I Cannot Remember My Mother
by Rabindranath Tagore
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In this tender lyric, the poet recalls his mother, who died when he was very young, through sensory memories rather than a clear image. He cannot remember her face, but in the midst of his play a tune seems to hover over his playthings, the song she used to hum while rocking his cradle (sound). In the early autumn morning the scent of shiuli flowers and the temple's morning service come to him as the scent of his mother (smell). And when he gazes into the blue of the distant sky, he feels the stillness of his mother's gaze on his face has spread all over the sky (sight). The repeated refrain 'I cannot remember my mother' deepens the mood of loving longing.
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A tune from the cradle
The poet says he cannot remember his mother, but sometimes in the midst of his play a tune seems to hover over his playthings, the tune of a song she used to hum while rocking his cradle. Her memory returns to him through this auditory sense.
The scent of shiuli flowers
In the early autumn morning, when the smell of shiuli (harsingar) flowers floats in the air, the scent of the morning service in the temple comes to him as the scent of his mother. Here memory returns through the olfactory sense.
Her gaze in the sky
When from his bedroom window he sends his eyes into the blue of the distant sky, he feels that the stillness of his mother's gaze on his face has spread all over the sky. Through this visual image the poet feels his mother's serene, all-encompassing presence even though he cannot recall her face.