“The Lotus” by Toru Dutt is a poignant poem that explores themes of beauty, culture, and harmony. Through a dialogue between two allegorical figures, Love and the Flower-Deities, the poem debates which flower—the rose or the lily—should be crowned as the queen of all flowers. Ultimately, Love suggests the lotus, a symbol of spiritual and cultural significance in Indian tradition, as it combines the qualities of both the rose and the lily. The poem highlights the synthesis of Eastern and Western ideals of beauty, emphasizing the lotus as a symbol of unity and perfection.
The Lotus by Toru Dutt
Love came to Flora asking for a flower
That would of flowers be undisputed queen,
The lily and the rose, long long had been
Rivals for that high honour. Bards of power
Had sung their claims. "The rose can never tower
Like the pale lily with her Juno mien" -
"But is the lily lovelier?" Thus between
Flower fractions rang the strife in Psyche's bower.
"Give me a flower delicious as the rose
And stately as the lily in her pride"-
"But of what colour?"- "Rose red," Love first chose,
Then prayed, - "No, lily-white, - or both provide";
And Flora gave the lotus, "rose red" dyed
And "lily white," queenliest flower that blows
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Glossary
- Flora – Roman goddess of flowers
- undisputed – unquestioned
- Juno – wife of Jupiter, queen of heaven, goddess of light
- mien – appearance, bearing
- strife – struggle
- psyche- a princess loved by Cupid (the Roman god of love)
- Rivals – competitor, challenger
- Bards – poets
- Tower – stand like a tower
- Fractions – division, section
- Delicious – delightful, pleasant
Summary
Toru Dutt is one of the most famous Indo-Anglican poets. Most of her poetic works have an Indian theme and an Indian background. The poem, ‘The Lotus’ is a sonnet and its style is Petrarchan sonnet. Toru Dutt’s mastery idea has been given to this sonnet to make it a masterpiece. The sonnet is divided into two divisions, the Octave and the Sestet. The octave consists of eight lines and therefore the sestet consists of six lines.
A sonnet deals with one idea, the octave proposing and therefore the sestet resolving. Within 14 lines of the sonnet, Toru Dutt raises a drag within the Octave and resolves it within the sestet. In this poem, Toru Dutt presents the idea that the Indian Lotus is the most beautiful of all flowers. For an extended time, Lily and Rose had been fighting for the title ‘Queen of Flowers.’ Each flower with its support from poets claimed the title.
At this time, the God of Love came to Goddess Flora asking for a flower, which would be the unchallenged queen of flowers. She wanted a flower, which was as stately as the Lily and as delicious as the Rose. Goddess Flora gave God of Love the lotus flower and resolved the long-standing quarrel between Lily and Rose. Great poets supported the flowers consistent with their wishes, and a few poets even raised the doubt that the lily was more beautiful than the rose. Lotus combines the redness of the rose with the paleness of the lily. Goddess Flora created Lotus, which was both rose red and lily-white.
One more thing to note is that the lotus is a flower of significance both to the Indian and Hindu religions. We can understand Toru Dutt’s affection for an Indian flower and also she wanted to establish the superiority of the Hindu religion over other religions in the world. As Toru Dutt was mentioned and educated abroad, she always turned to mythology to determine her stand.
Write a critical appreciation of the poem “The Lotus” by Toru Dutt.
Ans: “The Lotus” is one of the important poems of Toru Dutt. She got an important place in Indian literature in English. She is considered in British Romantic poet because of her ideas, thoughts, image writing style, and many other features marked by this particular era. Toru Dutt’s frequent use of archaism in her poetry recalls the same tendency in Wordsworth, Scott, and Burns.
This poem opens with the direct statement that love approached Flora, the reigning sovereign of the kingdom of flowers and vegetation, and asked for a flower that would be the undisputed queen. “Love came to Flora asking for a flower that would of flowers be undisputed queen.”The above line of the poem clarifies the idea of Toru Dutt very clearly. In the sonnet’s first line, Toru Dutt raises a question about the most beautiful flower in the world. She is the first Indian writer who showed Indianism in her works. For a long time, the lotus has been a religious flower in India. According to Hindu mythology, Lord Brahma, Vishnu and the Saraswati are fond of this flower. But no poets showed its significance in their works.
Toru Dutt delivered a clear message that some poets write about the beauty of the Rose and some are proud of the lily but they forget the religious lotus. She is truly a great writer, she played a vital role in keeping the sacred forms of Indian mythology alive. She had already decided that the sacred lotus flower of India should be seen as superior to all other flowers. She very beautifully described the lotus flower as the best in this poem.
Before rating the lotus flower, the author explains two beautiful flowers. Some writers describe the beauty of the rose, while others praise the lily for standing upright. For centuries, there has been a struggle between these two flowers, who is the best? In the end, the author states that the combined quality of these two is found in the lotus flower. In this way, the lotus flower is the best flower, unlike which there is no other flower. Torulata was much mixed with European civilization and this was the reason that she used to write her literature in English, yet her love and respect for India would not diminish from her heart. The Lotus Poem is a great example of this.