I will buy what the poet himself said about the history and the content of the poem. I read the poem one more time and am convinced that the poem was addressed to "Bharata vagya bidhata' who is definitely not the monarch. It becomes pretty clear when you read the last couple of stanzas. It refers to time immemorial, not the time during which the British started ruling the country. I will not be surprised if Rabindranath 'tricked' his friend in the administration by serving the double purpose of making him happy and at the same time glorifying and thanking his God who has been leading the Indians in a right direction since time immemorial or for ages.
Sent from my iPhone
Sent from my iPhone
The signifier changes depending on the context. No signifier remains the same throughout history. What is important is the content that is signified. It can mean praising a fascist leader, it can mean defining the characteristic of a democratic leader who is the best follower and representative of the people... So would mean Amra sobai raja amader ei rajar rajottye . it is meant for the person who would lead, and the leader is a vanguard and the best coordinatorOn 13 July 2015 at 23:07, Sukla Sen <sukla.sen@gmail.com> wrote:---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Sukla Sen <sukla.sen@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 13 Jul 2015 13:40:18 +0530
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Jan Gan Man: For Whom was it written?
To: Farida Majid <farida_majid@hotmail.com>, india-unity@yahoogroups.com
Cc: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
While the original song penned by Tagore has 5 stanzas in all, the
national anthem is composed of only the first one.
Who the "odhinayoko" or "Bharoto bhaggo bidhata" in the anthem refer
to becomes more than amply clear if we look into the third stanza of
the original song.
It says:
Potono obhbhudhoyo bondhur pontha,
Jugo Jugo dhabito jatri
He ***chirosharothi*** [emphasis added], tobo rotho chokre,
Mukhuritho potho dinratri
Doruno biplob majhe,
Tobo shongkhodhoni baje
Shonkoto dukkho trata
Jono gono potho porichayoko joyo he,
Bharoto bhaggo bidhata
Joyo he joyo he joyo he Joyo joyo joyo joyo he.
(The way of life is somber as it moves through ups and downs,
But we, the pilgrims, have followed it through ages.
Oh! ***Eternal Charioteer*** [emphasis added], the wheels of your chariot
Echo day and night in the path
In the midst of fierce revolution,
Your conch shell sounds.
You save us from fear and misery.
Oh! You who guide the people through torturous path,
Victory be to You, dispenser of the destiny of India!
Victory, victory, victory to You!)
(Source: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jana_Gana_Mana_(hymn)>.)
It'd be quite instructive to take note of Tagore's own response on this issue:
"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*** [emphasis added now]. 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."
(Source: <http://scroll.in/article/739703/what-explains-the-return-of-the-104-year-old-controversy-about-tagore-and-national-anthem>.)
***So, the complete song and Tagore's own testimony are the definitive
evidences against such malicious, if not uninformed,
interpretations.***
The above argument had already been provided on the india-unity list
two days back: <https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/india-unity/conversations/messages/56657>.
Btw, Tagore had completed fifty when he penned the song.
Eight years hence he'd renounce knighthood in protest against the
Jalianwala bagh massacre by the colonial rulers.
Sukla
On 13/07/2015, Farida Majid <farida_majid@hotmail.com> wrote:
> In
> 1911 Robi babu was the young, energetic Secretary of Brahmo Samaj, who
> was proving to be a talented and prolific composer of superb devotional
> songs. Judging from Tagore's writings of the time -- in which he often
> expressed satisfaction about the British Rule that brought India under
> 'one umbrella' -- I don't see how Ram Puniyani is informed that "Tagore was
> angered" at the suggestion
> of composing a song of praise for the Emperor of India -- or Bharata
> bhagya-bidhaata.
>
> Farida Majid
>
> From: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
> To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
> Date: Sat, 11 Jul 2015 10:25:15 +0530
> Subject: [mukto-mona] Jan Gan Man: For Whom was it written?
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> Jana Gana Mana Adhinayaka: It's not about King George
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--
Peace Is Doable
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Peace Is Doable
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