When My Play was with Thee

(e-content developed by Dr N A Jarandikar)

 

“When my play was with Thee” is a poem written by Rabindranath Tagore, a well-known poet, novelist, and dramatist. “Geetanjali” is his famous poetry collection that earned him the Nobel Prize.

The poem “When my play was with thee” is taken from “Geetanjali.” In the poem, the speaker talks about his childhood experiences, recalling that his childhood life was “riotous.” The reason for his happiness was a strange person, whom the speaker did not know at that time. The speaker affectionately calls this companion “My playmate.”

The speaker admits that, while playing with the playmate, “he had no fear, no shame.” Many times, the playmate would sing for him. The speaker could not understand the meaning of these songs, but he would be happy because the songs were meant for him only. Thus, the speaker’s childhood life was full of joy due to the playmate.

Now, the speaker is grown up, and his childhood games are over. He understands the true nature of his playmate. However, he realizes that it’s difficult to meet the playmate again. He finds that not only he but also the sky, the moon, the sun, and the whole world are waiting for the playmate. At this point, it becomes clear that the playmate is none other than the real God! God plays with a child and becomes his playmate because a child is innocent. As a child grows up, innocence is lost, leading to the loss of companionship with God.

In this way, at one level, the poem celebrates childhood, and at another level, it talks about the journey to explore God.