If you become great²⁷

Many Bengalis did not care for Tagore’s poems and he had some enemies. Perhaps they were jealous of his writing. One fellow chose a particular poem of Tagore’s and criticised it mercilessly in a magazine. He said it was such a horrible poem. Three weeks later Tagore got the Nobel Prize. Then what happened? The same poem, in the same magazine, the same writer extolled to the skies and he extolled Tagore to the skies for writing that poem! In three weeks, everything completely changed. And after Tagore got the Nobel Prize, his book Gitanjali was translated into so many languages.

When somebody very high-ranking acknowledges or appreciates your creation, then it is very, very easy for you to go forward. What did Gandhi know about singing? Perhaps he knew practically nothing about singing. But Gandhi was such an important person. If he said, “This person is a great singer, a very great singer," everybody would quote him. Perhaps some qualified singers, excellent singers, found it difficult to appreciate that singer. But Mahatma Gandhi’s comment everybody quoted. In comparison, the comments of the qualified singers had no value. If you become great, you can say anything on any subject! People will quote you.

There are many subjects about which great people may not know anything. They never studied music, or they never studied art, let us say. But if they say something about music or art to their admirers, their admirers will quote it. Perhaps it is stupidity on their part and flattery on their admirers’ part. They go together. If a comment comes from an important person, the whole world remembers it. In the case of others who are quite qualified, who know their subject so well, it may happen that nobody cares for their comments. If you become great, you can open your mouth and everybody accepts what you say. And if you are not great, you can say anything you want to say, but nobody pays any attention. This is life!