The Tiger and the Deer is a famous poem by the renowned Indian nationalist and poet Sri Aurobindo. Originally published in 1930, the poem depicts two contrasting images, good and evil, through the image of a tiger and a deer.
The Tiger and the Deer By Sri Aurobindo
Summary of The Tiger and the Deer By Sri Aurobindo
In the poem, the tiger represents death and evil, while the deer represents love and gratitude. As we know, the tiger and deer are different animals, yet they share a commonality: they are beautiful animals. The tiger is a predator, and its beauty is its power, while the deer is a gentle and delicate animal whose gentleness reflects its true beauty.
The poet states that the cycle of life can change at any time. We all know that the tiger can easily prey on the deer, but in the future, the tiger may become extinct, while the deer will remain in the forest.
The poem begins with the poet personifying the forest by calling it the green heart of the forest. The green heart of the forest refers to the most lush and central part of the forest. The poet says that in the green heart of the forest, there is a shining object that moves forward, bending and swaying. Its eyes are shining, its chest is large, and its feet are very soft and soundless. All these things reflect its greatness and valor.
The wind blows slowly through the leaves, fearing that if it moves too fast and makes a noise, it will disturb the tiger’s beauty. They can barely breathe because they are afraid to make a sound and are afraid of the tiger.
The tiger-beast is crouched and moving slowly. The tiger is ready to hunt and kill the deer. Just then, death suddenly strikes the beautiful deer drinking water from the river. This means that the tiger has attacked the deer.
The wild deer was drinking water from a large pond in the forest and had no idea that the tiger was waiting for it. The poor deer was enjoying the shade and drinking cool water from the pond, but now it is about to become the tiger’s meal.
The deer fell down and the tiger tore it to pieces. The deer died, remembering its beloved mate, whom it will never see again. The deer felt no sadness or anger at dying; he was simply remembering his beloved wife. The gentle, tender, and harmless beauty of the forest is destroyed by the powerful and cruel beauty of nature.
A day may come when the tiger will no longer bow down to hunt, and this dangerous beauty may become extinct in the future. One day, the tiger, a powerful and cruel beauty of nature, may become extinct.
Just as giant animals disappear from the earth, tigers too may become extinct. Yet, the beautiful, gentle deer will drink water from the cool pool and bask in the cool shade of the trees.
The powerful and cruel beauty of nature may become extinct, but this beautiful, gentle, and tender beauty will not. Powerful tigers may perish because of their danger and cruelty, but the killed tigers will survive their killer, and their lives will continue. Life does not depend on who has power; anyone can die at any time. This is what life is.
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