Nepal National Anthem: 'Sayaun Thunga Phulka' Lyrics, Translation, History

Nepal's national anthem (rastriya gaan / राष्ट्रिय गान) is 'Sayaun Thunga Phulka' (सयौं थुँगा फूलका), a short, single-stanza song whose opening line translates as 'We are hundreds of flowers, the one garland — Nepali.' The title is often rendered in English as 'Made of Hundreds of Flowers' or 'Woven from Hundreds of Flowers.' Rather than glorifying a ruler, the anthem celebrates the land, its people and their diversity, which is why it was chosen after Nepal moved away from the monarchy.

The lyrics were written by the poet Byakul Maila, the pen name of Pradip Kumar Rai, and the music was composed by the celebrated musician Amber Gurung (1938–2016), often called a father of modern Nepali song. The anthem is deliberately brief — roughly a minute long when performed — which distinguishes it from many longer national anthems around the world.

'Sayaun Thunga Phulka' was formally adopted by Nepal's House of Representatives on 3 August 2007, corresponding to Shrawan 18, 2064 in the Bikram Sambat (BS) calendar. It is one of the official national symbols of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, alongside the flag, the crimson (rhododendron) colour, the rhododendron flower, the cow, and the Danphe (Himalayan monal) bird.

The complete official lyrics, as adopted by the Government of Nepal, appear below in Nepali Devanagari script. The song is a single unified stanza; in performance the first two lines are typically repeated as a refrain before the remaining lines are sung.

This is the full authorised text; it is short by design, packing themes of sovereignty, nature, sacrifice, peace and pluralism into a compact whole.

Below is a widely used romanized transliteration of the anthem for readers who cannot read Devanagari. Transliteration schemes vary — you will see spellings such as 'Sayaun,' 'Sayau' or 'Sayaũ,' and 'Phulka' or 'Phool Ka' — so minor differences between sources are normal and do not change the meaning.

Pronunciation note: 'ँ' marks a nasalised vowel, and 'Mechi–Mahakali' (मेची–महाकाली) refers to the Mechi River in the far east and the Mahakali River in the far west, symbolising the full breadth of the country.

The anthem opens with a striking metaphor: the people of Nepal are 'hundreds of flowers' woven into a single garland (mala). It then affirms that this nation is spread sovereign 'from Mechi to Mahakali' — that is, from one end of the country to the other — and describes Nepal as a shawl (anchal) draped with nature's countless riches, kept free and unshakeable by the blood of its brave.

The closing lines call Nepal a land of knowledge and of peace across its Tarai plains, hills and Himalaya, an indivisible and beloved motherland. The final couplet celebrates the country's many castes/ethnicities, languages, religions and cultures as a source of greatness and hails Nepal as a forward-looking (agragami) nation. The translation below conveys this sense; because it is a poetic rendering, wording differs slightly across published English versions.

Woven from hundreds of flowers, we are one garland — Nepali; sovereign, spread out from Mechi to Mahakali. A shawl of nature's countless treasures; by the blood of the brave, independent and immovable. A land of knowledge, a land of peace — Tarai, hills and Himalaya; indivisible, this beloved motherland of ours, Nepal. Of many castes, languages, religions and cultures, so vast; our progressive nation — glory, glory to Nepal!

After the 2006 People's Movement (Jana Andolan II) curtailed the monarchy, the old royal anthem was seen as unsuitable for a democratic Nepal, and the country needed a new national song. A National Anthem Selection Task Team invited entries from the public and received 1,272 submissions from across the country. From these, Byakul Maila's composition was selected and handed to the government on 30 November 2006.

The reworked lyrics were then set to music by Amber Gurung. The finished anthem was formally adopted by the House of Representatives on 3 August 2007 (Shrawan 18, 2064 BS) at a ceremony in the conference hall of the National Planning Commission inside Singha Durbar, Kathmandu, where it was announced by the Speaker of the interim legislature, Subas Chandra Nemwang.

The selection process was notable for its emphasis on inclusiveness: reviewers reportedly checked that the winning text did not glorify the monarchy and that its message reflected all Nepalis rather than a single ruler, dynasty or region.

Byakul Maila is the pen name of Pradip Kumar Rai, a Nepali poet whose verses were chosen as the national anthem's words. His selection carried symbolic weight for a new republic, and the anthem remains his most famous work. His concise, image-rich language — flowers, garland, shawl, blood, the sweep from Mechi to Mahakali — allowed a great deal of meaning to be carried in very few lines.

The music was composed by Amber Gurung (26 February 1938 – 7 June 2016), one of the towering figures of modern Nepali music. Born in Darjeeling, India, to a family with roots in Gorkha, Nepal, Gurung recorded around a thousand songs over a career spanning more than five decades and scored films and documentaries. He died in Kathmandu in 2016 and was cremated with state honours, remembered above all for giving the republic its anthem.

Because the anthem is a short single stanza and its melody is gentle rather than martial, commentators abroad have sometimes described it as one of the world's more unusual and understated national anthems — a description Nepalis often take as a compliment to its warmth and inclusivity.

Before 'Sayaun Thunga Phulka,' Nepal's national anthem was 'Shriman Gambhir' (श्रीमान् गम्भीर), also known simply as 'Rastriya Gaan' (National Song). Its music was composed by Bakhat Bahadur Budhapirthi around 1899, and its lyrics were written by the poet Chakrapani Chalise around 1924. The song was adopted as the national anthem in 1962 under the Panchayat-era constitution.

The old anthem was addressed to and centred on the king, praising the reigning monarch and wishing him glory and long life. As a royal anthem it fit the monarchical political order of its time, but its palace-centred message made it a poor fit once Nepal began dismantling the absolute powers of the crown.

Following the success of the 2006 People's Movement, use of 'Shriman Gambhir' was discontinued on 19 May 2006, and it was formally replaced when 'Sayaun Thunga Phulka' was adopted in August 2007. The change marked a deliberate shift from an anthem honouring a ruler to one honouring the nation, its geography and its people.