Tagore said to the Maiden on the river bank: “My house is all dark and lonesome. Lend me your light”. She said: “I have come to float the light in the stream, to dedicate it to the sky, to join the carnival of lamps.” The light was uselessly floating, burning in the void and lost among the lights. If you read the full poem (Gitanjali 64), it will make you sad and melancholic.

   Contrast the dire need of the man for a little light in his house which was dark and lonesome and the lamp which was drifting in the river uselessly, for no purpose. Behind the words of the poet there is philosophy and mysticism and also practical wisdom. He asks her thrice and she rejects the request each time for different reasons.

    It is about our attitude towards others; it is about our outlook on life, our priorities and values; it is about empathy, caring and sharing. Tagore may be referring to our faith in rituals....