Hara Kumar Tagore (1798–1858) was a leading land owner, philanthropist,

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

scholar, writer and musician from

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

. He belonged to the

Pathuriaghata Pathuriaghata is a neighbourhood of North Kolkata in Kolkata district, in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is one of the oldest residential areas in what was Sutanuti. Once the abode of the Bengali rich, the neighbourhood and its surroundi ...

branch of the

Tagore family The Tagore family ( ) has been one of the leading families of Kolkata, West Bengal, India, and is regarded as one of the key influencers during the Bengali Renaissance. The family has produced several people who have contributed substantially ...

Life

He was the eldest son of

Gopi Mohan Tagore Raja Gopi Mohan Tagore (1760–1819) was a scion of the Pathuriaghata Tagore family and noted zamindar and philanthropist from Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. Life and works He was son of Darpanarayan Tagore, who branched and founde ...

and headed the Pathuriaghata family after demise of his father. Hara Kumar Tagore, was learned in the Hindu scriptures,

and English. He had compiled critically admired books and assisted

Radhakanta Deb Raja Sir Radhakanta Deb Bahadur (10 March 1784 – 19 April 1867) was a scholar and a leader of the Calcutta conservative Hindu society, son of Gopimohan Deb of Shovabazar Raj who was the adopted son and heir of Maharaja Nabakrishna Deb of ...

(1783–1867) in compiling ''Sabdakalpadrum''. 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 Narayana (, ) is one of the forms and epithets of Vishnu. In this form, the deity is depicted in yogic slumber under the celestial waters, symbolising the masculine principle and associated with his role of creation. He is also known as Pu ...

. Also he authored a manual on procedural matters relating to various Tantric rites, particularly

Kali Kali (; , ), also called Kalika, is a major goddess in Hinduism, primarily associated with time, death and destruction. Kali is also connected with transcendental knowledge and is the first of the ten Mahavidyas, a group of goddesses who p ...

worship. He was a refined musician with a scholarship in Sanskrit and was composer of noted music. He was the elder brother of

Prasanna Kumar Prasanna S. Kumar is an Indian cinematographer who was born in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. His cousin is director Sasi. During the early stages of his career, he was associated with cinematographer P. G. Muthiah in ''Poo''. After a couple of years ...

Tagore. 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.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 His other two sons were Sir Sourindro Mohun and Shoutindramohan.

Legacy and Contributions

He had built the Shyamnagar Mulajore Kali Bari, along with his brother,

, in memory of their father. Furthermore, he had donated generously for the promotion of arts and music. He had also built a beautiful mansion — the famed ''Emerald Bower''. However, it was later taken over by the

Government of West Bengal The Government of West Bengal, also known as the West Bengal Government, is the Administrative division, principal administrative authority of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of West Bengal, created by the Constitution ...

and became a part of

Rabindra Bharati University Rabindra Bharati University is a public research university in Kolkata, India. It was founded on 8 May 1962, under the Rabindra Bharati Act of the Government of West Bengal in 1961, to mark the birth centenary of the poet Rabindranath Tagore. I ...

. A square in

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

has been named in his honor called: Hara Kumar Tagore Square.

Family tree

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tagore, Hara Kumar 1798 births 1858 deaths Scholars from British India People from the Bengal Presidency Hara Kumar Sanskrit scholars from Bengal Bengali-language writers Musicians from Kolkata People from Kolkata Bengali zamindars 19th-century Indian philanthropists