Vaishnav Jan To Tene Kahiye – Narsinh Mehta Bhajan Lyrics & Meaning
Vaishnav Jan To Tene Kahiye Lyrics (હિંદી/ગુજરાતી में)
वैष्णव जन तो तेने कहिये,
जे पीड परायी जाणे रे ।
पर दुःखे उपकार करे तो ये,
मन अभिमान न आणे रे ॥
वैष्णव जन तो तेने कहिये,
जे पीड परायी जाणे रे ।
सकल लोकमां सहुने वंदे,
निंदा न करे केनी रे ।
वाच काछ मन निश्चळ राखे,
धन धन जननी तेनी रे ॥
वैष्णव जन तो तेने कहिये,
जे पीड परायी जाणे रे ।
समदृष्टि ने तृष्णा त्यागी,
परस्त्री जेने मात रे ।
जिह्वा थकी असत्य न बोले,
परधन नव झाले हाथ रे ॥
वैष्णव जन तो तेने कहिये,
जे पीड परायी जाणे रे ।
मोह माया व्यापे नहि जेने,
दृढ़ वैराग्य जेना मनमां रे ।
रामनाम शुं ताली रे लागी,
सकल तीरथ तेना तनमां रे ॥
वैष्णव जन तो तेने कहिये,
जे पीड परायी जाणे रे ।
वणलोभी ने कपटरहित छे,
काम क्रोध निवार्या रे ।
भणे नरसैयॊ तेनुं दरसन करतां,
कुल एकोतेर तार्या रे ॥
वैष्णव जन तो तेने कहिये,
जे पीड परायी जाणे रे ।
वैष्णव जन तो तेने कहिये,
जे पीड परायी जाणे रे ।
पर दुःखे उपकार करे तो ये,
मन अभिमान न आणे रे ॥
Vaishnav Jan To Tene Kahiye – Transliteration (English)
Vaishnav jan to tene kahiye, je pīḍ parāī jāṇe re.Paradukhe upakār kare to ye, man abhimān na āṇe re.
Sakaḷ lokamāṃ sahune vande, nindā na kare kenī re.Vācha, kāchha, mana, nishchaḷ rākhe, dhan dhan jananī tenī re.
Sama dṛṣhṭi ne tṛiṣhṇā tyāgī, parastrī jene māt re.Jihvā thakī asatya na bole, paradhan nav jhāle hāth re.
Moh-māyā vyāpe nahi jene, dṛḍha vairāgya jenā manamāṃ re.Rāma-nāma-shuṃ tāḷī re vāgī, sakaḷ tīrath tenā tanamāṃ re.
Vaṇ-lobhī ne kapaṭa-rahit chhe, kāma, krodha, nivāryā re.Bhaṇe Narasaiyo tenuṃ darshan karatāṃ, kuḷ ikoter tāryā re.
Meaning & Significance
Narsinh Mehta composed this devotional hymn in 15th-century Gujarat as a lyrical portrait of the ideal Vaishnava devotee. The opening declaration - that only one who understands the pain of others truly deserves to be called a Vaishnava - captures the essence of the poem's moral vision. Each verse layers on virtues: freedom from pride when helping others, reverence for all beings, control over thought, word and deed, renunciation of lust and greed, and complete absorption in the name of Rama. The concluding verse, attributed to Narsinh himself, promises that the mere sight of such a person liberates seventy-one generations of one's lineage. The poem is written in Old Gujarati and reflects the nirguṇa-saguṇa synthesis at the heart of the Bhakti movement - devotion to a personal God expressed through universal ethical conduct. Mahatma Gandhi adopted this bhajan as a daily morning prayer at his Sabarmati Ashram, and its message of compassionate service resonated profoundly with the independence movement.
About the Composer
Narsinh Mehta (approximately 1414–1481 CE) is revered as the Ādi Kavi of Gujarati literature - the first great poet of the Gujarati language. Born into a Brahmin family in Talaja, Saurashtra, he experienced a mystical vision of Krishna that transformed him from a householder into an ecstatic devotee. He composed hundreds of prabhatiyā (morning songs), bhajans, and poems celebrating Krishna's leelā and the ideals of Vaishnava bhakti. Legend holds that Krishna appeared to him and accepted food from his hands, and that the divine presence attended Narsinh's daughter's wedding when he had no means to provide for it. His works, including Sudama Charitra and Shringara Mālā, remain foundational to the Gujarati literary and spiritual tradition.
About Vishnu (Vaishnav Bhakti)
Vaishnavism centres on devotion to Lord Vishnu and his avatāras, particularly Rama and Krishna. The Vaishnava tradition upholds the path of bhakti - loving surrender to the divine - as the supreme means of liberation. The ideal Vaishnava, as described in this bhajan, is not merely one who performs rituals but one whose entire life embodies compassion, truth-speaking, non-attachment and service to all living beings. Lord Vishnu is celebrated as the preserver of the universe, the one who descends in human form to restore dharma whenever it declines, and whose name alone is sufficient to cross the ocean of worldly existence.
Spiritual Significance & Benefits
When & How It Is Sung
Vaishnav Jan To is traditionally sung during the early morning hours as a prabhatiyā - a devotional song that begins the day with a spiritual orientation. It is sung at a slow, meditative pace in Rāga Bhairavī or similar morning rāgas, often as a group prayer. At Gandhi's Sabarmati Ashram, and subsequently across India, it became the anchor of morning prayer sessions. In Gujarat, it is sung at temple gatherings, satsangs, and school assemblies. The melody is gentle and unhurried, inviting the singer to absorb each virtue described in the verses. It is also common at cremation ceremonies and community service events, where its message of selfless compassion is especially felt.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who composed Vaishnav Jan To Tene Kahiye?
The bhajan was composed by the Gujarati saint-poet Narsinh Mehta in the 15th century CE. He is regarded as the father of Gujarati literature and a foundational figure of the Bhakti movement in Western India. The last verse of the poem bears his signature name, Narasaiyo, confirming its authorship.
Why did Mahatma Gandhi choose this bhajan as a morning prayer?
Gandhi found in this bhajan the clearest expression of his own values: empathy for the suffering of others, non-ego, truth in conduct, and service as the highest form of worship. He introduced it at Sabarmati Ashram and it subsequently spread to every corner of the independence movement, sung daily as a reminder that spiritual life must be lived through ethical action in the world.
What language is Vaishnav Jan To written in?
The bhajan is written in Old Gujarati, the classical form of the Gujarati language as it was spoken and written in the medieval period. While the script and some vocabulary differ from modern Gujarati, the bhajan remains widely understood and sung across Gujarat and among Gujarati communities worldwide.
Defining the true Vaishnava: Narsinh Mehta's ethical and compassionate vision
Composed by the 15th-century Gujarati poet-saint Narsinh Mehta, Vaishnav Jan To Tene Kahiye is one of the rare devotional compositions that has transcended its original religious setting to become a broadly recognized statement of human values. Narsinh Mehta's definition of a true Vaishnava is striking for what it does not mention: it says nothing about ritual purity, caste status, or outward marks of religion. Instead, it describes someone who feels others' pain as their own, who never speaks ill of anyone, who keeps mind, speech, and action in harmony, and whose mother is blessed for having given birth to such a being. The bhakti vision here is inseparable from an ethical vision.
Mahatma Gandhi adopted this bhajan as a favourite morning prayer during his ashram gatherings, and that association gave the composition a second life in the modern consciousness - though its roots in Gujarat's medieval bhakti landscape run centuries deeper. It is sung at satsangs, school morning assemblies, and community gatherings across western India, and its appeal is genuinely cross-denominational. The warmth of the composition comes from its combination of aspiration and humility: Narsinh Mehta is not describing an impossible saint but a particular quality of attentiveness and compassion that, the bhajan suggests, is available to any human being willing to open their heart to others' suffering as freely as to their own.