Have we ever wondered who is the 'adhinayak' and 'bharat bhagya vidhata', whose praise we are singing? I had thought it might be Mother India!
'Jana Gana Mana' is sung throughout the country. Did we know the following about our national anthem? I didn't.
India's national anthem was written by Rabindranath Tagore in honour of King George V and the Queen of England when they visited Indiain 1919. To honour their visit.
Pandit Motilal Nehru had the five stanzas adopted as the National Anthem, which are in praise of the King and Queen. (And most of us think it is in the praise of our great motherland!!!)
In the original Bengali verses, only those provinces that were under British rule, ie Punjab, Sindh, Gujarat, Maratha etc were mentioned. None of the princely states were recognized which are integral parts of India now like Kashmir, Rajasthan, Andhra, Mysore or Kerala. Neither the Indian Ocean nor the Arabian Sea were included as, at that time, they were directly under Portuguese rule.
'Jana Gana Mana Adhinayaka' implies that King George V is the lord of the masses and 'Bharata Bhagya Vidhata' is 'the bestower of good fortune'.
Following is a translation of the five stanzas that glorify the King:
1st stanza:
(Indian) People wake up remembering your good name and ask for your blessings and they sing your glories. (Tava shubha naame jaage; tava shubha aashish maage, gaaye tava jaya gaatha)
2nd stanza:
Around your throne people of all religions come and give their love and anxiously wait to hear your kind words.
3rd stanza:
Praise to the King for being the charioteer, for leading the ancient travelers beyond misery.
4th stanza:
Drowned in the deep ignorance and suffering, poverty-stricken, unconscious country? Waiting for the wink of your eye and your mother's (the Queen's) true protection.
5th stanza:
In your compassionate plans, the sleeping Bharat (India) will wake up. We bow down to your feet O' Queen, and glory to Rajeshwara (the King).
This whole poem does not indicate any love for the Motherland but depicts a bleak picture. When you sing 'Jana Gana Mana', whom are you glorifying? Certainly not the Motherland.
Is it God? The poem does not indicate that. It is time now to understand the original purpose and the implication of this, rather than blindly sing as has been done the past sixty years.
Nehru chose the present national anthem as opposed to Vande Mataram because, he thought that it would be easier for the band to play!!!
It was an absurd reason...
Shouldn't 'Vande Mataram' have been our National Anthem?
Most of us probably dont know this ..
ReplyDeleteHave we ever wondered who is the 'adhinayak' and 'bharat bhagya vidhata',
whose praise we are singing? I had thought it might be Mother India!
'Jana Gana Mana' is sung throughout the country. Did we know the following
about our national anthem? I didn't.
India's national anthem was written by Rabindranath Tagore in honour of King
George V and the Queen of England when they visited Indiain 1919. To honour
their visit.
Pandit Motilal Nehru had the five stanzas adopted as the National Anthem,
which are in praise of the King and Queen. (And most of us think it is in
the praise of our great motherland!!!)
In the original Bengali verses, only those provinces that were under British
rule, ie Punjab, Sindh, Gujarat, Maratha etc were mentioned. None of the
princely states were recognized which are integral parts of India now like
Kashmir, Rajasthan, Andhra, Mysore or Kerala. Neither the Indian Ocean nor
the Arabian Sea were included as, at that time, they were directly under
Portuguese rule.
'Jana Gana Mana Adhinayaka' implies that King George V is the lord of the
masses and 'Bharata Bhagya Vidhata' is 'the bestower of good fortune'.
Following is a translation of the five stanzas that glorify the King:
1st stanza:
(Indian) People wake up remembering your good name and ask for your
blessings and they sing your glories. (Tava shubha naame jaage; tava shubha
aashish maage, gaaye tava jaya gaatha)
2nd stanza:
Around your throne people of all religions come and give their love and
anxiously wait to hear your kind words.
3rd stanza:
Praise to the King for being the charioteer, for leading the ancient
travelers beyond misery.
4th stanza:
Drowned in the deep ignorance and suffering, poverty-stricken, unconscious
country? Waiting for the wink of your eye and your mother's (the Queen's)
true protection.
5th stanza:
In your compassionate plans, the sleeping Bharat (India) will wake up. We
bow down to your feet O' Queen, and glory to Rajeshwara (the King).
This whole poem does not indicate any love for the Motherland but depicts a
bleak picture. When you sing 'Jana Gana Mana', whom are you glorifying?
Certainly not the Motherland.
Is it God? The poem does not indicate that. It is time now to understand the
original purpose and the implication of this, rather than blindly sing as
has been done the past sixty years.
Nehru chose the present national anthem as opposed to Vande Mataram because,
he thought that it would be easier for the band to play!!!
It was an absurd reason...
Shouldn't 'Vande Mataram' have been our National Anthem?
Think about it!!
Be Indian, Proud to be Indian!!
Regards