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National Song
The song Vande Mataram, composed in Sanskrit by Bankimchandra
Chatterji, was a source of inspiration to the people in their struggle
for freedom. It has an equal status with Jana-gana-mana. The first
political occasion when it was sung was the 1896 session of the Indian
National Congress. The following is the text of its first stanza.
Vande Mataram!
Sujalam, suphalam, malayaja shitalam,
Shasyashyamalam, Mataram!
Shubhrajyothsna pulakitayaminim,
Phullakusumita drumadala shobhinim,
Suhasinim sumadhura bhashinim,
Sukhadam varadam, Mataram!
The English
translation of the stanza rendered by Sri Aurobindo in prose 1 is :
I bow to thee, Mother,
richly-watered, richly-fruited,
cool with the winds of the south,
dark with the crops of the harvests,
The Mother!
Her nights rejoicing in the glory of the moonlight,
her lands clothed beautifully with her trees in flowering bloom,
sweet of laughter, sweet of speech,
The Mother, giver of boons, giver of bliss.
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