Notes on Vandemataram Song

 వందే మాతరం గేయం :  వలస వ్యతిరేకత నుండి మత విద్వేషం వరకు 

వందేమాతరం నినాదం వందేమాతరం ఉద్యమం వందేమాతరం గీతం ఒకటికావు. 

మాతృదేశాన్ని  ప్రతి ఒక్కరూ గౌరవించాలి. వందేమాతరం అనాలి. మా తుఝే సలాం అనాలి. తల్లీ నీకు వందనం అనాలి. 

హిందూ దేవతలైన కాళిక దుర్గాలే మాతృ భూమి.   ప్రతిపౌరుడు   ఆ దేవతల్ని పూజించాలంటే  విబేధాలు వస్తాయి. 

భారత ముస్లింల జన్మభూమి కర్మభూమి పుణ్యభూమి కూడ భారత దేశమే.

మక్కా, మదీనా, బైతుల్ ముఖద్దస్ (al aqsa mosque) లను ముస్లింలు పుణ్య క్షేత్రాలుగా భావిస్తారు.  అంతమాత్రాన ఆ మూడు పుణ్యక్షేత్రాలున్న సౌదీ అరేబియా, ఇజ్రాయేల్ దేశాలను, పాలస్తీనాను కూడ  ముస్లింలు పుణ్య భూములు అనుకోవు. ఫాదర్ లాండ్ , మదర్ లాండ్ అనుకోరు. 

బెంగాల్ విభజనకు వ్యతిరేకంగా 1905లో చెలరేగిన వందేమాతరం ఉద్యమంలో కీలక పాత్ర వహించిన ముస్లింలు ఎవరూ? 

When and how Rabindranatha Tagore changed his stance on Vandemataram song and became critical of it?

బంకించంద్ర  బ్రిటీష్ ఉద్యోగి. 1857లో హిందూ ముస్లింలు కలిసి భారత  ప్రధమ స్వాతంత్ర్యోద్యమాన్ని సాగించిన 25 ఏళ్ల తరువాత ఆనందమఠ్ నవలను ప్రచురించాడు. 

ఆయన అప్పుడు అధికారంలోవున్న బ్రిటీష వలస పాలనను వ్యతిరేకించలేదు. బ్రిటీష్  పాలన ఆరంభానికి ముందు ముస్లింనవాబుల పాలన కాలంలో  బెంగాల్ లో సాగిన సన్యాసుల తిరుగుబాటును కథాంశంగా తీసుకున్నాడు. ఈ నవలలో హిందూ సన్యాసులు proyogonists;  ముస్లిం పాలకులు antogonists. 

1857 లో భారత హిందూ ముస్లింల మధ్య ఏర్పడిన ఐక్యతను చూసి బ్రిటీష్ పాలకులు భయపడ్డారు. ఆ రెండు మత శిబిరాలను విడదీయాలనుకున్నారు. 

బంకించంద్ర నవల ఆ పనిచేసి పెట్టింది.  

1905లో బెంగాల్ విభజనకు వ్యతిరేకంగా సాగిన వందేమాతరం వుద్యమంలో ఈ విభజన పనిచేసింది. దానితోనే రబీంద్రనాథ్ టాగోర్ ఈ గీతం మీద తన పూర్వ ఆలోచనల్ని మార్చుకున్నాడు. ఆయన ఏకేశ్వరోపాశకుడు కావడం కూడ దీనికి కారణం. . 

బంకించంద్ర వ్యూహానికి ఆధునిక రూపమే 1923లో దామోదర్ వినాయక్ సావర్కర్ ప్రవేశ పెట్టిన  Hindutva సిధ్ధాంతం. 

1. Who was Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and what was his job?

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (also spelled Chattopadhyay) was a highly influential Bengali novelist, poet, essayist, and journalist. Often referred to as Sahitya Samrat (Emperor of Literature), he played a pioneering role in the 19th-century Bengal Renaissance and deeply rooted early Indian nationalism through his literature. [1, 2, 3]

In the British colonial administration, he served as a high-ranking civil servant. He was appointed as a Deputy Magistrate and Deputy Collector. He held this executive position for over 32 years (from 1858 until his retirement in 1891), often managing various administrative sub-divisions across Bengal while secretly penning his famous revolutionary works during his spare time. [1, 2, 3, 4]

2. Who was the Governor-General / Viceroy during his service?

Because Bankim Chandra served the government for more than three decades (1858–1891), he lived and worked under multiple heads of the colonial administration. [1]

When he first entered government service in 1858, Lord Canning was the Governor-General (who also became India's very first Viceroy that same year following the Government of India Act 1858).
When he retired in 1891, Lord Lansdowne was serving as the Viceroy of India.

3. When did he write the song Vande Mataram?

He wrote the lyrics to the patriotic song Vande Mataram on November 7, 1875. He initially wrote it as a standalone poem before deciding to incorporate it into his structural fiction work years later. [1, 2]

4. When did he publish Anandamath and what period did its story represent?

Publication Year: He published the novel Anandamath in 1882.
Historical Period Represented: The plot of the story is set in the late 18th century (the 1770s). It vividly portrays the devastating Great Bengal Famine of 1770 and the subsequent armed Sannyasi Rebellion, where a group of ascetic monks and common multitudes rose up to fight the oppressive tax systems of the British East India Company. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

5. Who was the Governor-General / Viceroy then?

When Anandamath was published in 1882, Lord Ripon was the Viceroy and Governor-General of India (serving from 1880 to 1884). He is historically remembered for introducing the local self-government acts in India.

The primary antagonists in Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel Anandamath are the forces of the British East India Company and the ruling Bengal administration. [1, 2, 3]

Antagonists in the Novel

The British East India Company: The main foreign power exploited local resources and fought against the ascetic rebel army (santans).
The Puppet Nawab's Administration: The regional rulers who levied heavy taxes under British pressure during the devastating agrarian crisis. [1, 2]

The Nawab at that Time

Historical Setting: The novel is set during the late 18th century against the backdrop of the Great Bengal Famine of 1770.
The Nawab: During this 1770 famine period, Bengal was under a system of dual government where the nominal Nawab was Saif ud-Daulah (who ruled from 1766 to 1770) followed briefly by Babur Ali Khan / Mubarak Ali Khan, while actual civil and revenue power (Diwani) was held by the British East India Company. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]




The Constituent Assembly did not hold a formal, divided debate or vote on Vande Mataram; instead, President Dr. Rajendra Prasad issued a official statement on January 24, 1950, declaring the first two stanzas as the National Song with equal honor to the National Anthem. [1, 2]
The Decision
The Outcome: Dr. Rajendra Prasad announced that Jana Gana Mana would be the National Anthem and Vande Mataram (first two stanzas) would be the National Song. [1, 2]
The Assembly's Reaction: The members accepted this declaration with cheers, and the assembly wrapped up without a formal motion or dissent on the floor. [1, 2]
Proponents and Historical Consensus
Key Leaders: Figures like Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose, and Rabindranath Tagore supported truncating the song.
The 1937 Compromise: The Congress Working Committee earlier decided to use only the first two stanzas to honor the freedom struggle's unifying power while avoiding later stanzas with explicit religious imagery. [1, 2, 3]
Opponents and Concerns
Historical Opposition: The Muslim League during the pre-independence era objected to the song's later verses due to idolatrous or religious imagery that conflicted with monotheistic beliefs. [1, 2]
Modern Context: Contemporary groups, such as the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, continue to argue that mandating or reciting full verses outside the first two stanzas clashes with diverse religious faiths and constitutional




The prominent personalities of the 18th-century Sanyasi and Fakir Rebellion (1763–1800) against the British East India Company included key leaders from both Hindu ascetic and Muslim Sufi orders. [1, 2, 3]
Major Leaders
Majnu Shah: A prominent Sufi saint of the Madariya order, he was the main leader of the Fakir Uprising, organizing armed bands in northern Bengal to raid Company factories and treasuries. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
Pandit Bhabani Charan Pathak (Bhawani Pathak): A key Sanyasi leader from Buxar/Rangpur, he led armed groups of Hindu ascetics and peasants in joint resistance with Majnu Shah. [1, 2, 3, 4]
Devi Chaudhurani: A legendary woman leader who worked alongside Bhawani Pathak, symbolizing active female participation in early anti-British resistance. [1, 2, 3, 4]
Musa Shah: Majnu Shah’s brother, who assumed leadership and continued military operations after Majnu Shah's death. [1, 2, 3]
Chirag Ali Shah (Chirag Shah): Another vital leader of the Fakir resistance who coordinated attacks against British colonial outposts following operations by Majnu Shah and Musa Shah. [1, 2, 3]




While the actual historical event of the late 18th century was a combined Sanyasi-Fakir Rebellion where Hindu ascetics and Muslim mystics fought side-by-side against the British East India Company, Bankim Chandra chose to selectively focus on and fictionalize only the Hindu Sanyasis. [1, 2]
The Key Differences Between History and the Novel
The Fictional Brotherhood: In Anandamath, Bankim Chandra created a fictional band of ascetic warriors called the Santans (Children of the Mother). He framed their struggle around Hindu religious imagery, portraying them as selfless devotees fighting a holy war to liberate Mother India. [1, 2, 3, 4]
The Omission of Fakirs: The Muslim Fakirs, who were crucial leaders and participants in the actual historical uprising (such as Majnu Shah), were omitted from the rebel alliance in the book. [1, 2, 3]
The Portrayal of Muslims: Instead of showing Hindu-Muslim unity against the British, the novel often positions the local Muslim Nawabs and their administration as corrupt and adversarial. The Santans initially rise up against the misrule of the Nawabs rather than targeting the British directly. [1]
Historical Criticism
Because of this creative liberty, many modern historians criticize Anandamath for its lack of historical accuracy regarding the cooperative nature of the revolt. While the novel remains a monumental piece of political literature that gifted India its national song, Vande Mataram, it replaced the shared, cross-religious history of the Sanyasi-Fakir Rebellion with an exclusively Hindu nationalist