Jana Gana Mana (Hindustani: [dʒənə gəɳə mənə], lit. “Thou Art the Ruler of the Minds of All People”) is the national anthem of the Republic of India. It was originally composed as Bharoto Bhagyo Bidhata in Bengali by polymath Rabindranath Tagore.
The first stanza of the song was adopted by the Constituent Assembly of India as the National Anthem on 24 January 1950. A formal rendition of the national anthem takes approximately fifty-two seconds. A shortened version consisting of the first and last lines (and taking about 20 seconds to play) is also staged occasionally.
History
The song was first sung publicly on 27 December 1911 at the Calcutta Session of the Indian National Congress.
Tagore wrote the song in a highly Sanskritized dialect of Bengali known as Sadhu Bhasha. The song is composed almost entirely of nouns, which also double as adjectives in many Indian languages, making it easily understood across diverse linguistic regions of India.
In 1919, during a visit to the Besant Theosophical College in Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh, Tagore translated the song into English as “The Morning Song of India” and collaborated with Margaret Cousins (the college vice-principal’s wife and a western musician) to set down the musical notation of the song, which is followed to this day.
Complete Lyrics
The national anthem consists of the first stanza of Tagore’s five-stanza song:
Bengali Script (Original)
জনগণমন-অধিনায়ক জয় হে ভারতভাগ্যবিধাতা!
পঞ্জাব সিন্ধু গুজরাত মরাঠা দ্রাবিড় উত্কল বঙ্গ
বিন্ধ্য হিমাচল যমুনা গঙ্গা উচ্ছলজলধিতরঙ্গ
তব শুভ নামে জাগে, তব শুভ আশিস মাগে,
গাহে তব জয়গাথা।
জয় হে, জয় হে, জয় হে, জয় জয় জয় জয় হে॥
Roman Transliteration
Jana-gana-mana-adhinayaka jaya he Bharata-bhagya-vidhata!
Panjaba-Sindhu-Gujarata-Maratha-Dravida-Utkala-Banga
Vindhya-Himachala-Yamuna-Ganga-uchchala-jaladhi-taranga
Taba shubha name jage, taba shubha ashisa mage,
Gahe taba jaya-gatha.
Jaya he, jaya he, jaya he, jaya jaya jaya jaya he!
Official English Translation by Tagore
Thou art the ruler of the minds of all people,
Dispenser of India’s destiny.
Thy name rouses the hearts of Punjab, Sindh, Gujarat and Maratha,
Of the Dravida and Orissa and Bengal;
It echoes in the hills of the Vindhyas and Himalayas,
Mingles in the music of Jamuna and Ganges
And is chanted by the waves of the Indian Sea.
They pray for thy blessings and sing thy praise.
The saving of all people waits in thy hand,
Thou dispenser of India’s destiny.
Victory, victory, victory to thee.