How well do you know about it?
Many of us always wondered who is the ” adhinayak” and “bharat bhagya vidhata”,whose praise we are singing. I thought might be Motherland India !Did you know the following about our national anthem???I didn’t.
India ’s national anthem, Jana Gana Mana Adhinayaka, was written by Rabindranath Tagore in honour of King George V and the Queen of England when they visited India in 1919.To honour their visit Pandit Motilal Nehru had the five stanzas included , 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, i.e. Punjab, Sindh, Gujarat , Maratha etc.were mentioned. None of theprincely states were recognized which are integral parts of India now Kashmir, Rajasthan, Andhra, Mysore or Kerala.Neither the Indian Ocean nor the Arabian Sea was included, since they were directly under Portuguese rule at that time. The 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 5 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 name jaage; tava shubha aashish maage, gaaye tava jaya gaatha)
2nd: Around your throne people of all religions come and give their love and anxiously wait to hear your kind words.
3r: Praise to the King for being the charioteer, for leading the ancient travelers beyond misery.
4th: 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: 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 Adhinayaka, 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 fifty 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 but Today for that matter bands have advanced and they can very well play any music. So they can as well play Vande Mataram, which is a far better composition in praise of our Dear Motherland - India .
Wake up, it’s high time! I dont know if we shud disrespet this POEM or not but I guess Vande Mataram shud be our National Anthem.Guys I am ashamed I was singing glory of the killers of legends of Revolution and that too loudly and standstill coz I never knew this (another) blunder of Nehru.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
National Anthem Controversy- The Fact
Controversy exists regarding the appropriateness of Jana Gana Mana as the national anthem of an independent India. The poem was composed in December 1911, precisely at the time of the Coronation Durbar of George V, and is considered by some to be a paean in praise of "the overlord of India's destiny". The composition was first sung during a convention of the then loyalist Indian National Congress in Calcutta on Dec. 16, 1911. It was sung on the second day of the convention, and the agenda of that day devoted itself to a loyal welcome of George V on his visit to India. The event was reported thus in the Indian press:
"The Bengali poet Babu Rabindranath Tagore sang a song composed by him specially to welcome the Emperor." (Statesman, Dec. 28, 1911)
"The proceedings began with the singing by Babu Rabindranath Tagore of a song specially composed by him in honour of the Emperor." (Englishman, Dec. 28, 1911)
"When the proceedings of the Indian National Congress began on Wednesday 27th December 1911, a Bengali song in welcome of the Emperor was sung. A resolution welcoming the Emperor and Empress was also adopted unanimously." (Indian, Dec. 29, 1911)
The belief gained ground that the poem had been written in honour of the visiting monarch. Others aver that the newspaper reports cited above were misguided, the confusion arising since a different song, written in Hindi by Rambhuj Chaudhary, was sung on the same occasion in praise of the monarch. However, the two poems were written in different languages; Tagore already enjoyed much fame in India, and newspaper reports are both consistent and categorical on the point of Tagore having himself sung his composition on the occasion.
Other explanations for the motivations that informed the creation of the poem have been proposed. On a visit to India, the poet Yeats received a visit from an Indian admirer who was also, in Yeats' words, "an Indian devotee" of Tagore. In a letter to a lady friend, Yeats quoted this unnamed devotee as giving him a 'strictly off the records' version of events dealing with the writing of Jana Gana Mana. That version, as presented in 1968 by the Indian Express newspaper, was this:
"He (Tagore) got up very early in the morning and wrote a very beautiful poem.... When he came down, he said to one of us, 'Here is a poem which I have written. It is addressed to God, but give it to Congress people. It will please them."
Thus, in the very words of Tagore, "The poem is written in honour of God".
In a letter to Pulin Behari Sen, Tagore himself wrote:
"A certain high official in His Majesty's service, who was also my friend, had requested that I write a song of felicitation towards the Emperor. The request simply amazed me. It caused a great stir in my heart. In response to that great mental turmoil, I pronounced the victory in Jana Gana Mana of that Bhagya Vidhata [ed. God of Destiny] of India who has from age after age held steadfast the reins of India's chariot through rise and fall, through the straight path and the curved. That Lord of Destiny, that Reader of the Collective Mind of India, that Perennial Guide, could never be George V, George VI, or any other George. Even my official friend understood this about the song. After all, even if his admiration for the crown was excessive, he was not lacking in simple common sense."
So I request all the people for not creating and forwarding such mails that arouses vigour and dis-satisfaction among the people of India and a feel of disrespect for our country, our great leaders and poets and none-the-less our National Anthem.
We should duly respect our national symbols rather than putting them in controvorsies. Also, its the feeling of the person (who is singing National Anthem or any other song) his views, his opinions & his thinking that matters and not that of persons who forst sung it or wrote it. If person is singing for its motherland, then it is for his/her motherland irrespective of all other facts.
Also @ writer of that mail: Please dont explain your ideas and views as "Translation Of National Anthem". India is democratic country and you are fully authorised to express your views and ideas but let it be in the manner that doesnt hurt any Indian's feeling. And also use your powers and brain and technology for some good work for our nation rather than creating controvorsies.
Thank You.
"The Bengali poet Babu Rabindranath Tagore sang a song composed by him specially to welcome the Emperor." (Statesman, Dec. 28, 1911)
"The proceedings began with the singing by Babu Rabindranath Tagore of a song specially composed by him in honour of the Emperor." (Englishman, Dec. 28, 1911)
"When the proceedings of the Indian National Congress began on Wednesday 27th December 1911, a Bengali song in welcome of the Emperor was sung. A resolution welcoming the Emperor and Empress was also adopted unanimously." (Indian, Dec. 29, 1911)
The belief gained ground that the poem had been written in honour of the visiting monarch. Others aver that the newspaper reports cited above were misguided, the confusion arising since a different song, written in Hindi by Rambhuj Chaudhary, was sung on the same occasion in praise of the monarch. However, the two poems were written in different languages; Tagore already enjoyed much fame in India, and newspaper reports are both consistent and categorical on the point of Tagore having himself sung his composition on the occasion.
Other explanations for the motivations that informed the creation of the poem have been proposed. On a visit to India, the poet Yeats received a visit from an Indian admirer who was also, in Yeats' words, "an Indian devotee" of Tagore. In a letter to a lady friend, Yeats quoted this unnamed devotee as giving him a 'strictly off the records' version of events dealing with the writing of Jana Gana Mana. That version, as presented in 1968 by the Indian Express newspaper, was this:
"He (Tagore) got up very early in the morning and wrote a very beautiful poem.... When he came down, he said to one of us, 'Here is a poem which I have written. It is addressed to God, but give it to Congress people. It will please them."
Thus, in the very words of Tagore, "The poem is written in honour of God".
In a letter to Pulin Behari Sen, Tagore himself wrote:
"A certain high official in His Majesty's service, who was also my friend, had requested that I write a song of felicitation towards the Emperor. The request simply amazed me. It caused a great stir in my heart. In response to that great mental turmoil, I pronounced the victory in Jana Gana Mana of that Bhagya Vidhata [ed. God of Destiny] of India who has from age after age held steadfast the reins of India's chariot through rise and fall, through the straight path and the curved. That Lord of Destiny, that Reader of the Collective Mind of India, that Perennial Guide, could never be George V, George VI, or any other George. Even my official friend understood this about the song. After all, even if his admiration for the crown was excessive, he was not lacking in simple common sense."
So I request all the people for not creating and forwarding such mails that arouses vigour and dis-satisfaction among the people of India and a feel of disrespect for our country, our great leaders and poets and none-the-less our National Anthem.
We should duly respect our national symbols rather than putting them in controvorsies. Also, its the feeling of the person (who is singing National Anthem or any other song) his views, his opinions & his thinking that matters and not that of persons who forst sung it or wrote it. If person is singing for its motherland, then it is for his/her motherland irrespective of all other facts.
Also @ writer of that mail: Please dont explain your ideas and views as "Translation Of National Anthem". India is democratic country and you are fully authorised to express your views and ideas but let it be in the manner that doesnt hurt any Indian's feeling. And also use your powers and brain and technology for some good work for our nation rather than creating controvorsies.
Thank You.
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