Gitanjali · Chapter
LXXII explained
The poet reflects on the innermost divine presence that awakens, enchants, and plays upon the heart through pleasure and pain, weaving the web of maya in fleeting colors and causing self-forgetfulness through its touch.
What happens
The poet reflects on the innermost divine presence that awakens, enchants, and plays upon the heart through pleasure and pain, weaving the web of maya in fleeting colors and causing self-forgetfulness through its touch.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Falling action.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
The emotional peak occurs when the speaker surrenders to "glad humiliation" and "dim delight," abandoning the…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Divine Love and Devotion
The poet's experience of the divine's intimate touches and playful presence in varied cadences of pleasure and pain.
- The Pain of Separation and Longing
The interplay of joy and sorrow in the divine's movement through the heart, evoking longing and self-forgetfulness.
Characters to notice
- The Poet
Describes being awakened and enchanted by the innermost divine presence.
- The Divine
Identified as the innermost one who touches, enchants, and weaves the web of maya.
Key passages
“He it is, the innermost one, who awakens my being with his deep hidden touches.”
The divine, residing at the core of existence, stirs my soul with subtle, unseen caresses.
Highlights the intimate, awakening role of the divine.
“He it is who weaves the web of this maya in evanescent hues of gold and silver, blue and green, and lets peep out through the folds his feet, at whose touch I forget myself.”
The divine crafts the illusion of the world in fleeting colors and reveals glimpses of itself, causing me to lose my sense of self.
Describes the divine's role in creating maya and the self-forgetfulness it induces.
