sun was shining
in the Eastern Sky -
we haven't seen It then;
when filling the Sky
the Garland of Stars' Lamps
were all alight -
then too
we haven't seen It;
today, these few oil-lamps of ours -
these few gas-lamps of ours -
lighting these
we shall see It!
OK, let that be -
there is no harm in that.
If we want to participate in the Grand Festival of the Great God,
then
however much savings of light we have -
we too need to bring that out as well.
We shall see Him,
only with His Light -
if it were the case,
then
things would have settled
easily.
But,
this much
He Has Made us promise
that
our lamps, too, shall need to be lighted;
otherwise, the Visit shall not happen2,
the Union shall not take place -
the ego He Has Given us,
that is just for this.
Lighting the fire of ego,
we shall make the Torch of the Grand Festival.
That is why -
to see the ever-awake Joy,
I need to awaken
even this tiny amount
of
my own joy;
to know that ever-revealed Knowledge too,
I need to kindle
the tiny wick
of my
small amount of knowledge;
and
He Whose Love Is Overflowing
by Itself,
Flowing in sundry directions -
That Inexhaustible Love of His -
we cannot feel even That Love
unless
we are able to express
this tiny amount of love of ours
like a small jasmine flower.
This is precisely why
the Great Worldwide Festival
of the Lord of the Universe -
we cannot completely participate in That Festival
if we ourselves
do not arrange for a festival
with our own tiny preparation.
That is why
today -
our ego has shamelessly lighted
these few impecunious lamps of its own
in front of the eyes of
Constellations of Stars - Filling the Sky.
Our pride is this:
we shall see Him with our own lamps.
With this pride of ours,
the Great Lord is Happy,
He is Smiling.
These few lamps of ours -
Seeing them all alight -
That Lord of ten million suns
Has Been Joyful.
This, verily, is an auspicious opportunity
to see His Propitious Face.
In This Opportunity,
we shall have to
awaken
all our consciousness.
May this consciousness
rise
in our whole body -
and
thrill every hair,
may this consciousness
vibrate
in every wave of daylight,
may this consciousness
spread out
in the darkness of night;
today,
may it not be scattered with domestic thoughts
in one corner of our house,
may it not remain false
with respect to All -
today,
may it not get depressed, and thus deprived -
anywhere.
All arrangements of the Infinite Assembly,
all visions, all contacts, all unions -
they are waiting
only for
the awakening of this consciousness;
this is precisely why
the lamps are all alight -
the flutes are playing -
the messengers have come
from four sides
and
have stood at our doors;
everything is ready;
oh consciousness, where are you!
Oh, wake up, don't sleep anymore.
7 Paush 1315
(December 21, 1908)
Bengali original: http://www.tagoreweb.in/Render/ShowContent.aspx?ct=Essays&bi=72EE92F5-BE50-4057-6E6E-0F7410664DA3&ti=72EE92F5-BE50-44E7-DE6E-0F7410664DA3&ch=1