Hymn of the Fayth

The Hymn of the Fayth is the gregorian chant-like song heard in all of the various temples around Spira. In each of the Yevon temples, the fayth whose soul is trapped there in the statues can be heard singing the hymn, which is why it came to be called the Hymn of the Fayth. In the Japanese version, it's called the song of prayer. The only time the fayths are said to stop singing the hymn is when Sin is near. Oddly, the tune has a calming effect on the great sea-beast, due to its connection to Jecht.

[History]
The history of the hymn begins 1000 years before the Tidus' journey, just before the horrible Sin first appeared. At the time, Bevelle and Zanarkand were locked in a fearsome war with one another. When the Bevelle forces scaled Mt. Gagazet, they heard an unearthly song echoing across the snow-covered land. They thought it a song from an otherworld and fled in terror. As if to chase the retreating armies, Sin appeared! Later, Bevelle scouts braved the mountains and found ruins where Zanarkand had once stood. There was no one left in the city; instead a vast number of fayths were gathered on Mt. Gagazet, singing the unearthly tune. The tune was evenetually called the Hymn of the fayth. As the Yevon religion became to spread and grow, the Hymn became a sign of resistance against Bevelle and the Yevon Church, and was sung as a symbol of opposition. The priests, at first, forbade it. They soon realized that it was a futile gesture and lifted ban, stating that the Hymn was part of the Yevon belief. The tune was said to soothe the hearts of the faithful followers of Yevon. Over time, its symbolism as part of resistance against Bevelle was forgotten, and it became scripture, spreading all over Spira.

[Jecht & the Hymn]
Because the hymn had been part of Zanarkand of one thousand years before, it was also a part of the dream Zanarkand. Tidus, upon hearing the hymn, remembers it from his own childhood and he recalls that his father was fond of the tune and would sing it often -- despite his rather bad singing voice. When he became Sin, the part of Jecht which remained still liked the song and it had a calming effect on him. In Macalania, Tidus and the others encountered Sin as he hid in the frozen lake, trying to listen the sweet singing of Shiva's fayth. In the end, when Tidus had to battle his father, he asked the acolyte Shelinda to have everyone in Spira sing the hymn as a way for soothe Sin as they began their battle with him. Once inside Sin, Tidus came face to face with Jecht and as he slowly lost his battle in trying to control himself, Jecht told him softly, "I can't hear the hymn so well anymore."

[The Hymn's meaning]
While it sounds like a few lines of gibberish sung like a monks' chant, the Hymn is actually a Japanese anagram. While I myself, not speaking Japanese, cannot explain the exact grammar behind it, the song unscrambled is translated into English as :

Pray, Yu-Yevon
Dream, Praying Child
Until eternity, bring glory

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