Tiger

At noon thepaper tigers roar

— Miroslav Holub

The paper tigers roar at noon;

The sun is hot, the sun is high.

They roar in chorus, not in tune,

Their plaintive, savage hunting cry.

O, when you hear them, stop your ears

And clench your lids and bite your tongue.

The harmless paper tiger bears

Strong fascination for the young.

His forest is the busy street;

His dens the forum and the mart;

He drinks no blood, he tastes no meat:

He riddles and corrupts the heart.

But when the dusk begins to creep

From tree to tree, from door to door,

The jungle tiger wakes from sleep

And utters his authentic roar.

It bursts the night and shakes the stars

Till one breaks blazing from the sky;

Then listen! If to meet it soars

Your heart’s reverberating cry,

My child, then put aside your fear:

Unbar the door and walk outside!

The real tiger waits you there;

His golden eyes shall be your guide.

And, should he spare you in his wrath,

The world and all the worlds are yours;

And should he leap thejungle path

And clasp you with his bloody jaws,

Then say, as his divine embrace

Destroys the mortal parts of you:

I too am of that royal race

Who do what we are born to do.

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Poems in English 

• The Land of the Exile by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Judge by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Journey by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Hero by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gift by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XXXVIII: My Love, Once upon a Time by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XXXIV: Do Not Go, My Love by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XXVIII: Your Questioning Eyes by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XXIV: Do Not Keep to Yourself by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XXII: When She Passed by Me by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XXI: Why Did He Choose by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XX: Day After Day He Comes by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XVI: Hands Cling to Eyes by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XLVIII: Free Me by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XLVI: You Left Me by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XLV: To the Guests by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XLIV: Reverend Sir, Forgive by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XLIII: No, My Friends by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XLII: O Mad, Superbly Drunk by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore
• The Gardener XL: An Unbelieving Smile by Rabindranath Tagore by Rabindranath Tagore

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