President Pranab Mukherjee on the eve of birthday of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, which falls on May 9, has paid his humble tribute.
"On the occasion of the birth anniversary of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, I pay humble tribute to this great creative genius, who authored India's national anthem and won for Asia its first Nobel Prize in literature," President Mukherjee said in a message.
Describing Tagore as 'an intellectual giant', the President said the former was fascinated by the idea of interaction between civilizations through the exchange of knowledge about their cultures and literatures.
"He was the perfect ambassador of our country at a time when little was known about India in the outside world. Gurudev Tagore set forth a vision of peace and fraternity that continues to have relevance and global appeal. In a world fettered by race, creed and colour, Gurudev Tagore promoted internationalism for a new world order based on diversity, open-mindedness, tolerance and co-existence," he added.
Asserting that Tagore was a great soul, who not only illumined the time he lived in, but continues to remain an inspiration for humanity, President Mukherjee urged to use this occasion to draw inspiration from the poet's idea of oneness of humanity.