Kakuzo Okakura, a Japanese nationalist, visited Rabindranath Tagore in Calcutta and came to India with his ideas about pan-Asianism. What did he want to do through pan-Asianism?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → To unite India with other eastern nations
Option (1) To unite India with the western nations — Incorrect. Okakura wanted to unite India with the eastern nations and fight western imperialism.
Option (2) To unite India with other eastern nations — Correct. Okakura wanted to unite India with other eastern nations and fight western imperialism.
Option (3) To write about Swadeshi in art — Incorrect. Writing about Swadeshi in art was the work of the art historian Ananda Coomaraswamy, who joined hands with Okakura. It was not the aim of pan-Asianism.
Option (4) To teach western oil painting to Indian students — Incorrect. The Japanese artists with Okakura taught the wash technique as an alternative to western oil painting, not oil painting itself.
NCERT (2026-27): “Pan-Asianism and Modernism …Ananda Coomaraswamy, an important art historian, wrote about Swadeshi in art and joined hands with a Japanese nationalist, Kakuzo Okakura, who was visiting Rabindranath Tagore in Calcutta. He came to India with his ideas about pan-Asianism, by which he wanted to unite India with other eastern nations and fight against western imperialism. Two Japanese artists accompanied him to Calcutta, who went to Shantiniketan to teach wash technique of painting to Indian students as an alternative to western oil painting.” |