Our National Anthem

Just a thought for the National Anthem!

How well do u know about it?

I have always wondered who is the "adhinayak" and "bharat bhagya vidhata", whose praise we are singing. I thought may be God! Our current National Anthem "Jana Gana Mana" is sung throughout the country. Did you know the following about our national anthem, i didn't. To begin with, India's national anthem, Jana Gana Mana Adhinayaka, was written by Rabindranath Tagore in honor of King George V and the Queen of England when they visited India in 1919. To honor their visit Pundit 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 the princely states were recognized which are integral parts of India now - Kashmir,Rajasthan,Andhra, Mysore or Kerala. Neither the Indian ocean nor the Arabian Sea were 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 five stanzas which glorify the King:

1st stanza (Indian)People wake up remembering your good name and ask for your blessings and they sing your glories.

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 Adhinayaka, whom are you glorifying?

Certainly not the Motherland. Is it God?

The poem does not indicate that.

The Calcutta Congress session began on December 26, 1911. The proceedings on the first day began with Vandemataram. The second day was entirely devoted to things connected with the welcoming of King George V, and this day the song Janaganamana was sung, and at the closing ceremony Rajbhuja Dutt Choudhary's 'Badshah Hamara' was sung. On the third day Saraladevi sang her own composition 'Namo Hindustan'.

The news papers reports had the following comments on Janaganamana:

"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 unanomously." (Indian, Dec. 29, 1911)

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!

Vande Mataram should be our National Anthem.