Mahatma Gandhi included the singing of bhajan or devotional songs both during his prayers as well as at the beginning of his meetings.
One of his favourite bhajans was 'Vaishnava Jana To' written by the 15th century poet Narsingh Mehta, which came to be sung daily in his ashram. This song emphasised that only those who understood the pain of others were close to God.
As part of the 150th Birth anniversary celebrations of Gandhi, a medley version of this famous bhajan sung by artists from over 40 countries, was launched during the closing ceremony of the Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Conference.
The other bhajan Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram (sometimes called Ram Dhun) was also close to Gandhi.
The original lyrics of this bhajan are attributed to Sri Lakshamanacharya in a religious text titled Shri Nama Ramayanam. It was put to music by Vishnu Digambar Paluskar, and was sung by Gandhi and his followers as they walked during the 241-mile Salt March to Dandi.
This bhajan falls in the category of Naamjap or the chanting of various names of a god / goddess. Therefore, the original lyrics of this devotional song eulogize Lord Ram, an Incarnation of Vishu, by addressing his different names which are nothing but adjectives indicating his divine qualities.
Gandhi edited the lyrics in his attempts to forge Hindu-Muslim unity.
