China to have more Tagore readers than India: Chinese diplomat

NEW DELHI, May 9 (Xinhua) — Indian bard Rabindranath Tagore will soon have more readers in China, where his works have been part of middle-school curriculum for decades, than in his home country, Chinese Consul General in Kolkata Ma Zhanwu was quoted as saying by Indian daily DNA India.

“We will soon have more Tagore readers in China than you have in India,” Ma said, noting that the poet has a huge following in Asia, but nowhere is he more alive than in China.

The consul general added that there may already be more Yoga teachers in China than in India. He made the remarks at an event celebrating Tagore’s 155th birth anniversary.

He also said that the ideas of Tagore, who went to China in 1924, could serve as a useful guide to deepen mutual trust between the two neighboring countries.

“Tagore’s idea on China-India relationship could serve as useful guide as we work to deepen mutual trust, enhance friendship and develop bilateral exchanges and cooperation,” Ma said.

He said Tagore believed in Asian resurgence at a time when the West was dominant and Asians were looked down upon.

“Tagore was the first Asian to be awarded a Nobel Prize in 1913. He gave us the courage that our message could also be useful and valid for the rest of the world,” the diplomat said.

Tagore’s idea was that Asia must find its own voice to build an Asian synergy, he said. “We have our own ways of doing things and it may suit us better than if we just copy things from the West,” the diplomat said.