Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c15.s2.t55.15

v2.c15.s2.t55.15

When Tagore breathed his last on August 7, 1941, Tan Yun-shan lost his friend and mentor, a visionary who truly understood the scope and significance of India-China cultural interactions in the modern world, and thus the importance of Cheena-Bhavana. But the monumental responsibility with which Tagore had entrusted Tan Yun-shan continued, who devoted his existence to fulfill the dream that he had shared with Tagore, for growth of India-China Cultural Studies and development and expansion of Cheena-Bhavana. Tan Yun-shan retired from Visva-Bharati University in 1967, but he still lived in Shantiniketan after retirement. In 1971, Tan Yun-shan went to Bodh Gaya and embarked on another cultural project, the establishment of World Buddhist Academy in Bodh Gaya. In many ways this was an extension of Tagore’s vision of world harmony; Tan Yun-shan lived and continued to work on this project till he breathed his last on February 12, 1983. Unlike the Chinese monks who undertook pilgrimages to India in ancient times, this modern day Xuanzang did not return to his country of birth, but found a place for himself in Shantiniketan, Tagore’s ‘world-nest’.