355. Peary Mohan Das(1888-1983), 356. Pearson, William (1881-1928)

Peary Mohan Das, in his youth, suffered five years imprisonment for participating in freedom movement. He was again imprisoned for 8 years in 1930 during Civil Disobedience. He was attached for 30 years with "Desh" magazine.

Pearson, William was born in a priest family of England.

SMARAKA GRANTHA

Sesquicentennial(150th)birth Anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Rabindranath and Pearson (1881-1923)

Pearson passed B.Sc. from cambridge University, came to India on Dec 1907 and served as a professor in London Mission Society College (L.M.S.College), Bhawanipur, Kolkata, in Biology and undertook responsibility for preaching Christianity in India. He learned Bengali language and joined many ceremonies in India He delivered several lectures on many occasions in Debalaya founded by Shasipada Banerjee. Rabindranath could not meet Pearson in Calcutta but he was concern about Rabindranath which was evident from the English translation of  "Pabna Pradeshik Sammelan Upalakshe Sabhapatir Baktrita" by Rabindranath. This we came to know from a letter written by him from 16 Elgin Road. (published in " The Bengalee dated 18 Feb 1908). Pearson learnt Bengali after this and read collection of writings of Tagore and his thoughts. He built up regards for Rabindranath Tagore. In a condolence  meeting held on 25th Dec 1923 ( 9 Paush 1330), after the death of Pearson, Rabindranath said before his associates of Ashram at Santiniketan  while he recollected  his first meeting with

Pearson;

" I met him first in England. When I first went to his house, I saw a handsome-looking youth standing in front of the door with serene appearance .Having seen me he bowed down his head and touched my feet. I didn't expect of it and became astonished. Many of his relatives were present there who might think that the act was beneath the dignity of their country, he belonged. Because they possessed the victory symbol on their forehead.     

To bow down one's head with  victory symbol is disgraceful to the prestige of his country. Rabindranath had no knowledge about Pearson. Describing the incident Rabindranath wrote to Ajit Kumar,

  "Yesterday, an English man came and all on a sudden he bowed down his head before me and took dust from my feet and said, 'you are our Gurudev. We are waiting for you. Once he was an ICS and knew a little bit of Bengali."

The news was published in Modern Review in Aug 1912  after getting it from Ajit Kumar in the following lines;

" Enthusiasm in certain circles runs so high that a retired English member of the Indian Civil Service on meeting the poet made obeisance to him in Indian fashion, 'taking the dust of his feet'.

In the mean time Rabindranath got the information about Pearson and became ashamed. He wrote to Ajit kumar;

" The person who took dust from my feet was not an ICS. but I shall not disclose before you about his identity for you will publish it again.Rothenstein may not know it properly and misinformed me. You may please rectify it."

But it was not rectified.

 He came to Calcutta to join as a professor of Botany in London Missionary College, Bhawanipur, Calcutta.He came to Shantiniketan in 1912 and worked in the neighbourhood within the families of Santals. He joined Gandhiji's Satyagraha Movement in South Africa in 1913. He accompanied Rabindranath in his voyage to Japan in 1916. "He (Rabindranath) came to Calcutta to get a reservation in a ship.  He intimated the concerned authority but after many attempts he could not  get seats in a ship which he got with the help of the then Japan's Consulate   on 29th April, 1916. Pearson and Andrews would accompany him and Mukul was to go with them as a passenger in a deck." [ for other information visit; http://sesquicentinnial.blogspot.com]