Hara Kumar Tagore

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Hara Kumar Tagore
হর কুমার ঠাকুর
Hara Kumar Tagore c.1838
Born1798
Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India (now Kolkata, India)
Died1858 (aged 59–60)
Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India
PredecessorGopi Mohan Tagore
SuccessorJatindramohan Tagore
SpouseShib Sundari Devi
ChildrenJatindramohan Tagore
Sourindra Mohan Tagore
Shoutindra Mohan Tagore (sons)
FatherGopi Mohan Tagore
RelativesPrasanna Kumar Tagore (brother), Prodyot Coomar Tagore +4 others (grandchildren)
FamilyTagore family

Hara Kumar Tagore (1798–1858) was a leading land owner, philanthropist, Sanskrit scholar, writer and musician from Calcutta. He belonged to the Pathuriaghata branch of the Tagore family.

Life

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He was the eldest son of Gopi Mohan Tagore and headed the Pathuriaghata family after demise of his father.[1]

Hara Kumar Tagore, was learned in the Hindu scriptures, Sanskrit and English. He had compiled critically admired books and assisted Radhakanta Deb (1783–1867) in compiling Sabdakalpadrum.[2]

Young Hara Kumar Tagore and his brother Prasanna Kumar Tagore, ca. late 18th–early 19th century.

Further, the noted texts - Haratattva-didhiti (1881), Purashcharana-bodhini (1895) and Shila-chakrarthabodhini were composed by him. The last text deals with various types of stones, which are worshiped as symbol of Narayana.[3] Also he authored a manual on procedural matters relating to various Tantric rites, particularly Kali worship.[4]

He was a refined musician with a scholarship in Sanskrit and was composer of noted music.[5]

He was the elder brother of Prasanna Kumar Tagore.[1] Hara Kumar died in 1858; and was succeeded, as head of the Pathuriaghata branch of family, by his eldest son, Maharaja Sir Jatinodro Mohun Tagore.[1] His other two sons were Sir Sourindro Mohun and Shoutindramohan.

Legacy and Contributions

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He had built the Shyamnagar Mulajore Kali Bari, along with his brother, Prasanna Kumar, in memory of their father.[6] Furthermore, he had donated generously for the promotion of arts and music.[citation needed]

He had also built a beautiful mansion — the famed Emerald Bower. However, it was later taken over by the Government of West Bengal and became a part of Rabindra Bharati University.[7][8][9]

A square in Kolkata has been named in his honor called: Hara Kumar Tagore Square.[10]

Family tree

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Main article: Tagore_family § Family_tree

References

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  1. ^ a b c The Golden Book of India: A Genealogical and Biographical Dictionary of the Ruling Princes, Chiefs, Nobles, and Other Personages, Titled Or Decorated, of the Indian Empire by Sir Roper Lethbridge, Publisher : Macmillan & Company, 1893 pp: 527
  2. ^ Sengupta, Subodh Chandra and Bose, Anjali, p. 611
  3. ^ A handbook of West Bengal - Volume 2. Sanghamitra Saha, International School of Dravidian Linguistics. 1998. p. 667. ISBN 9788185692241.
  4. ^ Sanskrit Culture Of Bengal by Sures Chandra Banerji. Sharada Publishing House. 2004. p. 116. ISBN 9788188934065.
  5. ^ Musicians of India: Past and Present : Gharanas of Hindustani Music and Genealogies. Amala Dāśaśarmā Naya Prokash. 1993. pp. 260–261. ISBN 9788185421186.
  6. ^ Ghosha, Lokanātha (1881). The Modern History of the Indian Chiefs, Rajas, Zamindars, & C: The native ... By Lokanātha Ghosha. pp. 168–171.
  7. ^ "Nuptial nostalgia". The Telegraph, Kolkata. 23 March 2008. Archived from the original on 11 March 2014. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  8. ^ "Emerald Bower of Rajah of Tagore".
  9. ^ "Hara kumar Tagore, the poet's uncle, built a mansion called the Emerald Bower, and this building and its park-lands, later acquired by the Government of West Bengal, finally became a complex of academic institutions among which this University has the central and larger share". Archived from the original on 12 March 2014. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  10. ^ "Hara Kumar Tagore Square" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved 18 May 2025.