Thato Ya Hao: The Story Behind the Popular Hymn
Thato Ya Hao is a hymn that is widely sung in many churches across Southern Africa. The song, which means “The Will of God” in Sesotho, expresses the trust and surrender of the believer to God’s plan and purpose. But who wrote this song and what inspired it?
The author of Thato Ya Hao is unknown, but some sources suggest that it was composed by a missionary named John Dube in the late 19th or early 20th century. Dube was a Zulu preacher who worked among the Basotho people in Lesotho and South Africa. He was also a poet and a translator who contributed to the development of Sesotho literature.
According to one legend, Dube wrote Thato Ya Hao after witnessing a tragic event in his ministry. He was traveling with a group of converts to be baptized in a river when they were attacked by a band of robbers. Some of the converts were killed and others were wounded. Dube himself was shot in the leg and left for dead. As he lay on the ground, he heard the survivors singing Thato Ya Hao as a prayer of faith and hope.
Another version of the story claims that Dube wrote Thato Ya Hao as a farewell song to his wife, who was dying of tuberculosis. He wanted to comfort her with the assurance that God’s will is always good and perfect, even when it seems hard to understand.
Whatever the origin of Thato Ya Hao, the song has become a beloved hymn that inspires many Christians to trust in God’s sovereignty and grace. The lyrics are simple but profound, expressing the core of the gospel message:
Thato ya hao e phethehe
(The will of God is complete)
Ke tla etsa ka mehla
(I will do it always)
Ke tla etsa ka mehla
(I will do it always)
Thato ya hao e phethehe
(The will of God is complete)
Ke tla ba le wena Morena
(I will be with you Lord)
Ha ke le tseleng ya gago
(When I am on your path)
Ha ke le tseleng ya gago
(When I am on your path)
Ke tla ba le wena Morena
(I will be with you Lord)
O nkalosa dinokaneng
(You lead me in green pastures)
O nkalosa dinokaneng
(You lead me in green pastures)
O nkalosa dinokaneng
(You lead me in green pastures)
O nkalosa dinokaneng
(You lead me in green pastures)
O ntswarele dikolotong
(You forgive my sins)
O ntswarele dikolotong
(You forgive my sins)
O ntswarele dikolotong
(You forgive my sins)
O ntswarele dikolotong
(You forgive my sins)
If you want to learn more about Thato Ya Hao and other hymns from Southern Africa, you can visit Hymns of Africa, a website that features audio recordings, lyrics, translations, and background information on various songs of worship from different African languages and cultures.
Thato Ya Hao is not only a hymn, but also a cultural expression of the Basotho people. The song reflects their history, identity, and spirituality. The Basotho are a Bantu ethnic group that inhabits Lesotho and parts of South Africa. They are known for their distinctive culture and traditions, such as their colorful blankets, their circular huts, and their initiation rites.
The Basotho have a rich musical heritage that includes various genres and instruments. They sing songs for different occasions and purposes, such as praise, lament, celebration, and storytelling. They use instruments such as the lesiba, a mouth harp made from a feather and a string; the setolo-tolo, a plucked string instrument made from a tin can and a wire; and the lekolulo, a flute made from a reed.
Thato Ya Hao is one of the many examples of how the Basotho have integrated their Christian faith with their musical culture. The song is sung in Sesotho, one of the 11 official languages of South Africa and the national language of Lesotho. Sesotho is a tonal language that has five vowel sounds and 36 consonant sounds. It also has a complex system of noun classes and verb conjugations.
The melody of Thato Ya Hao is based on a pentatonic scale, which means that it uses five notes per octave. Pentatonic scales are common in many African musical traditions, as well as in other parts of the world. The song has a call-and-response structure, which means that one singer or group sings a phrase and another singer or group responds with another phrase. Call-and-response is also a widespread feature of African music, as well as a form of social interaction and communication.
Thato Ya Hao is a song that transcends time and space. It connects the past and the present, the local and the global, the human and the divine. It is a song that expresses the universal longing for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.