Father Marino Rigon - A Bangladeshi by Heart
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Father Marino Rigon expressed his love for Bangladesh in this letter to his brother, who lives in Italy. Marino shares, ‘I love Bangladesh and am proud to have received an honorary citizenship from this country.’ The citizenship was bestowed upon him due to his contribution towards Bangla literature and for his passionate religious commitment to the society.
Till date, he has translated 45 of Rabindranath Tagore’s literary works into Italian. These include songs, poetry, articles, ‘Nashta Neer’, ‘Kari O Komol’, ‘Sonar Tori’, ‘Chittra’, ‘Chaitali’, ‘Kanica’, ‘Naibaidya’, ‘Gitanjali’, ‘Shamoli’, ‘Balaka’, ‘Chittrangada’,and ‘Santiniketan Upadesh Mala’ and many more.
He has also translated one of Bankim Chandra’s works, Jasim Uddin’s ‘Nakshi Kanthar Math’ and ‘Shajan Badhiyar Ghat’, Sarat Chandra’s ‘Pandit Mashay’ and ‘Chandranath’. Besides he has translated around 70 poems of Shukanta, 350 songs of Lalon Shah, ‘Hason Raja’ and ‘Jhenidaher Pagla Kanay’. Some of these translations have been further translated into English and Portuguese.
He has also translated works of Kazi Nazrul Islam, Shamsur Rahman, Sufia Kamal, Al Mahmud and a few other writers. The author of around six books on Rabindranth and Bangladesh in the Italian language, Rigon also wrote Bangla poems and took TV artists to Italy to promote their work there. ‘Culture, religion and literature are not separate from life,’ says Rigon, who seeks life in meditation and is an optimist. Rigon is really an Italian national but has made a tremendous contribution to Bangla literature.
Rigon was born February 5, 1925 to a poor household of Italy and as a member of the Society of Xaverian, a Christian community. He became a Father of the Church in 1951. As a Xaverian priest, he arrived in Bagerhat, on the coast of the Bay of Bengal and roughly 130 kilometres southwest of Dhaka, then East Pakistan in 1953. He has been running programs for the poor ever since and has also worked as a missionary in Khulna, Jessore, Gopalganj and Faridpur districts.
Despite his contribution toward literature, he was not a studious boy even during his school life. ‘I was almost always punished by my teacher. A daily punishment, that one of my teachers gave me, was to go and stand behind the blackboard. When the other students made fun of me, the teacher rebuked them saying that I will be famous one day,’ he recalls.
‘I still do not know why my guardians (senior priests) sent me here to Bangladesh. Whatever the reason may be, I am glad that they did!’ he exclaims.
While talking about Bangladesh, he comments, ‘the people may be poor but their culture is rich, full of religious elements. I have always found this trait of the country very attractive.’
Father Rigon praised the development he has seen over the last 56 years with improved infrastructure and communication system. He also commends the way Bangladesh has developed in the education sector, especially women’s education. ‘However, corruption in the country is still holding it back from a brighter future,’ he says.
A few years after his arrival to Bangladesh, the priest began picking up Bangla. He soon realised that without reading the literary works, he will not be able to know Bangla properly and was also interested to see Bangladesh through the eyes of its authors and poets.
‘Pandit Mashaya, of Sharatchandra, was the title of the Bangla literature that I had first read. Later, I also ended up reading Bankim Chandra,’ he shares. He remembers how some of his colleagues had doubted him, by saying, ‘when the Bengalis still do not understand Bankim, you being a foreigner, are trying!’
Rigon read Gitanjali as a part of his reading practice and understanding the language. ‘I realised that the only way to truly extract the magnificence of Rabindranath’s writing is to learn Bangla and read the exact words written by him,’ he says.
While talking about Rabindranath, he adds, ‘In all human history, till date, there have been three timeless poets. There is Homer of Greek literature during the ancient age, Dante of Italian literature, during the medieval age and finally Tagore of Bengali literature, during the modern period.’
He came to know about Lalon and Baul songs, around the 1980’s. ‘They used desire to express their highly philosophical ideas,’ he explains. Till date, he has translated about 350 Baul songs and writings about their philosophy.
He talks about renowned known literates also. ‘Jasimuddin was a very good friend of mine. He used to lead a simple life. I roamed around Bangladesh with him. When Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman became prime minister, Jasimuddin and I went to see him. The visit was rather unusual as the prime minister had no police around him at all! The three of us discussed many issues back then. I even recited a poem from Gitanjali to Sheikh Mujib,’ he shares.
About Jasimuddin, he continues, ‘Jasimuddin was a real poet who drew a picture of rural Bangladeshi life through his poetry. He deserved a Nobel Prize.’ Rigon’s love for Bengali literature drove him to translate poems of Rabindranath Tagore, Palli Kobi Jasimuddin, Sharatchandra and Lalon Shah, as he wanted others of the world to know about the works of these maestros.
While he did not participate in the liberation war directly, he did provide ample assistance to the freedom fighters. ‘I was fighting for the freedom fighters during the war as I wanted the independence of Bangladesh from deep within my heart.’
During the war of liberation in 1971, he was in Baniachar, Gopalganj district. ‘From a hospital, there, I tried to provide treatment to the injured freedom fighters. I also provided them with information about the occupying Pakistani forces, from time to time,’ he says.
Hemayet Uddin Birbikrom, a guerrilla fighter who was seriously wounded in the Baniarchar area during the war, shares how Father Rigon had nursed him in the church hospital. He recollects, ‘While heading an operation with 300 freedom fighters, I was seriously wounded. Bullets destroyed 11 teeth from my upper jaw. Father Rigon gave me the treatment I needed to survive then. He is a true friend of the freedom fighters.’
During the war, the priest sheltered about 1,000 panic-stricken people, mostly Hindus, in his church, and provided medical treatment and food to those in need. Immediately after the war, he helped people rebuild their homes and restore their agricultural livelihood.
After the war, Father Rigon enabled many widows to support themselves through a sewing centre, he had started, in Shelabunia of Bagerhat district. He also helped establish 17 educational institutions in the southern region of the country.
After the birth of Bangladesh, Father Rigon pursued social work and cultural exchange. He continues to run sponsorship programs for children of poor fishermen in Mongla by enrolling sponsors from Italy. He actively promotes schools and cultural groups.
His dedication is celebrated and has helped him secure a place in the hearts of many through the published book Nibhritta Kolahol (silent voice) by various contributors, mostly renowned writers, journalists, performing artists and scholars.
Due to his dedication, the street just beside his childhood home in Italy has now been named Rabindranath Street. Since 1991, Italians have also celebrated ‘Rabindranath Day’.
While Italy is where he was born, Father Rigon wants to be buried in Bangladesh. ‘My heart is with the people of Bangladesh and I would like to be with this country, even after death,’ he concludes.
Rigon’s letter:
Dear Francis,
Thank you for your letter. I think I will never leave Bangladesh. As a matter fact, I decided not to go back to Italy again. At my age, there is little to do, in Italy, and more to do in Bangladesh. It seems like my roots are deeply planted into the soil of Bangladesh or if you prefer to hear, into the muddy and salty soil of Sundarbans. You cannot try to have an old dog learn new tricks!
The tricks I know are all Bengali and I can express my self properly, only in Bangladesh. Here I can tune my musical sense with the Bengali music. My best wishes and blessings to your family and you.
Yours in Christ, Fr M Rigon, s.x.
by Mohiuddin Alamgir
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