Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram: Difference between revisions

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Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram (also called Ram Dhun) is a notable bhajan (Hindu devotional song) widely popularised by Mahatma Gandhi.^[1] The most popular version of this bhajan was set to tune by Hindustani classical musician, Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar.^[2]

Origins

The precise origins of the Ramdhun are not entirely clear;^[3] but it is likely derived from the Ramcharitmanas, written by Tulsidas.

Loka-Rāmāyaṇa— a collection of folk songs based on the Ramcharitmanas— compiled by folk musician Bindhyabasini Devi, has this loka bhajan in kirtan dhun:^[4]^[5]

रघुपति राघव राजा राम । पतित पावन सीताराम ॥

जय रघुनन्दन जय घनश्याम । जानकी बल्लभ सीताराम ॥

निस दिन रटु मन जपु मन नाम । अबध सरयु सीताराम ॥

सरयु धन धन अजोधा धाम । जहां बिराजत सीताराम ॥

सुमिरन कर मन आठों याम । अबध सरयु सीताराम ॥

Gandhi's version

This is the most common version, created by Mahatma Gandhi and put to music by Vishnu Digambar Paluskar;^[6] which was sung by Gandhi and his followers as they walked the 241 mile (387 km) Salt March to Dandi.^[7]

The Hindi lyrics of the bhajan along with their translation, by historian and musicologist Guy Beck, are as follows:^[8]

Hindi, created by Mahatma Gandhi

रघुपति राघव राजाराम,

पतित पावन सीताराम

सीताराम सीताराम,

भज प्यारे तू सीताराम

ईश्वर अल्लाह तेरो नाम,

सब को सन्मति दे भगवान

राम रहीम करीम समान

हम सब है उनकी संतान

सब मिला मांगे यह वरदान

हमारा रहे मानव का ज्ञान

Transliteration (IAST)

raghupati rāghava rājārāma,

patita pāvana sītārāma

sītārāma, sītārāma,

bhaja pyāre tu sītārāma

ishwara allaha tero nāma

saba ko sanmati de bhagavāna

rāma rahīma karīma samāna

hama saba hai unaki santāna

saba milā māṅge yaha varadāna

hamārā rahe mānava kā jñāna

Translation

O Lord Rama, descendant of Raghu, Uplifter of the fallen.

You and your beloved consort Sita are to be worshipped.

All names of God refer to the same Supreme Being,

including Ishvara and the Muslim Allah.

O Lord, Please give peace and brotherhood to everyone,

as we are all your children.

We all request that this eternal wisdom of humankind prevail.

Gandhi modified the original bhajan by adding the mention of Allah, to make the song more secular-looking and to spread the message of reconciliation between Hindus and Muslims.^[9]^[10]

"Original" version

The following is considered by many to be the original version; allegedly taken from Shri Nama Ramayanam, written by "17th-century Vaishnava poet Shri Lakshmanacharya":^[10]^[11]^[12]

रघुपति राघव राजा राम ।

पतित पावन सीताराम ॥प॥

सुंदर विग्रह मेघश्याम

गंगा तुलसी शालग्राम

भद्रगिरीश्वर सीताराम

भक्तजनप्रिय सीताराम

जानकीरमण सीताराम

जयजय राघव सीताराम ॥१॥

जल में राम ताल में राम

सारे जग में तू हि राम

राम राम राम राम

प्रेम से बोलो जै सियाराम ॥२॥

कौसल्या के प्यारे राम

दशरथ राज दुलारे राम

राम राम राम राम

प्रेम से बोलो जै सियाराम ॥३॥

जग में जो सो सुन्दर राम

सीता राम जै जै श्री हनुमान ॥४॥

Transliteration (IAST)

raghupati rāghava rājā rām

patita pāvana sītārām ॥P॥

sundara vigraha mēghasḥyām

gangā tuḷasi sḥālagrām ।

bhadragirīshwara sītārām

bhaktajanapriya sītārām ।

jānakiramaṇa sītārām

jayajaya rāghava sītārām ॥1॥

jal mein rām tal mein rām

sāre jag mein tū hi rām

rām rām rām rām

prēm se bōlō jai siyārām ॥2॥

kausalyā ke pyāre rām

dashratha rāj dulāre rām

rām rām rām rām

prēm se bōlō jai siyārām ॥3॥

jag mein jō sō sundar nām

sitā rām jai shrī hanumān ॥4॥

Translation

O King Raghava (Rama)! Chief of the Raghu dynasty, the descendant of King Raghu.

O the consort of Sita! The uplifter of those who have fallen.

You are dark-skinned and good looking like rain clouds.

You are prayed in the form of Shalagram with Tulasi and Ganga water.

O the consort of Sita! You are the Lord of Bhadrachalam hill.

O the one dearest to the devotees!

O the loved one of Janaki!

Victory to you, the descendant of the Raghu dynasty and consort of Sita!^{[note 1]}

Ram is in water, Ram is in the shore,

Ram is everywhere in life.

From your heart, say "Jai Siya Ram".

The darling of Kausalya,

the pet of King Dashratha.

From your heart, say "Jai Siya Ram".

Sita and Ram are the two beautiful names in the world.

Victory to Shri Hanuman!

However, the Nama Ramayana written by Shri Lakshmanacharya (who actually died in 1919) doesn't contain the verse "Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram", and is totally different.^[13]

Other versions

The song "Raghupati Raghav Rajaram" from the 1948 movie Shri Ram Bhakta Hanuman has the following lyrics:^[14]

जय रघुनन्दन जय सियाराम,

जानकी वल्लभ सीताराम ।

दशरथ राजदुलारे राम,

कौशल्या के प्यारे राम,

भक्तों के रखवाले राम,

जग के पालनहारे राम ।

रघुपति राघव राजा राम,

पतित पावन सीताराम ॥

Another version known as "Ram Kirtan" is as follows:^[15]^[16]

रघुपति राघव राजा राम पतित पावन सीताराम ।

ईश्वर शिव तेरा नाम सबको सुमति दे भगवान ॥ रघु ०

जय रघुनन्दन जय सियाराम जानकी बल्लभ सीताराम ॥

कपिपति लंकापति अभिराम, जय मारुतसुत पुरण काम ॥

Here is an excerpt from yet another version:^[17]

रघुपति राघव राजा राम, पतित-पावन सीताराम ॥

सीताराम सीताराम, भज प्यारे तू सीताराम ॥

राम-कृष्ण हैं तेरे नाम । सब को सन्मति दे भगवान ॥

दीन-दयालु राजाराम, पतित-पावन सीताराम ॥

In popular culture

Elements of the chant were included in the song "Utho Utho he Bharat" in the movie Bharat Milap (1942),^[18] in songs of Shri Ram Bhakta Hanuman (1948), the song "De Dii Hamen Aazaadii" in the movie Jagriti (1954),^[19] Purab Aur Paschim (1970) and in the film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), in the Kannada film Gandhinagara (1968), in the British-Indian movie Gandhi (1982), in the film Gandhi, My Father (2007), and in Satyagraha (2013).
"Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram" was the title of a Tamil movie produced in 1977.
Pete Seeger included "Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram" on his album "Strangers and Cousins" (1964) and performed it in Episode 10 of his television series Rainbow Quest.
Sheila Chandra recorded a version titled Bhajan on her 1992 album Weaving My Ancestors' Voices.
Many singers such as Lata Mangeshkar, Jagjit Singh, K.S.Chithra have recorded the song.
The game Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories featured the song on one of the radio stations Radio Del Mundo.
The song is an important motif in the 2006 Bollywood film, Lage Raho Munna Bhai, and is featured in the movie
Rakesh Roshan's superhero film Krrish 3 contains a song named "Raghupati Raghav".
The arrangement by Jyotishka Dasgupta is an official piece of Grade 2 Electronic Keyboard from Trinity College London, where it is simply named Bhajan.

Notes

↑ This first stanza is called "Ram Dhun".

References

↑ Dalton, Dennis (1993). Mahatma Gandhi: Nonviolent Power in Action. Columbia University Press. p. 109. ISBN 0-231-12237-3.
↑ Arunachalam, Param (2 October 2015). "Gandhi Jayanti: Remembering Bapuji through 5 evocative songs". DNA India. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
↑ Lal, Vinay (2014). "Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram". In Helfenstein, Josef; Newland, Joseph N. (eds.). Experiments with Truth: Gandhi and Images of Nonviolence. Houston: The Menil Collection. pp. 244–45.
↑ Vohra, Asha Rani (1 January 2009). Nari Kalakar (in हिन्दी). Prabhat Prakashan. ISBN 978-81-907341-1-0.
↑ Devi, Vindhya Basini (1998). Loka-rāmāyaṇa: Śrīmad Gosvāmi Tulasīdāsa jī viracita Śrī Rāmacarita Mānasa para ādhārita (in हिन्दी). Madhyapradeśa Tulasī Akādemī.
↑ Sinha, Manjari (8 August 2008). "Tuned to excellence". The Hindu. Retrieved 27 April 2009.
↑ "Dandi: Salt March". Lal, Vinay. University of California, Los Angeles. Retrieved 16 November 2007.
↑ Guy L. Beck (17 July 2006). "Hinduism and music". In Guy L. Beck (ed.). Sacred Sound: Experiencing Music in World Religions. Wilfrid Laurier University Press. p. 137. ISBN 978-0-88920-421-8.
↑ Handoo, Jawaharlal (1998). Folklore in Modern India. Central Institute of Indian Languages. ISBN 978-81-7342-053-5.
↑ ^10.0 ^10.1 "On Gandhi Jayanti, remembering Mahatma's most beloved hymns — from Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram to Lead, Kindly Light-Living News , Firstpost". Firstpost. 2 October 2019. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
↑ "Is the Hindu Right's Appropriation of Gandhi Possible?". The Wire. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
↑ Shivakumar, K. N. (14 January 2021). Shlokas and Bhajans: with general knowledge and subhashitams. Sangeet Bharati.
↑ Videhatmananda, Swami (17 May 2018). श्रीरामनामसंकीर्तन की कहानी / Sri Ramanamsankirtan Ki Kahani (in हिन्दी). Ramakrishna Math, Nagpur. ISBN 978-93-88046-80-0.
↑ Raghupati Raghav Rajaram | रघुपति राघव राजा राम | Shree Ram Bhakta Hanuman Song, retrieved 29 June 2021
↑ Śarmā, Jagannātha (1961). Devī devatāoṃ kī āratiyāṃ (in हिन्दी). Dehātī Pustaka Bhaṇḍāra.
↑ Sanatan Daily Prayer. Diamond Pocket Books (P) Ltd. ISBN 978-81-288-0484-7.
↑ Kalyāṇa (in हिन्दी). 1986.
↑ Utho Utho He Bharat Tumhaare - उठो-उठो हे भरत तुम्हारे, retrieved 28 June 2020
↑ "दे दी हमें आज़ादी बिना खड्ग बिना ढाल - de dii hame.n aazaadii binaa khaD.hg binaa Dhaal / जागृति-(Jaagriti)". www.lyricsindia.net. Retrieved 28 June 2020.

Bibliography

Dalton, Dennis (1993). Mahatma Gandhi: Nonviolent Power in Action. Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-12237-3.

[13] This first stanza is called "Ram Dhun".

[1] Dalton, Dennis (1993). Mahatma Gandhi: Nonviolent Power in Action. Columbia University Press. p. 109. ISBN 0-231-12237-3.

[:0-2] Arunachalam, Param (2 October 2015). "Gandhi Jayanti: Remembering Bapuji through 5 evocative songs". DNA India. Retrieved 15 August 2020.

[3] Lal, Vinay (2014). "Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram". In Helfenstein, Josef; Newland, Joseph N. (eds.). Experiments with Truth: Gandhi and Images of Nonviolence. Houston: The Menil Collection. pp. 244–45.

[4] Vohra, Asha Rani (1 January 2009). Nari Kalakar (in हिन्दी). Prabhat Prakashan. ISBN 978-81-907341-1-0.

[5] Devi, Vindhya Basini (1998). Loka-rāmāyaṇa: Śrīmad Gosvāmi Tulasīdāsa jī viracita Śrī Rāmacarita Mānasa para ādhārita (in हिन्दी). Madhyapradeśa Tulasī Akādemī.

[6] Sinha, Manjari (8 August 2008). "Tuned to excellence". The Hindu. Retrieved 27 April 2009.

[7] "Dandi: Salt March". Lal, Vinay. University of California, Los Angeles. Retrieved 16 November 2007.

[Beck2006-8] Guy L. Beck (17 July 2006). "Hinduism and music". In Guy L. Beck (ed.). Sacred Sound: Experiencing Music in World Religions. Wilfrid Laurier University Press. p. 137. ISBN 978-0-88920-421-8.

[9] Handoo, Jawaharlal (1998). Folklore in Modern India. Central Institute of Indian Languages. ISBN 978-81-7342-053-5.

[:1-10] 10.0 ^10.1 "On Gandhi Jayanti, remembering Mahatma's most beloved hymns — from Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram to Lead, Kindly Light-Living News , Firstpost". Firstpost. 2 October 2019. Retrieved 22 June 2021.

[11] "Is the Hindu Right's Appropriation of Gandhi Possible?". The Wire. Retrieved 22 June 2021.

[12] Shivakumar, K. N. (14 January 2021). Shlokas and Bhajans: with general knowledge and subhashitams. Sangeet Bharati.

[14] Videhatmananda, Swami (17 May 2018). श्रीरामनामसंकीर्तन की कहानी / Sri Ramanamsankirtan Ki Kahani (in हिन्दी). Ramakrishna Math, Nagpur. ISBN 978-93-88046-80-0.

[15] Raghupati Raghav Rajaram | रघुपति राघव राजा राम | Shree Ram Bhakta Hanuman Song, retrieved 29 June 2021

[16] Śarmā, Jagannātha (1961). Devī devatāoṃ kī āratiyāṃ (in हिन्दी). Dehātī Pustaka Bhaṇḍāra.

[17] Sanatan Daily Prayer. Diamond Pocket Books (P) Ltd. ISBN 978-81-288-0484-7.

[18] Kalyāṇa (in हिन्दी). 1986.

[19] Utho Utho He Bharat Tumhaare - उठो-उठो हे भरत तुम्हारे, retrieved 28 June 2020

[20] "दे दी हमें आज़ादी बिना खड्ग बिना ढाल - de dii hame.n aazaadii binaa khaD.hg binaa Dhaal / जागृति-(Jaagriti)". www.lyricsindia.net. Retrieved 28 June 2020.

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[note 1]

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