Vaishnava Jana To English Translation

Vaishnava jana to, tene kahiye... approximates to English as They who are called people of Lord Vishnu... It is a Gujarati song in the genre of Bhajans, which are devotional songs in the religion of Hinduism. Drawing some ideas from Jain traditions, it is highly accepted and revered in Gujarat. It also draws upon concepts from Krishna consciousness, with ideas such as giving up material desires and freeing oneself from illusion (maya).

If you are unaware of Hindu gods, then there are six basic features that Lord Vishnu has, which you can use to make a successful identification. He usually has blue skin (to represent his un-Earthly origins), and he wears yellow robes. He usually has four arms to indicate his multi-tasking powers. In one upper arm, there is a galaxy spinning on his index finger to indicate that he has power to create or destroy it at his fingertips. If he is not happy, then all he has to do is hit the delete button and start again. His other upper arm usually holds a conch-shell, and its spiral form represents our genetic origins from water. His lower hand usually holds a sceptre symbolizing authority and power of knowledge given to him by God. Finally, his other lower hand usually holds a lotus flower during which times he is referred to as Narayan (master and preserver of the Universe), and at other times the palm is up-raised expressing reassurance (that he knows your pain). His primary mode of transport was a vehicle that flew like an eagle in the sky, which had built-in intelligence like that of a man. Known as Garuda, it is usually depicted in paintings as half-bird, half-man.

I always saw Vishnu as the maintainer of the Universe. He is kind of like the IT guy who turns up to re-boot your computer when it freezes; otherwise he is usually shown sleeping on a bed made of coils from the serpent king Sheshanaga. He usually sleeps during the cycle of creation (of the Universe), and wakes up only to maintain it.

Apart from the link to Gandhi, and mention of Vishnu and Garuda in the 80s TV sci-fi series Buck Rogers, Season 2, Episode 1 Part 2, called "Time of the Hawk", I cannot ever recall reading or hearing anything about him anywhere else in mainstream UK media.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, as the case may be (as I am still deliberating), I had to learn to recite this bhajan by the age of ten. Dad, being a huge fan of Mahatma Ghandi (but tended to behave more like Hitler), felt that this was something that everyone in the family should learn, because it contained ideals and a code of conduct that all human beings should aspire to. We had an old scroll as reference, which had this passage written in Sanskrit and Gujarati. Whilst I could just about read it in Gujarati, Sanskrit gave me a migraine. It was two years later that I managed to read it properly in Sanskrit as well, and it made more sense then. However it then took another 40 years more to crystallize it into meaningful English.

People often wonder how hard it would be to translate this. If you can imagine how different Shakespearian English was in the 16th and 17th century compared to modern English today. It is a similar quantum leap to how Gujarati was spoken in the 15th century to how it is today. Although some "glue" words are still very common in modern Gujarati, words such as tene, je, to, toye, keni, jenaa, kahiey, other words remain closer to Sanskrit, but still within my transderivational range of the common Gujarati dialect. Consequently, most translations I have come across have focused on the overall meaning, with some personal well-meaning embellishments, rather than the actual precise meaning of the words. For the sake of accuracy, I have kept a list of words and how they approximate to English words; however the whole thing is just an approximation in the end. Therefore, if you find any mistakes, then please feel free to email and let me know.

English Translation

Vaishnava jana to, tene kahiye,

They, who are called, people of Lord Vishnu,

Je, piida paraai jaane re,

who, comprehend and recognise the pain of others,

par dukhe upkar kare toye

when the suffering are obligated, stil.

mun abhiman nae aane re

egotistical-pride does not enter their minds

sakala lok ma, sahune vande

in the entire world, they bow-down to everyone

They bow-down to everyone in the entire world

ninda na kare keni re

they never slander anyone

vaach kaach, mun nischal, raakhe

speech thoughtful, mind balanced, they keep

they keep their speech thoughtful and mind balanced

dhana-dhana, janani, teni re

very fortunate, the one who gives birth, remains

the one who gives birth (to such a person), remains very fortunate

sama drishti ne, trisnaa tyagi

they see everything equally, and give up (all) material desires

par-strei jene mata re

they see all women as their own mother

jihva thaki, asatya na bole

even for sake of their lives, will never speak untruth

para-dhan nav jhaale haath re

never hold others wealth in their hands

moh maya vyape nahi, jene

who, never surrender to the illusion of material desires

drdha vairagya, Jenaa mun ma re

in whose mind resides, unwavering detachment

ram-anaam-assum, taali re laagi

whose claps are attuned in the name of Lord Rama

sakala tirtha tenaa tann ma re

all the holiest places reside in their body

vana-lobhi ne kapata-rahita che

is without greed and deceit

kaam krodh nivarya re

refrains from lust and hate

bhane narsaiyo, tenum darshan kartam

poet Narasaiyo says that, when such a person visits you

kula-ekoter, tarya re...

71-generations, will be free...

This is a figure of speech to mean in short that 71 generations in their family will be liberated from the cycle of birth and death.

Meaning and Context

Vaishnava, Lord Vishnu

Jana, person(s) or people

Tene, They

kahiye, are called

Je, who

Jaane, recognize, comprehend, empathize – In this context it means being able to empathize and recognize without being told. They somehow know straight away without being told.

Piida, pain/suffering

Paraai, others/strangers

To, who

Upkar, obligation

Toye, still

Mun, mind

Sakala, entire

Lok ma, in the world

Nishchal, stable, balanced

Vaach, speech

Kaach, thoughtful

Keni, anyone

Par dukhe, on the suffering

Abhiman, egotistical-pride, arrogance

Sahu, everyone

Vande, bows, (keeps head down)

Sakala, entire

Lok, world, and lok-ma, in-the-world

Naam, name

Ninda, (ruining someone’s name), malign, slur, slander

Dhana-dhana, (extremely good) wealth, health, fortunate, prosperous

Janam, Birth

Janani, One who gives birth, (mother)

Sama, equally (the same)

Drsti, sees

Tyagi, give up, renounce

Trisnaa, material desires

Par-strei, other women

Satya means truth, asatya approximates to untruth

Vairagya, no desire, or no attachment (detachment)

Drdha, steadfast, unwavering

Drdha vairagya, unwavering detachment

Taali, clapping – usually when rejoicing

Tirtha, holy places (places that cleanses your soul/karma)

Tann, body

Tann ma, in the body

Vana-lobhi, without greed

Kapata-rahita, without deceit or treachery

Nivarya, abstains, or refrains

Vyaape, gives in, submits to, surrenders to

Maya, illusion

Moha, addiction to material desires

Jenaa mun ma re, approximates to, in whose mind resides

Ram-anaam-assum, approximates, attuned in the name of Lord Rama

Krodh, anger, hate is a better approximation.

Darshan, receiving a visit from a holy person

Ekoter, seventy-one, 71

Para dhan, others wealth (wealth that does not belong to you. -- Parku-Dhan in Modern Gujarati)

Jhaale, hold

Haath, hand

In Gujarati and Sanskrit