r. Marino Rigon was only 27 years old, when he landed for the first time in Bangladesh in 1953. He knew very little English, and even before he thought of hiding his head in the study of the language, he understood that “bengoli” (official language of Bangladesh) was the way to go. His priestly ministry would bring it closer to the situations of the people. That’s the same language that the great poet and write Robindronah Tagore spoke. Fr. Marino started then reading books of this great writer, and came to know bengoli well. He never dreamed in his youth that he could become one of the most known translators of Tagore’s poems and writings.
His missionary life brings him among the downtrodden, the people who suffer, those who hunger daily. He sails the rivers and lives in the forest. But it is among the people who experience extreme poverty, those who live in the city slums, that Fr. Rigon lives intensively his own vocation. He chances his architectural career and builds a school in Shilabunia. He continues on in Khulna, where death, cholera and disease abound. In the struggle of those years, he finds comfort in the message of Christ and a book of Tagore. By reading over and over again the words of “Ghitangioli” (that won the Nobel Prize for the Bengali poet in 1913), he remains ecstatic and in awe. He translates a few paragraphs in 1957, but only in 1964 he is able to publish something. This was the first of many translations of Tagore. He deepens his love and expertise for the poems of Tagore, and in 1971 he publishes “Sfulingo,” then “Bolaka” (1974), followed by “Sissu” (1979).
Fr. Marino’s life was never meant to be behind a desk, as he continues his mission activities as a priest in Bangladesh. He’s just amazed by the knowledge of the “Divine” in Tagore’s writings, very much similar to our Christian faith. If we read his letters, we can realize the dedication of a man of prayer who was able to identify with the sufferings of the people of Bangladesh, appreciate its literary gift to the world, and fight for the human dignity of each individual.
At the time of the war of Independence of 1971, Fr. Marino is in Baniarciock, defending the poor and abandoned, starting cooperatives for fishermen and farmers. But even in these moments of tragedy do not stop him from learning and dedicating his time for Bengali literature and art. He opens his horizons to new and less known authors, and begins teaching on this subject. He encourages the young girls and mothers of Shelabunia to work as seamstresses of the ancient art of Nockshi Khanta, others are supported as Afghan makers from the old Bengali traditions. Through this minute work, the art school becomes famous all over the world, and it’s a jewel of Bangladesh.
In these days, with so much knowledge of the language, he even translated for the Bengali the story of Pinocchio. Fr. Marino Rigon is a monument for Bangladesh. He has received awards from different works and is continually praised for his enduring effort to bring to life the works of Tagore, so much hidden by the obscure characters of the language of Bangladesh. Moreover, his dedication to the people of Bangladesh and for the improvement of the quality of their lives, makes him one of their own.
(From Missionari Saveriani - Xaverian Magazine from Italy)