Jaya Ho
Jaya ho (Victory) We come before thee, O Great and Holy. We bow our heads to thee, Great and Holy. Low at thy feet we bow in quiet reverence, then sing thy praises, evermore repeating.

"Jaya Ho" is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' d ...

written in the

Hindi language Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of the Government of India, alongside English, and is the ''li ...

by an unknown author. The song's Hindi title, more frequently transliterated " Jai ho" in other contexts, means "may there be victory" and is frequently used interjectively to praise God. The hymn's English title is often given as "Victory Hymn" or "Victory Be to You 'i.e.'', God. The hymn was popularized in the United States by Indian-born composer Victor C. Sherring. He led the group Centennial Choir of India, which performed the song in concerts and prayer services in 70 American cities from 1955–1956 to celebrate the centennial of

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

missions in the United States. "Jaya Ho" was translated into English by Katherine R. Rohrbough in 1958. Scholars of

sacred music Religious music (also sacred music) is a type of music that is performed or composed for religious use or through religious influence. It may overlap with ritual music, which is music, sacred or not, performed or composed for or as a ritual. Reli ...

have considered the hymn to be a praising of God and a celebration of victory in

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

History

Victor C. Sherring, a composer who popularized the song, was born in 1919 in

Kanpur Kanpur (Hindustani language, Hindustani: ), originally named Kanhapur and formerly anglicized as Cawnpore, is the second largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Uttar Pradesh after Lucknow. It was the primary ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

, India, and attended Methodist schools in his youth. As the Centennial Choir of India director, he delivered "Jaya Ho" to the United States. From 1955–1956, in commemoration of the centennial of

missions in the United States, the Centennial Choir sang the hymn during their tour of 70 cities, where they performed at prayer assemblies and concerts. "Jaya Ho", Sherring wrote, was "first included in" ''Songs of Joy from India'', an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs, or related fiction/non-fiction excerpts by different authors. There are also thematic and g ...

of songs printed by The Centenary Music Committee in 1955–1956 in both Indian and Western

musical notation Musical notation is any system used to visually represent music. Systems of notation generally represent the elements of a piece of music that are considered important for its performance in the context of a given musical tradition. The proce ...

. Composed in the

by an anonymous author, the hymn was translated into English by Katherine R. Rohrbough in 1958. I-to Loh performed the

phonetic transcription Phonetic transcription (also known as Phonetic script or Phonetic notation) is the visual representation of speech sounds (or ''phonetics'') by means of symbols. The most common type of phonetic transcription uses a phonetic alphabet, such as the ...

in 1988. "Jaya Ho"'s Hindi title is translated as "Victory Hymn" or "Victory be to you". Translated into English, it appears as hymn number 478 in the 1989 edition of ''

The United Methodist Hymnal ''The United Methodist Hymnal'' is the hymnal used by The United Methodist Church. It was first published in 1989 as the first hymnal for The United Methodist Church after the 1968 merger of The Methodist Church with The Evangelical United Brethr ...

'' and as hymn number 252 in the 1996 edition of ''

Voices United The United Church of Canada (UCC; ) is a mainline Protestant denomination that is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in Canada and the second largest Canadian Christian denomination after the Catholic Church in Canada. The United Chu ...

'', the hymn and worship book of the

United Church of Canada The United Church of Canada (UCC; ) is a mainline Protestant denomination that is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in Canada and the second largest Canadian Christian denomination after the Catholic Church in Canada. The United Chu ...

Textual analysis

"Jaya Ho" originated from

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

in northern India.

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

ese

ethnomusicologist Ethnomusicology is the multidisciplinary study of music in its cultural context. The discipline investigates social, cognitive, biological, comparative, and other dimensions. Ethnomusicologists study music as a reflection of culture and investiga ...

I-to Loh, whom

Perkins School of Theology Perkins School of Theology is one of Southern Methodist University's three original schools and is located in Dallas, Texas. The theology school was renamed in 1945 to honor benefactors Joe J. and Lois Craddock Perkins of Wichita Falls, Texas. De ...

professor C. Michael Hawn called the "foremost scholar on Asian hymnody", said the first phrase of the song, "Jaya ho", is the "most common phrase for praising God in the Indian subcontinent, with only slight variations". The

Linguistic Association of Canada and the United States The Linguistic Association of Canada and the United States (LACUS) was founded in August 1974 by a group of linguists of the Great Lakes region. This was largely a reaction against the narrowing of the field following Noam Chomsky’s generative gr ...

called "Jaya ho" an "exotic melody line". The association noted that while the song's beginning

refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeated in poetry or in music">poetry.html" ;"title="Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeat ...

is in Hindi, the song's remaining verses are in English. Loh interpreted "Low at thy feet we bow in quiet reverence", the song's second stanza, to be "a contextual expression of utmost reverence in front of the Holy One". It urges God to grant the worshiper "forgiveness, vision, and protection". Professor of

Hawn stated that the song's verses are enveloped by an "exuberant chorus" that articulates the great happiness of triumphing through Christ. Hawn proposed that this Hindu hymn could be made relevant to 21st-century

Western culture Western culture, also known as Western civilization, European civilization, Occidental culture, Western society, or simply the West, refers to the Cultural heritage, internally diverse culture of the Western world. The term "Western" encompas ...

if people were to consider the experience of the

Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...

s, people in the social caste of Untouchables in India, when singing the song. The Dalit Christians would experience liberty when singing of triumphing through Christ. By familiarizing themselves with multicultural songs, 21st-century Christians can have rarely experienced outlooks from the globally expansive Christian society. They learn, Hawn wrote, that Jesus "has become incarnate throughout the world".

References

;Notes ;Footnotes ;Bibliography * * * * * {{refend Indian Christian hymns Songs in Hindi