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Bharat Mata Quotes With Meaning: Vande Mataram in Bengali, and Sanskrit Shlokas on the Motherland

Long before there was a map, there was a mother. The idea of the land as a mother is old in India — the Atharvaveda says it outright — and in 1882 Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay gave it a song: Vande Mataram. Here are the Bharat Mata lines people reach for most for an Instagram bio, a WhatsApp status or a tattoo — each one complete, never cut in half, with how to read it and its meaning in Hindi and English.

One thing to know first: Vande Mataram is not Sanskrit. Bankim wrote it in Bengali, much of it in Sanskrit words, so the cards show it in the Bengali script first, then in Devanagari and Roman letters. The Vishnu Purana and Atharvaveda verses further down are Sanskrit. Every card names its real source, and a few famous lines that aren't what they're said to be are marked near the end.

Vande Mataram, stanza by stanza

In Anandamath, the monk Bhavananda sings it at night to a stranger, Mahendra, who asks who this "mother" is. The Bengali is from the 1938 centenary edition of Bankim's works, checked against the 1883 second edition (both on Bengali Wikisource). Most people know only the first stanza; the fiercer ones come after.

বন্দে মাতরম্ ।
সুজলাং সুফলাং মলয়জশীতলাং
শস্যশ্যামলাং মাতরম্ ।
শুভ্র-জ্যোৎস্না-পুলকিত-যামিনীম্
ফুল্লকুসুমিত-দ্রুমদলশোভিনীম্,
সুহাসিনীং সুমধুরভাষিণীম্
সুখদাং বরদাং মাতরম্ ॥
वन्दे मातरम् ।
सुजलां सुफलां मलयजशीतलां
शस्यश्यामलां मातरम् ।
शुभ्र-ज्योत्स्ना-पुलकित-यामिनीम्
फुल्लकुसुमित-द्रुमदलशोभिनीम्,
सुहासिनीं सुमधुरभाषिणीम्
सुखदां वरदां मातरम् ॥
vande mātaram
sujalāṃ suphalāṃ malayajaśītalāṃ
śasyaśyāmalāṃ mātaram
śubhra-jyotsnā-pulakita-yāminīm
phullakusumita-drumadalaśobhinīm
suhāsinīṃ sumadhurabhāṣiṇīm
sukhadāṃ varadāṃ mātaram
“I bow to you, Mother — rich in waters, rich in fruit, cool with the breeze from the southern hills, dark green with harvests, Mother. Her nights thrill with white moonlight, her trees shine with flowers in full bloom; sweetly smiling, sweetly speaking, giver of joy, giver of blessings — Mother.”
हे माँ, मैं तुम्हें प्रणाम करता हूँ — तुम जल से भरी, फलों से भरी, मलय पर्वत की हवा से शीतल और फसलों से हरी-भरी हो। तुम्हारी रातें उजली चाँदनी से पुलकित हैं, तुम्हारे वृक्ष खिले फूलों से शोभित हैं; तुम मधुर मुस्कान वाली, मधुर बोलने वाली, सुख देने वाली, वर देने वाली माँ हो।
Vande Mataram, stanzas 1–2 (the national song) · Anandamath (1882), Part 1, Ch. 10 · Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay · Bengali, in Sanskrit words
সপ্তকোটীকণ্ঠকলকলনিনাদকরালে
দ্বিসপ্তকোটীভুজৈর্ধৃতখর-করবালে,
অবলা কেন মা এত বলে ।
বহুবলধারিণীং নমামি তারিণীং
রিপুদলবারিণীং মাতরম্ ।
सप्तकोटीकण्ठकलकलनिनादकराले
द्विसप्तकोटीभुजैर्धृतखर-करवाले,
अबला केन मा एत बले ।
बहुबलधारिणीं नमामि तारिणीं
रिपुदलवारिणीं मातरम् ।
saptakoṭī-kaṇṭha-kalakala-nināda-karāle
dvisaptakoṭī-bhujair dhṛta-khara-karavāle
abalā keno mā eto bale
bahubaladhāriṇīṃ namāmi tāriṇīṃ
ripudalavāriṇīṃ mātaram
“Seventy million throats roaring, twice seventy million hands raising sharp swords — with such strength, Mother, how are you weak? You who hold great strength, I bow to you: you who carry us across, who drive back the enemy's ranks — Mother.”
सात करोड़ कण्ठों की गरजती हुई ध्वनि, चौदह करोड़ भुजाओं में उठी तीखी तलवारें — माँ, इतने बल के रहते तुम अबला कैसे? बहुत बल धारण करने वाली, (संकट से) पार उतारने वाली, शत्रुओं के दल को रोकने वाली माँ, तुम्हें नमन है।
Vande Mataram, stanza 3 · Anandamath (1882), Part 1, Ch. 10 · Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay · Bengali, in Sanskrit words
Bharat Mata Wall Poster – ‘नमस्ते सदा वत्सले मातृभूमे’ | Bharatvarsh Arts
Bharat Mata — fierce, protective — on our ‘नमस्ते सदा वत्सले मातृभूमे’ poster.
See the poster →
ত্বং হি দুর্গা দশপ্রহরণধারিণী
কমলা কমল-দলবিহারিণী
বাণী বিদ্যাদায়িনী
নমামি ত্বাং
নমামি কমলাম্ অমলাং অতুলাম্
সুজলাং সুফলাম্ মাতরম্
বন্দে মাতরম্
শ্যামলাং সরলাং সুস্মিতাং ভূষিতাম্
ধরণীং ভরণীম্ মাতরম্ ।
त्वं हि दुर्गा दशप्रहरणधारिणी
कमला कमल-दलविहारिणी
वाणी विद्यादायिनी
नमामि त्वां
नमामि कमलाम् अमलां अतुलाम्
सुजलां सुफलाम् मातरम्
वन्दे मातरम्
श्यामलां सरलां सुस्मितां भूषिताम्
धरणीं भरणीम् मातरम् ।
tvaṃ hi durgā daśapraharaṇadhāriṇī
kamalā kamala-dalavihāriṇī
vāṇī vidyādāyinī
namāmi tvāṃ
namāmi kamalām amalāṃ atulām
sujalāṃ suphalām mātaram
vande mātaram
śyāmalāṃ saralāṃ susmitāṃ bhūṣitām
dharaṇīṃ bharaṇīm mātaram
“You are Durga, bearing the ten weapons; you are Kamala, at play among the lotus petals; you are Vani, giver of learning. I bow to you. I bow to Kamala — spotless, beyond compare, rich in waters, rich in fruit — Mother. I bow to you, Mother: dark with green, simple, gently smiling, adorned; the Earth who holds us and feeds us — Mother.”
तुम ही दस अस्त्र धारण करने वाली दुर्गा हो, कमल-दल में विहार करने वाली कमला (लक्ष्मी) हो, विद्या देने वाली वाणी (सरस्वती) हो। तुम्हें नमन है। निर्मल, अतुलनीय, जल और फल से भरी कमला माँ को नमन है। वन्दे मातरम् — श्यामल, सरल, मुस्कुराती हुई, सजी हुई, हमें धारण करने और पालने वाली धरती माँ।
Vande Mataram, stanza 5 · Anandamath (1882), Part 1, Ch. 10 · Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay · Sanskrit words, Bengali song
তুমি বিদ্যা তুমি ধর্ম
তুমি হৃদি তুমি মর্ম
ত্বং হি প্রাণাঃ শরীরে ।
বাহুতে তুমি মা শক্তি
হৃদয়ে তুমি মা ভক্তি
তোমারই প্রতিমা গড়ি
মন্দিরে মন্দিরে ।
तुमि विद्या तुमि धर्म
तुमि हृदि तुमि मर्म
त्वं हि प्राणाः शरीरे ।
बाहुते तुमि मा शक्ति
हृदये तुमि मा भक्ति
तोमारइ प्रतिमा गड़ि
मन्दिरे मन्दिरे ।
tumi vidyā tumi dharma
tumi hṛdi tumi marma
tvaṃ hi prāṇāḥ śarīre
bāhute tumi mā śakti
hṛdaye tumi mā bhakti
tomārai pratimā gaḍi
mandire mandire
“You are knowledge, you are dharma, you are the heart and its deepest core; you are the life-breath in the body. In our arms you are strength, Mother; in our hearts you are devotion, Mother. It is your image we shape in temple after temple.”
तुम ही विद्या हो, तुम ही धर्म हो, तुम ही हृदय हो, तुम ही मर्म हो; शरीर में प्राण भी तुम ही हो। माँ, भुजाओं में तुम ही शक्ति हो, हृदय में तुम ही भक्ति हो; मन्दिर-मन्दिर में हम तुम्हारी ही प्रतिमा गढ़ते हैं।
Vande Mataram, stanza 4 · Anandamath (1882), Part 1, Ch. 10 · Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay · Bengali

Bankim was writing about Bengal: "seven crore" (seventy million) was roughly the population of the Bengal province of his day, and "twice seven crore" its hands. Within a generation the song belonged to the whole freedom movement, and "Mother" came to mean all of India.

Bharatavarsha and the Earth as mother: Sanskrit shlokas

Older than the song, and in Sanskrit. The Vishnu Purana verses are from its critical edition (Oriental Institute, Vadodara); the Atharvaveda verses are from the Shaunaka recension, both as published on GRETIL.

उत्तरं यत्समुद्रस्य हिमाद्रेश्चैव दक्षिणम् ।
वर्षं तद्भारतं नाम भारती यत्र संततिः ॥
uttaraṃ yat samudrasya himādreś caiva dakṣiṇam
varṣaṃ tad bhārataṃ nāma bhāratī yatra saṃtatiḥ
“The land that lies north of the ocean and south of the snowy mountains is called Bharata, and there live the descendants of Bharata.”
जो देश समुद्र के उत्तर में और हिमालय के दक्षिण में है, उसका नाम भारत (भारतवर्ष) है; वहाँ भरत की संतानें बसती हैं।
Vishnu Purana 2.3.1 · Sanskrit · the sage Parashara to Maitreya
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गिरयस्ते पर्वता हिमवन्तोऽरण्यं ते पृथिवि स्योनमस्तु ।
बभ्रुं कृष्णां रोहिणीं विश्वरूपां ध्रुवां भूमिं पृथिवीमिन्द्रगुप्ताम् ।
अजीतोऽहतो अक्षतोऽध्यष्ठां पृथिवीमहम् ॥
girayas te parvatā himavanto 'raṇyaṃ te pṛthivi syonam astu
babhruṃ kṛṣṇāṃ rohiṇīṃ viśvarūpāṃ dhruvāṃ bhūmiṃ pṛthivīm indraguptām
ajīto 'hato akṣato 'dhy aṣṭhāṃ pṛthivīm aham
“Your hills, Earth, your snow-clad mountains and your forests — may they be kind to us. On this earth — brown, black and red, of every form, steady, guarded by Indra — I have taken my stand: unconquered, unslain, unwounded.”
हे पृथ्वी, तुम्हारी पहाड़ियाँ, हिम से ढके पर्वत और तुम्हारे वन हमारे लिए सुखद हों। भूरी, काली, लाल, अनेक रूपों वाली, अटल, इन्द्र द्वारा रक्षित इस पृथ्वी पर मैं अजेय, अहत और अक्षत होकर खड़ा हूँ।
Atharvaveda 12.1.11 · Bhumi Sukta · Vedic Sanskrit
यत्ते मध्यं पृथिवि यच्च नभ्यं यास्त ऊर्जस्तन्वः संबभूवुः ।
तासु नो धेह्यभि नः पवस्व
माता भूमिः पुत्रो अहं पृथिव्याः पर्जन्यः पिता स उ नः पिपर्तु ॥
yat te madhyaṃ pṛthivi yac ca nabhyaṃ yās ta ūrjas tanvaḥ saṃbabhūvuḥ
tāsu no dhehy abhi naḥ pavasva
mātā bhūmiḥ putro ahaṃ pṛthivyāḥ parjanyaḥ pitā sa u naḥ pipartu
“Whatever is your centre, Earth, and your navel, and the strengths that have grown from your body — set us within them, and make us pure. The Earth is my mother, and I am the son of the Earth; the rain-cloud is my father — may he carry us through.”
हे पृथ्वी, जो तुम्हारा मध्य है, जो तुम्हारी नाभि है, और जो ऊर्जाएँ तुम्हारे शरीर से उत्पन्न हुई हैं — उनमें हमें स्थापित करो, हमें पवित्र करो। भूमि माता है, मैं पृथ्वी का पुत्र हूँ; पर्जन्य (मेघ) पिता है — वह हमारा पालन करे।
Atharvaveda 12.1.12 · Bhumi Sukta · Vedic Sanskrit
गायन्ति देवाः किल गीतकानि धन्यास्तु ये भारतभूमिभागे ।
स्वर्गापवर्गास्पदहेतुभूते भवन्ति भूयः पुरुषाः सुरत्वात् ॥
gāyanti devāḥ kila gītakāni dhanyās tu ye bhāratabhūmibhāge
svargāpavargāspadahetubhūte bhavanti bhūyaḥ puruṣāḥ suratvāt
“Even the gods sing this song: blessed are those who live in the land of Bharata, the ground from which heaven and liberation are reached — for even gods are born there again as human beings.”
देवता भी यह गीत गाते हैं — धन्य हैं वे जो भारतभूमि में रहते हैं, जो स्वर्ग और मोक्ष दोनों की प्राप्ति का साधन है; देवता भी देवत्व के बाद वहाँ फिर मनुष्य बनकर जन्म लेते हैं।
Vishnu Purana 2.3.24 · Sanskrit · the sage Parashara to Maitreya

Famous "Bharat Mata" lines that aren't what they're said to be

  • जननी जन्मभूमिश्च स्वर्गादपि गरीयसी
    "Mother and motherland are greater than heaven" is usually said to be Rama's words in the Ramayana, but it isn't in the critical edition of Valmiki's Ramayana, and no one has found its original source. It is, though, in Anandamath: Bhavananda says it to Mahendra just before he sings Vande Mataram a second time.
    Not in the critical Ramayana · quoted in Anandamath (1882)
  • कोटि-कोटि-कण्ठ-कल-कल-निनाद-कराले
    Many people sing "koti-koti" (crores upon crores of voices). Bankim wrote "saptakoti" — seven crore — for Bengal's people in his day, and the 1883 and 1938 editions both read so. "Koti-koti" is a later change that made the line fit all of India.
    Later singing variant · Bankim wrote सप्तकोटी
  • नमस्ते सदा वत्सले मातृभूमे…
    The words on our Bharat Mata poster open a Sanskrit prayer to the motherland written in the 20th century by Narhar Narayan Bhide. They are well loved, but they are modern, not ancient — and the poem is recent enough that we quote only its first line.
    Modern Sanskrit prayer · N. N. Bhide, 20th century
  • यत्र धर्मः सदा पूज्यः यत्र सत्यं प्रकाशते…
    The verse on our Akhand Bharat poster — "where dharma is always honoured and truth shines" — is a modern composition. We could not trace it to any old text or find who wrote it.
    Modern verse · author unknown
Akhand Bharat Wall Poster – ‘अखंड भारत’ | Bharatvarsh Arts
Not scripture, and we're happy to say so. Our “अखंड भारत” poster.
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Questions people ask

Who wrote Vande Mataram, and in which language?

Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, in Bengali — much of it in Sanskrit words, which is why many people think it is Sanskrit. It appeared in his novel Anandamath (1882), sung by the monk Bhavananda.

Which part of Vande Mataram is the national song?

The first two stanzas, from “वन्दे मातरम्” to “सुखदां वरदां मातरम्” — the first card above. On 24 January 1950, Rajendra Prasad told the Constituent Assembly that Vande Mataram would be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana.

What does "sujalam suphalam malayajashitalam" mean?

Rich in waters, rich in fruit, cooled by the breeze from the Malaya hills of the south — the opening picture of the motherland in Vande Mataram.

What is the meaning of "mata bhumih putro aham prithivyah"?

"The Earth is my mother, and I am her son." It is from the Bhumi Sukta of the Atharvaveda (12.1.12), one of the oldest hymns to the Earth.

Where does the name Bharatavarsha come from?

The Vishnu Purana (2.3.1) defines it: the land north of the ocean and south of the Himalaya is called Bharata, where the descendants of Bharata live.

Is "janani janmabhumishcha swargadapi gariyasi" from the Ramayana?

Not from the critical edition of Valmiki's Ramayana, and its original source is unknown. Bankim quotes it in Anandamath, right next to Vande Mataram.

Where do these meanings come from?

The Bengali is from Bengali Wikisource's editions of Anandamath (1883 and 1938); the Sanskrit is from GRETIL's texts of the Vishnu Purana critical edition and the Atharvaveda. The Devanagari of Vande Mataram is our own letter-for-letter rendering of the Bengali, and the English and Hindi meanings are our own.

Bring Bharat Mata home

Bharat Mata Wall Frame – ‘नमस्ते सदा वत्सले मातृभूमे’ | Bharatvarsh Arts
‘नमस्ते सदा वत्सले मातृभूमे’, framed — for the wall you see every morning.
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