The song "Jana Gana Mana" in Sanskrit / Stylized Bengali, written and composed by Nobel Laureate, Rabindranath Tagore, the only composer whose compositions are the National Anthems of two countries today (Bangladesh & India), was adopted by the constituent Assembly as the National anthem of India on January 24, 1950. The song was however first performed much earlier Dec 27, 1911, at the Calcutta session of the Indian National Congress. The complete song consists of five stanzas. The first stanza alone constitutes the full version of the national anthem, as follows :
Jana gana mana adhinayaka jaya he
Bharata bhagya vidhata
Punjab Sindhu Gujarat Maaratha
Dravida Utkal Banga
Vindhya Himachal Yamuna Ganga
Uchchala Jaladhi Taranga
Tava shubha name jage
Tava shubha ashish maange
Gahe tava jaya gatha
Jana gana mangala dayak jaya he
Bharata bhagya vidhata
Jaya he, Jaya he, Jaya he
Jaya jaya jaya jaya he.
The playing time of the National Anthem is approximately 52 seconds
The following is Tagore’s own English translation rendering of the stanza:
Thou art the rulers of the minds of all people,
Dispenser of India’s destiny.
Thy name rouses the hearts of Panjab, Sind, Gujarat and Maratha,
Of the Dravida and Orissa and Bengal:
It echoes in the hills of the vindhyas and Himalayas, mingles in the music of Yammuna and Ganga
And is chanted by the waves of the Indian Sea.
They pray for thy blessings and sing thy praise.
The saving of all people waits in thy hand,
Thou dispenser of India’s destiny,
Victory, victory, victory to thee.
The Indian Embassy, Lisbon, Portugal, has made available the complete Indian national anthem for free listening and download in MP3 format.