Hum Honge Kamyab/We Shall Overcome

Today's guest blogger is Jenan Mohajir, a program associate for the Outreach Education & Training program at the Interfaith Youth Core. She is extensively involved with the Muslim community through several grassroots initiatives in Chicago, IL

"Hum Honge Kamyab." Throughout my primary and junior high school years, these were the words that my classmates and I sang at the beginning of each music class. Although I grew up in Doha, the capital of the Middle Eastern country of Qatar, I attended an Indian school. This in part was because my parents were Indian expatriates working in the country, and an Indian education would allow for a smoother transition when we returned to India - at least that was the hope.

These words, the title and chorus of one of our most patriotic songs, were sung in Indian schools everywhere, on National holidays, during festivals and during dark moments. When religious violence and rioting followed the 1992 demolition of the Babri mosque in India, news quickly reached the Indian expatriate communities around the world. And while many of us waited anxiously to hear from our loved ones, I remember, we sang "Hum Honge Kamyab" to help us overcome the mayhem taking place in Mumbai.

A week ago I found myself sitting in the sanctuary of the Pilgrim Congregational Church in St. Louis, Missouri, waiting for the start of the Sunday sermon. I had been invited as a representative for the Interfaith Youth Core to deliver a special sermon that marked the celebration of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. As I waited anxiously to walk up to the pulpit and deliver my sermon I felt the nervousness creep up my back. Although I had been quite accustomed to public speaking, this was the first time I had given a sermon in a Christian Congregation.

When the service began, the pastor of the Pilgrim Congregational Church welcomed us, saying:

"No matter who you are or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome here."

As the service progressed, I followed along in the hymnal book by my seat as the choir sang one beautiful hymn after another, feeling quite at home with the pastor's words of comfort. And then, just before I walked up to the microphone, the choir began to sing "We Shall Overcome", one of the anthems of the civil rights movement.

As the echo of the hymn filled the sanctuary, something occurred to me that in the years since I had forgotten. "Hum Hong Kamyab" was the Indian version of "We Shall Overcome," which had been translated into Hindi by the Indian poet Girija Kumar Mathur. I realized that I had grown up singing this hymn in Hindi until my family moved to the United States and I began attending public school in the suburbs of Chicago. Every week before then my Indian classmates and I would gather in our music class and begin the period with the Hindi translation of "We Shall Overcome."

As I walked up to the podium at the Pilgrim Congregational Church, I found myself at a crossroads. On one side of me stood my Indian and Muslim roots, our struggle as a people to reconcile our religious diversity. On the other side stood my American life, its promise of equality and dignity for all of its citizens. And with this in mind I began my sermon following the recitation of these words from the Quran:

"We have created you into many nations and tribes so that you may know one another."

The content of this blog reflects the views of its author and does not necessarily reflect the views of either Eboo Patel or the Interfaith Youth Core.

By Eboo Patel  |  January 28, 2009; 10:20 AM ET  | Category:  Interfaith Issues , Personal Religion , Religion & Leadership , Spirituality
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