The youngest son of Tagore, Shomeendronath, was born on 12th December, 1896. He was the fifth and the last offspring. The day was Saturday. The ledger (of accounts) shows that Tagore was so happy that he gave away rupees ten for the celebration of the birth of his second son in his rice-eating ceremony. Tagore spent much more than he did for his other son and daughters in that ceremony.
Shomee was the template of his illustrious father. Out of the five, he was the only an exception who in his looks and talent was close to Tagore. People considered him a Tagore in the making.
Shomee was the first to organize “The Celebration Of Seasons”, Reetu-Uthsav, just as a tiny boy at Shantiniketon ashram. Shomee along with two other students played Spring. The programme took place on a stage in the “Hall room”. The actors recited poems from Sanskrit, English and Bengali poems in offering their praise to seasons like Spring, Monsoon and Autumn. Shomeendronath sang a very difficult song, “E ki labonye purno prano, pranesho hey..”. It was the first song to be sung in appreciation of season(s) at the ashram.
Nine months after the programme, Shomee died at Munger (Bihar) at the age of eleven. Just five years earlier on that very day (7th Agrohayon), his mother died and Shomee was made to stand beside a bed where the inert body of his mother lay after a prolonged fight with debility. Shomee had gone to Munger with his friend Sarojchandro at the latter’s maternal uncle’s house. Cholera struck him there. Tagore dashed to Munger from Jorasanko, Calcutta. He came back without his son. ‘What you have heard is correct. Shomee wanted to accompany his friend Bhola (Sarojchandro); he went there; he did not come back.’ Tagore wrote in a letter to his friend.
On his way back in train, Tagore looked at outside that was bathed in a full moon of Raas. He found that there was nothing lacking in the external world. All was going on like it did. The personal sorrow was more than made up by the bounties of nature.
In a letter to the wife of scientist Jagodish Chandra, Abola Devi, Tagore wrote, ‘I am going through a revolution in my mental world. When seen in complete isolation that revolution looks very severe. But when it is seen in totality of life, the revolution of misery gets mitigated. My life is going on with a poise. A subtle change may have occurred. But it is not seen from outside. In fact, it is not visible to my eyes too.’
After some days Tagore wrote at Shilaidaho (where he found solace in the calm influence of nature): Antaro mamo bikoshito karo antarotaro hey..
A deep sense of spirituality withstood the hour of forsakenness. “Let my mind expand, oh the Creator…” Tagore pleaded.
Reetu-Uthsav, the celebration of seasons, was staged again at the ashram just eight months after the death of Shomee, the introducer of this concept programme.