Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Toru Dutt’s "The Tree of Life" is a visionary poem that blends dreamlike mysticism with deep emotional and spiritual themes. It is the last poem written by her and was published posthumously in The Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan (1882). Written in blank verse, the poem narrates an ethereal encounter between the speaker and an angel near a miraculous tree whose leaves possess healing powers. The poem explores themes of divine intervention, the bond between parent and child, and the transient nature of spiritual visions. Drawing from both Christian and Hindu symbolism—such as the biblical Tree of Life and the concept of darshan (divine vision)—Dutt crafts a work that is universal in its spiritual longing yet deeply personal in its depiction of love and loss.
At its core, "The Tree of Life" is a meditation on transcendence and healing. The speaker, in a state between wakefulness and sleep, experiences a radiant vision of an endless plain illuminated by a celestial light. The appearance of the tree, adorned with leaves of "dead silver and live gold," suggests a fusion of mortality and immortality, decay and renewal. When the angel touches the speaker’s head with the leaves, physical pain vanishes, symbolizing spiritual and bodily restoration. However, the angel’s gentle refusal to fully heal the father introduces a note of melancholy, hinting at the inevitability of human suffering and the limits of divine intervention.
Structure of The Tree of Life:
The poem unfolds in a single, flowing stanza of 38 lines, mimicking the continuous, dreamlike quality of the vision. Dutt employs blank verse without regular rhymes and primarily uses iambic pentameter for its meter (i.e., five units of one unstressed syllable, followed by a stressed syllable). The use of enjambment ("stretching, stretching—oh, so far!") enhances the sense of boundlessness, mirroring the vast plain described. The language is rich with sensory imagery, particularly visual ("a glorious light / Like that the stars shed over fields of snow") and tactile ("the delicious touch of those strange leaves"). This immersive style draws the reader into the speaker’s mystical experience before abruptly returning to the earthly reality of the father’s silent vigil.
The poem is steeped in symbolism, with the Tree of Life serving as a central motif. In Christian tradition, the tree represents eternal life, while in Hindu thought, the Kalpavriksha (wish-fulfilling tree) parallels its divine properties. The angel, with its "holy pity and love divine," embodies divine mercy, yet its refusal to heal the father fully suggests a mysterious divine will. The light imagery—reminiscent of stars on snow—evokes purity and transcendence, contrasting with the dim, tearful return to reality. The abrupt shift from vision to wakefulness underscores the fleeting nature of spiritual ecstasy, leaving the speaker—and reader—with a sense of longing.
Dutt masterfully weaves together Romantic lyricism, spiritual allegory, and emotional depth, creating a work that resonates across cultures and beliefs. The poem’s power lies in its ambiguity—whether the vision was real or a dying dream—and its haunting suggestion that some wounds, even in the presence of the divine, are meant to remain.
Summary of The Tree of Life:
Lines 1-8
“Broad daylight, with a sense of weariness!
Mine eyes were closed, but I was not asleep,
My hand was in my father's, and I felt
His presence near me. Thus we often past
In silence, hour by hour. What was the need
Of interchanging words when every thought
That in our hearts arose, was known to each,
And every pulse kept time? Suddenly there shone”
The opening lines introduce a moment of quiet intimacy between the speaker and her father. The scene is set in broad daylight, yet there is an overwhelming "sense of weariness", suggesting emotional or physical exhaustion. The speaker’s eyes are closed, but she remains conscious, existing in a liminal space between wakefulness and sleep. The physical connection—"My hand was in my father's"—emphasizes a deep, unspoken bond, where words are unnecessary because their thoughts and even their "every pulse kept time", implying a profound synchronization of emotions and being.
This peaceful moment is abruptly interrupted by a sudden, radiant light, marking a shift from the quiet realism of the father-child relationship to a mystical vision. The contrast between the weariness of the physical world and the sudden brilliance of the supernatural introduces the poem’s central theme of divine intervention juxtaposed with human fragility. The lack of dialogue between father and child underscores a relationship so deep that language is superfluous, reinforcing themes of silent devotion and spiritual connection.
Lines 9-16
“A strange light, and the scene as sudden changed.
I was awake:--It was an open plain
Illimitable,--stretching, stretching--oh, so far!
And o'er it that strange light,--a glorious light
Like that the stars shed over fields of snow
In a clear, cloudless, frosty winter night,
Only intenser in its brilliance calm.
And in the midst of that vast plain, I saw,”
The speaker experiences a sudden, dramatic shift from the quiet intimacy with their father to a vast, otherworldly vision. A "strange light" transforms the scene into an "illimitable" (limitless) open plain, stretching endlessly under an ethereal glow. The light is compared to starlight on snow—a cold, clear, winter radiance—but even more intense, suggesting something divine and supernatural. This marks the transition from the physical world to a spiritual realm, where the speaker, though awake, witnesses something beyond ordinary reality. The suddenness of the change ("the scene as sudden changed") creates a dreamlike disorientation, blurring the line between vision and reality.
Repetition in "Stretching, stretching—oh, so far!" emphasizes the boundlessness of the plain, reinforcing the overwhelming, infinite nature of the vision. The light is "Like that the stars shed over fields of snow"(Simile), which evokes a serene yet cold beauty, contrasting with the warmth of
the earlier father-child scene. "Brilliance calm" is an Oxymoron, suggesting a light that is both radiant and peaceful, not harsh or blinding, reinforcing its divine nature.
Lines 17-24
“For I was wide awake,--it was no dream,
A tree with spreading branches and with leaves
Of divers kinds,--dead silver and live gold,
Shimmering in radiance that no words may tell!
Beside the tree an Angel stood; he plucked
A few small sprays, and bound them round my head.
Oh, the delicious touch of those strange leaves!
No longer throbbed my brows, no more I felt”
The speaker's emphatic declaration—"For I was wide awake,—it was no dream"—serves as a powerful assertion of the vision's reality, distinguishing it from mere fantasy or subconscious wandering. This insistence on wakefulness elevates the experience to the level of divine revelation, suggesting that the encounter with the miraculous tree and angel exists in a realm beyond ordinary perception. The description of the tree with its "spreading branches and with leaves of divers kinds" presents an image rich in symbolic meaning, with the contrasting "dead silver and live gold" leaves embodying the coexistence of mortality and immortality, decay and eternal vitality. This duality reflects the human condition itself, caught between earthly transience and spiritual transcendence.
The appearance of the angel introduces a divine intermediary, whose actions carry profound significance. As the angel "plucked a few small sprays, and bound them round my head," we witness a sacred ritual of healing that blends physical and spiritual restoration. The immediate effect—"Oh, the delicious touch of those strange leaves!"—conveys a sensory experience so intense it borders on the ineffable, with the word "delicious" suggesting nourishment that goes beyond mere physical relief. The subsequent lines—"No longer throbbed my brows, no more I felt"—demonstrate the completeness of this healing, erasing pain with miraculous efficiency. This moment represents the poem's spiritual climax, where divine grace manifests in tangible, transformative power.
Lines 25-32
“The fever in my limbs--"And oh," I cried,
"Bind too my father's forehead with these leaves."
One leaf the Angel took and therewith touched
His forehead, and then gently whispered "Nay!"
Never, oh never had I seen a face
More beautiful than that Angel's, or more full
Of holy pity and of love divine.
Wondering I looked awhile,--then, all at once”
This climactic moment reveals the poem's emotional core through the speaker's desperate plea and the angel's compassionate refusal. When the healed speaker cries out, "Bind too my father's forehead with these leaves," we witness both selfless love and the painful limits of divine intervention. The angel's response - touching the father's forehead with just one leaf before gently whispering "Nay!" - creates a heartbreaking tension between mercy and denial. This moment encapsulates the poem's central paradox: the simultaneous existence of divine love and human suffering.
Dutt employs profound religious imagery to convey this complex spiritual truth. The angel's face, described as the most beautiful the speaker had ever seen, radiates "holy pity and of love divine," suggesting that even refusal can be an act of compassion. The single leaf's touch implies partial blessing rather than complete healing, perhaps indicating that some suffering must remain in mortal life. The poet's use of repetition ("Never, oh never") emphasizes the awe-inspiring nature of this divine encounter, while the abrupt shift ("all at once") foreshadows the vision's imminent disappearance, mirroring life's fleeting moments of grace.
Lines 33-38
“Opened my tear-dimmed eyes--When lo! the light
Was gone--the light as of the stars when snow
Lies deep upon the ground. No more, no more,
Was seen the Angel's face. I only found
My father watching patient by my bed,
And holding in his own, close-prest, my hand.”
The poem's conclusion marks a poignant return from divine vision to earthly reality, as the speaker's "tear-dimmed eyes" open to find the celestial light has vanished. The simile comparing the disappeared light to "stars when snow/Lies deep upon the ground" creates a haunting image of cold, muffled absence - the once brilliant radiance now swallowed by winter's blanket. The repetition of "No more, no more" echoes with elegiac finality, emphasizing the irrevocable loss of the angelic presence. This abrupt transition from mystical transcendence to mortal limitation forms the emotional climax of the poem, where spiritual consolation gives way to human vulnerability.
Dutt employs masterful sensory contrasts to underscore this shift between realms. The vanished "light as of the stars" (visual) yields to the physical sensation of the father's hand "close-prest" against the speaker's (tactile), creating a movement from ethereal vision to tangible human connection. The "tear-dimmed eyes" suggest both the blurring of vision and emotional overwhelm, while the father's "patient" vigil embodies quiet, enduring love that contrasts with the angel's fleeting divine intervention. The final image of clasped hands mirrors the poem's opening, completing a circular structure that emphasizes how human bonds persist even when mystical experiences fade.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of Indian English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
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