rabindranath Tagore, whose birth centenary is being celebrated this year (1961), went through all the vital stages of Indian culture. Beginning from the Vedic age, he went through the Buddhist period, the age of the great epics Rāmayana and Mahābharata, and the age of the mystic saints of the Middle Ages. Even the most distinctive thoughts of resurgent India stirred him and found expression in his writings. He is the symbol of the true spirit of Indian thought throughout the ages. The inner voice and vision of ancient India manifested and found exalted expression in Gautama the Buddha and his exponent, King Asoka the Great. The poet was very much impressed by the glory of the Buddha and Buddhist India.