Amar Sonar Bangla

"Amar Sonar Bangla" (Bengali: আমার সোনার বাংলা, pronounced [amar ʃonar baŋla] English: "My Golden Bengal") is the national anthem of Bangladesh.[1][2] An Ode to Mother Bengal, the lyrics was written by Bengali polymath Rabindranath Tagore in 1905 while the melody of the hymn was adopted from the Baul singer Gagan Harkara's song "Ami Kothay Pabo Tare" (আমি কোথায় পাবো তারে) set to Dadra Tala.[3][4][5] The modern instrumental rendition was arranged by Samar Das.

আমার সোনার বাংলা
English: My Golden Bengal
Amar Sonar Bangla
National anthem of  Bangladesh
LyricsRabindranath Tagore, 1905
MusicGagan Harkara, 1889 (arranged by Samar Das, 1972)
Audio sample
"Amar Shonar Bangla" (instrumental)
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Rabindranath Tagore, writer of the song

Etymology

The word sonar literally means "made of gold", with "sona" meaning gold, and "ar" showing possession. It is used as a term of endearment meaning "beloved", but in the song the words sonar Bangla may be interpreted to either express the preciousness of Bengal or refer to the color of paddy fields before harvest.

History
Main article: Partition of Bengal (1905)

The song was written in 1905 during the first partition of Bengal, when the ruling British Empire had an undivided province of Bengal Presidency split into two parts; the decision was announced on 19 July by the then-Viceroy of India Lord Curzon, taking effect on 16 October. This divide of Bengal, being along communal lines–East Bengal and Assam having a majority of Muslims and West Bengal having a majority of Hindus–is claimed to have undermined India's national movement against the UK's imperialism and to have been politically motivated. Along with a host of others, songs such as this were meant to rekindle the unified spirit of Bengal, to raise public consciousness against the communal political divide. The lyrics first appeared in the September issues of "Bongodorshon" and "Baul" simultaneously, in 1905. The song along with the musical notation (referred to as swaralipi in Bengali), first appeared in the periodical musical journal Shongeet Biggnan Probeshika in the same month and year. Indira Devi, Tagore's niece, Satyendranath Tagore's daughter, jotted down the musical notation hearing it from Tagore himself (this was the common norm, Tagore singing the song, and someone formally jotting down the musical notations).

Official adoption

The first ten (10) lines of this song constitute Bangladesh's national anthem, adopted in 1971 during its liberation war. Only those lines are given in the following section. The instrumental orchestra rendition was composed by Samar Das.[6]

Lyrics

The following provides the lyrics of the "Amar Sonar Bangla" as written by Rabindranath Tagore. Only the first ten (10) lines of this song currently constitute Bangladesh's national anthem and are in boldface.

Bengali text Phonetic transcription (Wiki scheme) English translation
আমার সোনার বাংলা
Amar Shonar Bangla


আমার সোনার বাংলা, আমি তোমায় ভালোবাসি।
চিরদিন তোমার আকাশ, তোমার বাতাস, আমার প্রাণে বাজায় বাঁশি॥
ও মা, ফাগুনে তোর আমের বনে ঘ্রাণে পাগল করে,
মরি হায়, হায় রে—
ও মা, অঘ্রাণে তোর ভরা ক্ষেতে আমি কী দেখেছি মধুর হাসি॥

কী শোভা, কী ছায়া গো, কী স্নেহ, কী মায়া গো—
কী আঁচল বিছায়েছ বটের মূলে, নদীর কূলে কূলে।
মা, তোর মুখের বাণী আমার কানে লাগে সুধার মতো,
মরি হায়, হায় রে—
মা, তোর বদনখানি মলিন হলে, ও মা, আমি নয়নজলে ভাসি॥

তোমার এই খেলাঘরে শিশুকাল কাটিলে রে,
তোমারি ধুলামাটি অঙ্গে মাখি ধন্য জীবন মানি।
তুই দিন ফুরালে সন্ধ্যাকালে কী দীপ জ্বালিস ঘরে,
মরি হায়, হায় রে—
তখন খেলাধুলা সকল ফেলে, ও মা, তোমার কোলে ছুটে আসি॥

ধেনু-চরা তোমার মাঠে, পারে যাবার খেয়াঘাটে,
সারা দিন পাখি-ডাকা ছায়ায়-ঢাকা তোমার পল্লীবাটে,
তোমার ধানে-ভরা আঙিনাতে জীবনের দিন কাটে,
মরি হায়, হায় রে—
ও মা, আমার যে ভাই তারা সবাই, ও মা, তোমার রাখাল তোমার চাষি॥

ও মা, তোর চরণেতে দিলেম এই মাথা পেতে—
দে গো তোর পায়ের ধুলা, সে যে আমার মাথার মানিক হবে।
ও মা, গরিবের ধন যা আছে তাই দিব চরণতলে,
মরি হায়, হায় রে—
আমি পরের ঘরে কিনব না আর, মা, তোর ভূষণ ব'লে গলার ফাঁসি

Amar shonar Bangla, ami tomay bhalobashi/
Chirodin tomar akash, tomar batash, amar prane bajay bãshi.
O ma, phagune tor amer bone ghrane pagol kôre,
Mori hay, hay re—
O ma, Ôghrane tor bhôra khete ami ki dekhechhi modhur hashi.

Ki shobha, ki chhaya go, ki sneho, ki maya go—
Ki ãchol bichhayechho bôţer mule, nodir kule kule/
Ma, tor mukher bani amar kane lage shudhar môto,
Mori hay, hay re—
Ma, tor bôdonkhani molin hole, o ma, ami nôyonjôle bhashi.

Tomar ei khêlaghôre shishukal kaţile re,
Tomari dhulamaţi ôngge makhi dhonno jibôn mani/
Tui din phurale shondhakale ki dip jalish ghôre,
Mori hay, hay re—
Tôkhon khêladhula shôkol phele, o ma, tomar kole chhuţe ashi.

Dhenu-chôra tomar maţhe, pare jabar kheyaghaţe,
Shara din pakhi-đaka chhayay-đhaka tomar pollibaţe,
Tomar dhane-bhôra anginate jibôner din kaţe
Mori hay, hay re—
O ma, amar je bhai tara shôbai, o ma, tomar rakhal tomar chashi.

O ma, tor chôronete dilem ei matha pete—
De go tor payer dhula, she je amar mathar manik hôbe/
O ma, goriber dhôn ja achhe tai dibo chôrontôle,
Mori hay, hay re—
Ami pôrer ghôre kinbo na ar, ma, tor bhushon bole gôlar phãshi.

My golden Bengal, I love you.
Forever thy skies, thy air set my heart in tune as if it were a flute,
O mother! The aroma of the mango orchard in Falgun drives me crazy,
Ah, what a thrill!
O mother! In Ogrohayon time sees sweet smiles all through mature fields of paddy.

What beauty, what shades, what affection, what tenderness!
What a quilt have thee spread at the feet of banyan trees and along the bank of every river,
Oh mother mine, words from thy lips are like nectar to my ears.
Ah, what a thrill!
If sadness, O mother! casts a gloom on your face, my eyes are filled with tears!

Spending my childhood in your playhouse
Your dirt and soil smeared all over my body, I consider myself privileged.
The wonderful lamp you light up at dusk,
Ah, what a thrill!
I quit play and sprint back to your lap at once, O mother!

In the cattle grazing field, on the pier for crossing stream,
Shaded village walkways, serene with calling birds,
Open porch with heaped ripe paddy my life goes on.
Ah, what a thrill!
All your shepherds and farmers are my brothers.

This time I offer my head beneath your feet,
Bless me with your dust, I shall be obliged to flaunt overhead.
I shall offer you meagrely whatever I have at home,
Ah, what a thrill!
Never bother to buy you, from others, a hanging rope disguised as a crown.

Notable performances and covers

The Ministry of Cultural Affairs planned to stage an event on Bangladesh's 44th independence day, in a bid to have the world record of the most people singing a national anthem simultaneously. Consequently, on 2 March, the ministry launched a program titled "Lakho Konthe Sonar Bangla" whose main objective was to hold an event with the cooperation of Bangladesh Armed Forces where approximately 300,000 people would sing the national anthem.[7] Several popular Bangladeshi musicians and cultural groups later joined the program.[8]

The record was broken at 11:20 on 26 March 2014 by 254,537 participants at Dhaka's National Parade Ground. The event was attended by the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad, and all the members of the cabinet.[9] After receiving the required evidence, the Guinness Book of World Records approved the record on 9 April 2014.[10] The record was broken by India on 21 January 2017.[11]

See also

References
  1. "The Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh - 4. National anthem, flag and emblem". Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs.
  2. "Bangladesh: Amar Shonar Bangla". NationalAnthems.me. Retrieved 9 August 2011.
  3. Folk singer, Swapan Basu, demonstrates the similarity in a live recitation (0:43/8:46 to 1:21/8:46)
  4. Chakrabarti, Santosh (2004). Studies in Tagore: Critical Essays. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. p. 108. ISBN 9788126903405.
  5. http://tagoreweb.in/Render/ShowContent.aspx?ct=Essays&bi=72EE92F5-BE50-40D7-AE6E-0F7410664DA3&ti=72EE92F5-BE50-4A47-7E6E-0F7410664DA3
  6. Komol, Khalid Hasan (2012). "Das, Samar". In Islam, Sirajul; Jamal, Ahmed A. (eds.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
  7. "Logo of 'Lakho Konthe Sonar Bangla' unveiled". The Independent. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  8. "Bangladesh prepares for another record". New Age. Archived from the original on 6 June 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  9. "Bangladesh sets world record singing nat'l anthem". New Age. Archived from the original on 7 June 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  10. "Guinness accepts national anthem record". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  11. http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/most-people-singing-a-nationalregional-anthem-simultaneously/
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