Homage To Motherland – A Song

Listen to the most recent episode of my podcast: Hail Motherland https://anchor.fm/geetashree-chatterjee/episodes/Hail-Motherland-e2ev7ie

Today is 26th of January – the 75th Republic Day of India. On this day the Constitution of India came into effect in the year 1950.

Its a fitting day that I am reminded of our National Song – Vande Mataram – which literally means Worship Thy Motherland. The song is written in ancient Sanskrit – mother of all languages. The writer is the famous Bengali literateure Shri Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyaya. The song was written in 1875 when India was still under British rule.

I give a gist of the meaning of the song which is not a transliteration but the summary of the thoughts behind the song :

“The song hails India, the Motherland, which is full of the beauties and bounties of Nature. Her nights are bejewelled with silvery moon shine. Her breeze is redolent with fragrance of flowers. She has a mesmerizing smile and her words are sweetness itself. Her land is so fertile bearing the fruits, cereals and vegetables of the soil. That is our Motherland whom we bow down to!”

It was customary for us to learn the song in school and sing it on every ocasion of national importance.

Today, my patriotic heart, could not resist singing the song again to myself though my voice is gone and age has taken over my breath. Still.

Hope you like it.

Incidentally the song is set in Raga Desh. The word Desh also means country. But the personality of the Raga is Karun Rasa Pradhan, i.e., it has a melancholic strain to it.

However, the lyrics of the song has been so beautifully composed in the said Raga that it does not evoke sadness but induces feelings of devotion with notes of ethereal submission and surrender. As though the land is like our gentle Goddess-like mother and we are all her devotees.

Listen and let me know how you feel about it.

Please do remember my singing was an act of impulse and not properly rehearsed and prepared.

So, please do excuse the flaws.