O KORASON MA GUAIYA

This Chamorro hymn to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is not so well-known, at least in Guam. I heard it sung in Saipan, though, and even there not so much.

O KORASON MA GUAIYA

O Korason ma guaiya, man dimo gi me'nå-mo;
(O beloved Heart, we kneel before You;)
in ya'ho hao Rai-måme, gi langet yan i tano'. (1)
(we call You our King, in heaven and earth.)
Asaina na iyo-mo, i saina yan i patgon;
(Lord, Yours is the parent and child;)
i guaha yan i taya', todos siha i taotao. (2)
(rich and poor, all the people.)

Hamyo i man gai pinite, fan mamaila' giya guåho;

(You who have sorrow, come to me;)

Esta guine Jesus-måme, ya man magof ham nu hågo.

(Where are here now, our Jesus, and are happy in you.)

Hamyo lokkue' famagu'on, fan la hihot guine sahyao;

(You children also, come closer here quickly;)

konne' ham, u ta fan hita, gi yini'usan na raino.

(Take us, we will be together, in the divine kingdom.)

"Guåho i maolek na Pastot, ya hamo man pineksai-ho." (3)

("I am the Good Shepherd, and you are my flock.")

Yu'us, Pastot yan Rai-måme, na' fañocho ham ni na'-mo.

(Our God, Shepherd and King, feed us with your food.)

Bo'bo' hånom i ha'of-mo, sen mames nu i man må'ho. (4)

(Your heart if a font of water, most sweet to the thirsty.)

Må'ho yo' guennao na gimen, låla'la' na matan hånom.

(I thirst for that drink, the spring of living water.)

NOTES

(1) Yå'ho : some people might interpret this to mean "to wake someone up," and it can be translated that way, but it means "to call" or "to call out," and in that way one can call out to someone to wake them up.

(2) The song refers to the rich as "those having" (i guaha) and the poor as "those lacking" (i taya').

(3) Jesus is the Shepherd, and His flock of sheep are the ones He raises, shelters, protects, provides for. Poksai means "to raise."

(4) Hå'of literally means "chest" but here it stands for the Heart, which is within the chest.

This hymn is based on the Spanish hymn O Corazón Sagrado (O Sacred Heart).