Palayur Church and the Jew Hill Monument (Photos: March, 2020)
1) Introduction
Palur or Palayur is considered one of the earliest Jewish settlements in Kerala along with Madai, Pullut, Quilon (Kollam) and Cranganore (Kodungallur). Unfortunately, none of the Jewish colonies have attained the popularity and the cult status of Cranganore or Shingly. Paradesis were the main proponents of Shingly legends. There is no doubt, Cranganore and the story of Paradesi Jews were the pet topics of western travellers who visited Cochin and wrote about Kerala's mysterious Jewish community from the 16th century onwards. Though numerically small, Paradesis played an important role in the socio-economic life of Cochin and most foreign visitors found language barrier was not a hindrance while interacting with them. Paradesi versions received much attention and were reported frequently. On the other hand, visitors and researchers never cared to go beyond Cochin and meet the other Jews whose settlements were located interior, and as a result the Malabari traditions remained generally unknown and neglected. No wonder why Palur, a Malabari Jewish settlement does not come into western narratives. The silence can also be attributed to the absence of a Jewish population in Palayur since the 18th century. Despite the scanty details available, there are a few historical documents mainly in the form of Jewish Malayalam Folk Songs, St. Thomas Christian traditions and village records that relate Palayur to Jews. Vestiges of Jewish history still remain in modern Palayur. Curiously enough, the Orthodox Syrian Christian community has a different candidate for Palayur in a village called Arthat, located 7 km north-east to the traditional (Catholic) Palayur, and it is interesting to note that both sites claim for a Jewish heritage! There are one or two important artifacts that directly link Palayur and Jews. Since Christian traditions of Palayur are relatively more abundant, I will discuss them in detail.
2) Palayur in Jewish Traditions
Despite having reservations about the age and reliability of the oral traditions, most scholars would agree a Jewish connection to Palur. The commonly accepted version is that Jews migrated to Kerala after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, settled in a few places including Palur. As it is generally observed with Kerala's Jewish history, while traditions assert an early date, the written documents appear much later, Palur's case is also not an exception. The earliest documented evidence for a Jewish settlement in Palur is in the reports of Mosseh De Paiva in 1687, where he finds one synagogue and 10 families (Koder, 1968, p. 37). Strangely, after De Paiva, we don't see any accounts that mention about a functional Jewish settlement in Palur. Even in the 1768 Hebrew letter of Ezekiel Rahabi, where he mentions 10 Malabari synagogues at 6 centers including one in Thirtur and Muttam, Palur is absent (Koder, 1949, p.3)! This is intriguing since Rahabi is thought to have established synagogues for the Jews working in his estates at Palur along with Thirtur and Muttam (Koder, 1968, p. 47; Jussay, 2005, pp. 21, 42). However, a Jewish presence in Palayur is reported before De Paiva in a letter written by a Christian bishop, which we will discuss later. In the late 18th century, with the invasion of Tipu Sultan, the demography of the non-Muslim population in the region was drastically altered, there is no reason to speculate that the Jews of Palayur were spared from the atrocity. Anyway, there is no evidence to prove the existence of a Jewish community in Palayur after 18th century.
3) Palayur and Jewish Malayalam Folk Songs
Despite having reservations about the age and reliability of the oral traditions, most scholars would agree a Jewish connection to Palur. The commonly accepted version is that Jews migrated to Kerala after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, settled in a few places including Palur. As it is generally observed with Kerala's Jewish history, while traditions assert an early date, the written documents appear much later, Palur's case is also not an exception. The earliest documented evidence for a Jewish settlement in Palur is in the reports of Mosseh De Paiva in 1687, where he finds one synagogue and 10 families (Koder, 1968, p. 37). Strangely, after De Paiva, we don't see any accounts that mention about a functional Jewish settlement in Palur. Even in the 1768 Hebrew letter of Ezekiel Rahabi, where he mentions 10 Malabari synagogues at 6 centers including one in Thirtur and Muttam, Palur is absent (Koder, 1949, p.3)! This is intriguing since Rahabi is thought to have established synagogues for the Jews working in his estates at Palur along with Thirtur and Muttam (Koder, 1968, p. 47; Jussay, 2005, pp. 21, 42). However, a Jewish presence in Palayur is reported before De Paiva in a letter written by a Christian bishop, which we will discuss later. In the late 18th century, with the invasion of Tipu Sultan, the demography of the non-Muslim population in the region was drastically altered, there is no reason to speculate that the Jews of Palayur were spared from the atrocity. Anyway, there is no evidence to prove the existence of a Jewish community in Palayur after 18th century.
3) Palayur and Jewish Malayalam Folk Songs
Palur appears in Jewish Malayalam Folk Songs as one of their first settlements in Kerala. Most of these songs were sung by Malayalam-speaking Jewish women and were transmitted from generation to generation orally, and was written down into notebooks from the mid-19th century at the earliest. The songs, mostly prayers and blessings with Biblical resonance, were used as a medium of religious communication. It has not been possible to determine who and when these songs were composed, but based on the abundance of Tamil words and expressions used, authors like Jussay (2005, p. 106) speculates that some of them might have been written during the 16th century or earlier. More than 30 handwritten notebooks and over 300 different songs are now preserved mostly by the Ben-Zvi Institute for the Study of Jewish Communities in the East and the Jewish Music Research Center (JMRC) in Israel. It was Simon A. I., a prominent member from Paradesi community, who brought the songs with Malayalam text to the attention of scholars for the first time by publishing 5 complete songs and fragments of 10 others in a pamphlet entitled "The songs of the Jews of Cochin and their historical significance" in 1947. Since then many more songs, excerpts and their translations began to get published by researchers [eg. Jussay (1978, 1986, 1990, 2005); Daniel and Johnson, 1995; Gamliel, 2009 etc.] 'Karkulali-Yefefiah-Gorgeous', with 51 songs in Malayalam and their Hebrew Translations by Scaria Zacharia and Ophira Gamliel (2005) and 'Oh, Lovely Parrot', a compact disk with recorded excerpts from 42 different Malayalam folksongs by Barbara C. Johnson (2004) are substantial volumes in the field.
Palayur appears in at least five of the Jewish folk songs:
3.1) The Song of the Bird or Parrot Song (പൈങ്കിളിയുടെ പാട്ട് or കിളിപ്പാട്ട്): The song appears in multiple variants, and to be specific, nine versions of this song are available (Zacharia, 2003). In Karkulali (2005, pp. 37-39), two variants (Malayalam) from Paravur Jewish community are provided, the Song-1 and Song-2 (known as പച്ചമണിമാട൦ or Green Mansion). Simon (1947, p. 27-28) has the variant 2, as Song 4 (Malayalam) in his pamphlet. English translations are made available by Jussay (1986, p. 154-155), Daniel and Johnson (2001, p. 124-125), Zacharia (2003, p. 32-34), and Johnson (2004, Song 2). The song narrates the arrival of Jews to Kerala, symbolically represented through a bird moving from one place to another fleeing from a hunter. The bird refers to Jews and hunter represents the persecutions they have undergone. Interestingly, the only place mentioned in the song is Palur, translated 'side of Paloor Sea' (Jussay) or 'seashore of Palur' (Johnson, Zacharia and, Daniel). The folklore continues, from Palur Jews flee to 'a splendid green mansion under a diamond studded umbrella', which Jussay (1986, p. 155) believes is Chendamangalam. Notably, the usual narratives of Joseph Rabban, Shingly (Kodungallur), Copper Plate Grants etc are absent in these songs, yet five versions of this song were retrieved from Paradesi notebooks (Zacharia, 2003)
3.2) The Song of Evarayi (എവറായിയുടെ പാട്ട്): Song 3 (Malayalam) in Karkulali (2005, pp. 40-41), and English translations in Jussay (2005, p. 110-111; 1986, p. 153-154) and Johnson (2004, Song 14). The song is about a Jew named Evarayi, who set out a journey from Jerusalem to Malanad (Kerala) and through Misri (Egypt), Nemoni (Yemen?) and Porothi (Persia?), he reaches Kerala and his first stop is Palur, translated as 'Paloor Bay' (Jussay) or 'Palur Shore' (Johnson). In Palur, they sold all the goods they had brought, but fled, frightened to the land of Shibushu and establishes a synagogue there. The reason behind the fright is not given, Jussay (2005, p. 110) cites a legend that the chief of Palur was not favorably inclined to them because a Jewish girl of bewitching beauty had rejected his amorous advances, he identifies the land of Shibushu also as Chendamangalam.
3.3) Mala Synagogue's Song (മാള പള്ളിയുടെ പാട്ട്): Song 6 (Malayalam) in Karkulali (2005, 46-48). As the name indicates the song is about the establishment of Mala Synagogue. Unlike the previous two songs, the Mala Song has Kodungallur King and Joseph Rabban playing important roles. The first place mentioned in the song is 'Kaloor' from where it is noted that Jews reached Kodungallur. Kaloor is assumed to be Palur (Zacharia and Gamliel, 2005, p. 151), but why it was abandoned for Kodungallur is not explained.
3.4) The Song of Paliathachan: English translations are available in Jussay (1986, p. 155) and Daniel and Johnson (1995, p. 125). The song is a praise sung to Komar Achan of the Paliam family who is identified as 'the handsome Paliath Achan of Palur'. Paliath Achan was a ruler in Chendamangalam, but Palur's connection to him is not known.
3.5) In Avishur et al. (1995) while describing the legend regarding the dispersal of Jews from their ancient settlements in and around the town of Cranganore, Jussay notes about a wealthy Jewish widow by the name Kadavath Achi who is introduced as "Paloor Kadalariki; Parthala Kadavath Achi", that means "By the side of the Paloor Bay lived Kadavath Achi". I have discussed this story and its parallel version from Ruby Daniel in a previous post under the subtitle: "The Formation of Joothakulam or Jewish Pond of Kodungallur". These are the only lines he quotes from a song said to be sung by elderly Jewish women. If a historical context can be suggested to these verses, Kadavath Achi could not be an eyewitness (see the story) to the destruction of Cranganore from Palur which is 50 km away, so the lines could mean that she had been living in Palur before migrating to Cranganore.
In all these songs, Palur's importance is highlighted. The 'Bird Song' and 'Evarayi Song' fail to mention Kodungallur, Joseph Rabban or Cochin, instead another Malabari settlement, supposed to be Chendamangalam is discussed as a safe haven for the Jewish exiles. The Mala Song, though it includes Joseph Rabban and Kodungallur's King in the narration, Palur is still placed before Kodungallur. In the Paliathachan Song, Palur is linked to Chendamangalam through its noble Paliam family and in the folktale about the destruction of Cranganore, Kadavath Achi, the main character in story lived in Palur. Thus, in all these folksongs, Jews arrive first in Palur and later migrates to Chendamangalam or Kodungallur. Ruby Daniel suggests the possibility of Jews from Palur moving to Cochin and establishing the Kochangady Synagogue in 1344, believed to be the first synagogue at Cochin (Daniel and Johnson, 1995, p. 124). After Kodungallur's decline, chiefly attributed to natural calamities (14th century massive flood), and domestic and foreign invasions (16th century Zamorin-Arab and Portuguese attacks), multiple waves of Jewish migration occurred to other parts of Kerala including Cochin and their vicinity. Palur's name comes in this re-exile from Kodungallur in De Paiva's account of 1687 (Koder, 1968, p. 39). Later, as Ezekiel Rahabi stretched his business empire beyond Cochin, may be more Jews were brought to Palur and a synagogue was built. Eventually, by the end of 18th century after Tipu's invasion, there was probably a re-migration of Palur Jews to Cochin area. In short, Palur's Jewish community was not a continuous group, there could have multiple waves to and from the area until it was finally abandoned by the end of 18th century.
4) Palayur and Jewish Artifacts
An object of particular interest to us in this context is a pair of Torah finials with the date 1565 and the phrase 'Synagogue of Palu' inscribed in Hebrew. Finials are knob-like spherical ornamental structures with a shaft often called Rimmon in Hebrew meaning pomegranate, they are attached to the upper end of Torah scroll cases. The word 'Palu' is usually identified as Palayur and these finials are considered a direct evidence for the existence of a Jewish synagogue in Palayur, The other analogue for Palu could be Paluttu (Pullut), a Jewish settlement near Kodungallur, about which we hardly know anything. This religious object made of gold, silver and wood was supposedly brought to Paravur synagogue (date unknown). From Paravur, the finials were bought under auction by Ernakulam's Kadavumbhagom community and eventually it reached Nevatim synagogue in Israel. As far as I understand, from Nevatim these rare specimens were stolen in October, 2008 along with other Cochin Judaica items, including a rare Paravur Torah case of pure gold. The Center of Jewish Art (CJA) at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has more details about the finial and a photograph in their site. The dimensions given are: height-250 mm (shaft-130 mm) and diameter (50 mm) and a brief description that goes: "The globular Torah finial consists of a shaft, a body and an apex. The cylindrical shaft is bordered on the bottom by a ring carrying small diagonal lines and a large and angular ring, on top. The pomegranate like finial has a plain body adorned by a whorl of lotus leaves, on top and bottom. A circumferential dedicatory inscription is engraved in square linear letters, which reads: "זה הרמון של בית הכנסת פלו(ר) שנת השכ"ה" "This is the Torah finial (possession) of the synagogue of Palu (Palur?), the year 5325 (1565)" The apex is an elongated cylinder emerging from a wide angular base".
Torah Finials of Palayur Synagogue?
Photo Courtesy: Nevatim Synagogue Collections
The second item of relevance is an old Torah scroll kept at Paravur synagogue claimed to be brought from Cranganore. Jussay (1986, p. 159) gives an interesting suggestion from one of the Malabari Jews settled in Jerusalem, that the scroll was originally from Palayur and not Cranganore. It is also said to be shipped to Nevatim. I hope the scroll is preserved in Nevatim, since the thieves who broke in 2008, robbed only the Torah crowns and finials but not the scrolls.
5) Palayur in Christian Traditions
The Christian traditions give immense importance to Palayur as one their earliest settlements. To them, Palayur is one of the seven churches established in Kerala by St. Thomas, the Apostle of Jesus Christ in the first century A. D. Kerala's ancient Syrian Christian community is also known as the St. Thomas Christians. The St. Thomas traditions are strong, continuous, unanimous and definitely pre-Portuguese (before 15th century). Even the strongest critique would not deny the presence of Christians in Kerala after 6th century A. D., as supported by documentary (eg. accounts of Cosmos Indicopleustes of 6th century) and archaeological evidences (eg. the Pahlavi inscribed St Thomas Crosses of 7th century or before). Whether St. Thomas arrived Kerala in the first century cannot be proved with the available data, but the circumstantial evidences do suggest the possibility more towards the positive side. Moreover, historical and archaeological evidences strongly support a regular sea traffic between South India and Middle East in the first century, and for St. Thomas to reach the shores of Kerala was not an issue. If there were Jewish colonies on the shores of Malabar, Apostle Thomas, would have preferred to preach to his own kith and kin than to people outside Judaism. The New Testament clearly testifies that in the early days of Christianity, Gospel was proclaimed to Jews first, and only later the gentiles were offered a chance (Rom 1:16, 2:10, Acts 13:46 etc.). One drawback, though, is that according to Christian legends, St. Thomas arrived Cranganore in 52 AD, but Kerala's Jewish community would generally assign their arrival only after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. However, this is one of the versions, there are other traditions which attribute Jewish migrations from the time of King Solomon (1000 BC), Assyrian Exile (8th century BC), Babylonian Exile (6th Century BC). There is also the possibility of a Jewish trading community temporarily settled in Malabar who frequented between the Levant and Kerala as part of their work. Additionally, since Christian legends suggest the Apostle's activity in South India from 52 to 72 AD before he was martyred in Mylapore-Chennai, there still could be a small overlap between his missionary activities and the arrival of Jews in first century.
Coming back to Palayur, there are multiple traditions in the formation of the church. The popular version is that it was built over a Hindu Shiva Temple and Nampoothiri Brahmins were baptized after St. Thomas performed the famous miracle of suspending water droplets in air.
5) Palayur in Christian Traditions
The Christian traditions give immense importance to Palayur as one their earliest settlements. To them, Palayur is one of the seven churches established in Kerala by St. Thomas, the Apostle of Jesus Christ in the first century A. D. Kerala's ancient Syrian Christian community is also known as the St. Thomas Christians. The St. Thomas traditions are strong, continuous, unanimous and definitely pre-Portuguese (before 15th century). Even the strongest critique would not deny the presence of Christians in Kerala after 6th century A. D., as supported by documentary (eg. accounts of Cosmos Indicopleustes of 6th century) and archaeological evidences (eg. the Pahlavi inscribed St Thomas Crosses of 7th century or before). Whether St. Thomas arrived Kerala in the first century cannot be proved with the available data, but the circumstantial evidences do suggest the possibility more towards the positive side. Moreover, historical and archaeological evidences strongly support a regular sea traffic between South India and Middle East in the first century, and for St. Thomas to reach the shores of Kerala was not an issue. If there were Jewish colonies on the shores of Malabar, Apostle Thomas, would have preferred to preach to his own kith and kin than to people outside Judaism. The New Testament clearly testifies that in the early days of Christianity, Gospel was proclaimed to Jews first, and only later the gentiles were offered a chance (Rom 1:16, 2:10, Acts 13:46 etc.). One drawback, though, is that according to Christian legends, St. Thomas arrived Cranganore in 52 AD, but Kerala's Jewish community would generally assign their arrival only after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. However, this is one of the versions, there are other traditions which attribute Jewish migrations from the time of King Solomon (1000 BC), Assyrian Exile (8th century BC), Babylonian Exile (6th Century BC). There is also the possibility of a Jewish trading community temporarily settled in Malabar who frequented between the Levant and Kerala as part of their work. Additionally, since Christian legends suggest the Apostle's activity in South India from 52 to 72 AD before he was martyred in Mylapore-Chennai, there still could be a small overlap between his missionary activities and the arrival of Jews in first century.
Coming back to Palayur, there are multiple traditions in the formation of the church. The popular version is that it was built over a Hindu Shiva Temple and Nampoothiri Brahmins were baptized after St. Thomas performed the famous miracle of suspending water droplets in air.
A painting displayed in the site depicting the miracle performed by the Apostle.
Photo: December, 2016
An Old Granite Baptismal Font displayed at Palayur
Historicity of St Thomas legends in Malabar are strongly challenged and had been a point of dispute for long. Many modern secular scholars take them as pure mythical beliefs and argue that Brahminic migration to Kerala occurred as a hegemonic group after 8th century A.D. only, while others would discard the possibility of a Shiva temple in the first century. In defense, the Christian apologists would point out that it was not a period absence of Brahmins, but they were present as a scattered and fragmented community in the first century as evident from the Tamil Sangam literature. Other candidates suggested are the Budhist and Jain communities who were the prominent religious groups of Kerala in the first century. Notably, at the baptismal site of Palayur (Thaliyakulam), a bilingual information panel names Jains and Budhists instead of Nampoothiri Brahmins. Jussay (1948 p. 148) quotes a legend that assigns Palayur with a Jain monastery and nunnery where Illango Adigal, the famous Jain scholar credited with the great Tamil epic, Silappathikaram (100-250 AD) was a resident (Note that this credit is usually taken by Mathilakam, a place 40 km south of Palayur). Apparently, a Jewish presence in Palayur is more convenient for the case of St. Thomas legends, since the concepts of a Semitic Monotheistic God and a long awaited Jewish Messiah would be new to the ears of native Indian population. In this context, one should also not forget about a different theory which says that the Palayur church was erected on top of a Jewish synagogue. I believe this concept is a recent invention, since for decades, an elevated region located a few feet outside the Church is shown as the site of a former a synagogue. Anyway, it is widely believed in Palayur that St. Thomas lived in Jew Hill with his community.
The bilingual information panel at Thaliyakulam, Palayur
Today, the St. Thomas Christian community consists of many denominations. This was not however the case before the arrival of Catholic Portuguese (late 15th century). Earlier they were called the Mar Thoma (St. Thomas) or Suriyani (Syrian) or Nasrani (Nazarene) Christians of Kerala. They followed the Eastern Syriac liturgy, depended the Persian Patriarch of Seleucia-Ctesiphon (Babylon) for their ecclesiastical guidance and above all considered St. Thomas as their patron saint. The situation changed abruptly after the forceful interference of Portuguese in 16th century, as they tried to impose their versions of Christianity on St. Thomas Christians. The community was eventually split into several groups and sub-groups under various denominations viz. Syro-Malabar (Catholic), Jacobite Syrian Orthodox (Oriental Orthodox), Indian Orthodox or Malankara Syrian Orthodox (Oriental Orthodox), Malankara Mar Thoma (Autonomous Oriental), Syro-Malankara (Catholic), Malabar Independent Syrian Orthodox (Oriental Orthodox) and Chaldean Syrian (Church of East). Ironically, if there is any topic they all agree upon today, will be on their Apostolic origin. The prevailing situation is nicely summarized in the words of Vadakkekara (1995, p. 120): "Thus India's St. Thomas Christians today constitute a community that transcends the boundaries of the ecclesiastical fellowship. Yet they all proudly share in a bond of kinship that is similar to the one that prevails within a large family of clan. They all look up to the Apostle Thomas as their common spiritual father. Ecclesiastical rivalries, regional divisions and ideological differences that have now become the hallmark of India's St. Thomas Christians, do not in any way debilitate their joint-claim to be members of the community established by the Apostle Thomas". [Note: when I use the term 'Orthodox' generally in this post, it includes both the Jacobite Syrian Orthodox and Malankara (Indian) Orthodox, but the specific Orthodox churches discussed are Indian Orthodox only; the 'Catholic' refers to the Syro-Malabar Romo-Syrian Christians.]
How are these disputes important for our discussions about Jewish Palayur? Christian Palayur has two contenders, the traditional site (Palayur) is held by the Catholics and the other (Arthat) by the Orthodox, and both argue for a 1st century Jewish presence. The Catholics consider modern Palayur village near Chavakkad town as the site where St. Thomas established a church over the foundation of a Hindu Temple and nearby was a Jewish Synagogue currently occupied by the 'Jew Hill' monument. In the case of the Orthodox, the village of Arthat (7 km north of modern Palayur) is the original Palayur, and their church (St. Mary's Orthodox) was built by the Apostle over a first century Jewish synagogue. Not only that, they believe the 'Arthat Hill' on which the Church is located was earlier known as 'Jootha Kunnu' (Jew Hill).
6) Palayur of Syro-Malabar Christians (Catholic)
6.1) The Palayur Church
Traditional Palayur is located in the Chavakkad Municipality of Thrissur district. Today, Palayur is a popular Christian pilgrim center, which boasts as one of the seven churches established by St. Thomas in Kerala. The church underwent a major renovation in 1952 to commemorate the 1900 years of the entry of St. Thomas into India. It was declared an Archdiocesan Shrine on 15th April, 2000 and the relic of the St. Thomas brought from Ortona, Italy was consecrated in the main altar on 27th August, 2000. Other attractions are: 1) A modern granite cross (not more than two centuries old) with 7 big stone lamps (representing the 7 churches of St. Thomas), erected on the spot where it is believed St. Thomas established a cross. Some would even go so far to claim that the original St. Thomas cross is preserved inside the new cross!; 2) Thaliyakulam-a pond where St. Thomas is said to have performed the miracle of suspending water droplets in air and baptized the natives to Christianity. All the sculptures and models displayed in Thaliyakulam are from 1975-1980 period; 3) Puja Kinar (renovated in 2009)-a well in the Thaliyakulam compound shown as previously used by the Hindu worshipers to draw water for sacrifice and the round stone with which it was covered; 4) Boatkulam (Boat Jetty)- told as the traditional site where St. Thomas arrived at Palayur and that it was once an inlet to the nearby sea; 5) A 45 feet tall modern statue of St. Thomas (the locals would claim it as the largest statue of St. Thomas in the world) and a sculpture of a boat are on the premises of Boatkulam-the monuments were inaugurated on 15th July 1987; 6) The Mar Thoma Path-A granite sculpture garden representing 14 scenes from the life and martyrdom of St. Thomas in India, inaugurated on 10th January, 2001; 7) An impressive 1913 built church tower with a huge bell; 8) The Indian Christian Historical Museum-inaugurated on 7th January, 2004, the museum exhibits the famous Palayur Copper Plates (see later), remains of the old Palayur church, and items from other Syrian Christian Churches such as pulpit, front doors of churches (Aanavaathil), elephant statues, candle stands, church bells, ramsethis (bouquet used in altar) and ceremonial chairs (all made of wood); old portraits, ivory statues, metal crowns, granite lamp stand etc. For more details see also here. (All the dates mentioned here are taken from Chittilappilly, 2013)
Palayur Syro-Malabar Church (Catholic)
Photo: April, 2015
Photo: April, 2016
The Granite Cross and Stone Lamps
Photo: December, 2016
Photo: December, 2016
Boatkulam and St. Thomas Statue
Photo: April, 2015
Photo: April, 2015
Photo: April, 2015
Church Museum
Photo: April, 2015
Thaliyakulam
Photo: December, 2016
Photo: December, 2016
Puja Kinar (Ritual Well)
Photo: December, 2016
Photo: January, 2011
6.2) Palayur in History
Let's
go through the earliest written accounts on Palayur and the archaeological investigations conducted on the site.
6.2.1) Early Testimonies:
i) 1301: MS Vatican Syriac 22-one of the oldest known Syriac manuscript of Indian origin. Written by a deacon named Zakharya bar Joseph bar Zakharya, the colophon of the document gives an interesting comment that it was copied on 1301 AD in Chingala (ancient Shingly or Cranganore) at the Church dedicated to Mar Quriaqos (St. Cyriac). This reference could be perhaps the earliest documentary evidence for the existence of a church in Palayur which was originally dedicated to St. Cyriac. We don't know if Shingly's geographical extent reached up to Palayur in 14th century, but we know from a long report made by Bishop Francis Ros in 1604, that Cranganore had three churches, one of St. Thomas, another of Virgin Mary and one of St. Cyriac. Bishop Ros finds this information from an old manuscript book of prayer of a Church in Mangate (Alengad), made and written in Cranganore (An English translation of the report is available in Symposium on Knanites, Jacob Vellian (Edn.), 1986, pp. 13-20).
ii) 1504: A Syriac document in the form of a letter from four Chaldean bishops ordained for India (Mar Jaballaha, Mar Denha, Mar Jacob and Mar Thomas) to their Catholicos and Patriarch of the East, Mar Elijah has this quote: "The countries of India are very numerous and powerful, and their distance is about six months' journey, Each country has a special name by which it is known, and our country in which the Christians are found is called Malabar. It has about twenty towns , out of which three are renowned and powerful : Karangol, Pallur , and Kullam , with others that are near them". Note that the 'Pallur' here is Palayur and it was counted as a strong Christian center in early 16th century with 'Karangol' and 'Kullam', the modern Kodungallur and Kollam, respectively. The letter is said to be preserved in Vatican library and an English translation is given by Mingana (1926, p. 471).
iii) 25 August 1566: The Chaldean Patriarch Mar Abdisho IV Maron nominates Archdeacon George of Christ of the Church of Angamaly as the "bishop of Palur" and suffragan to Archbishop Mar Abraham (d. 1597) of St. Thomas Christians.
iii) 25 August 1566: The Chaldean Patriarch Mar Abdisho IV Maron nominates Archdeacon George of Christ of the Church of Angamaly as the "bishop of Palur" and suffragan to Archbishop Mar Abraham (d. 1597) of St. Thomas Christians.
iv) 2 January 1578: A letter sent by Mar Abraham to the Pope Gregory XIII in obtaining papal confirmation for the appointment of the Archdeacon as the "bishop of Palur" and as the Metropolitan of the St Thomas Christians after his death.
v) 4 March 1580: A letter from Pope Gregory XIII to Archdeacon George of Christ confirming him as the "bishop of Palur".
v) 4 March 1580: A letter from Pope Gregory XIII to Archdeacon George of Christ confirming him as the "bishop of Palur".
vi) 5 March 1580: Another letter of Pope Gregory XIII sent to the clergy and laity of St. Thomas Christians in Malabar to be obedient to their prelate Mar Abraham and George of Christ, bishop elect of Palur
[The title used for the Archdeacon in these 4 letters (iii to vi) would suggest that Palur had the privilege of being the proposed seat of a bishop in the 16th century. It should be noted that Archdeacon George could not be consecrated as a bishop because of his death in 1585. For more details and the primary sources of the letters, see Pallath (2017, pp. 55-57).
vii) 1603: Francis Roz S. J., the successor of Mar Abraham and the first Latin bishop of St. Thomas Christians, went on a pastoral visit to the church in 'Palur' (Thekkedath, 2001, p. 76).
viii) 1606: Portuguese missionary Antonio de Gouvea records in his famous 'Jornada Dom Alexis de Menezes' about the church of Pallur (i.e. Palayur) and how Dom Alexis de Menzes (1559-1617), the Catholic Archbishop of Goa and the convenor of the infamous Synod of Diamper (1599), corresponded with them through letters. Gouvea is specific when he writes that Pallur church had a Vicar and it was dedicated to St. Cyriac (Syr. Quriaqus-a 4th century Christian martyr who was killed in the persecution of Diocletian Caesar). He further adds that they are "the last of this Christian community on the Northern side, in the lands of the king Samorin". It was also in Pallur, three of their leading men enacted a drama (by playing the roles of St. Thomas, St. Peter, and St. Cyriac) to prove that the Christendom of St. Thomas had no obligation whatsoever to St. Peter, nor to his chair in Rome (Pope), but to Babylonia (Persian Patriarch), which was of St. Thomas. Gouvea's frustration is evident when he interprets the event as induced by the Devil and expresses their customs as 'iron-bound' under 'the law of Saint Thomas' (see more in Malekandathil, 2003, pp. 442-446).
ix) 1607: Letter of Jesuit missionary, James Fenicio S. J., who got permission to erect four churches in the territory of Zamorin including one in Palur. He describes how the old wood church of Palayur in the name of Saint Cyriac was pulled down and a new stone building was erected under his guidance. It should be mentioned that prior to the arrival of Portuguese, St Thomas churches were built of superior quality teak wood that usually coped with the harsh monsoon conditions and some survived 400 years or more. The original edifice was regarded very sacred and believed to be one built with stone foundation and wooden walls and roofs of Sandal and Teak woods (Varghese, M., 1926, p. 11). Fencio cites: "As the church of Palur dedicated to Saint Cyriac (Syr. Quriaqus) which was the oldest (primus) among all the churches in Malabar, and renowned for favours and graces obtained". Interestingly, he further adds a curious statement: "the new building stood out in such fine proportions that the Hindus, the Mahomedans, and the Jews flocked to see it". This is an important observation that shows Jews were present at Palayur in the early 17th century. A part of this letter has been quoted in Jarric (Indicarum Rerum, Volume iii., lib. ii. Chapter v, pp. 50–51). In a different note that has appeared in the Jesuit annual letter of 1607, Fenicio quotes: "Palur Church of St. Quiricus is very old and famous for miracles" and narrates an incident where two Hindu Kinglets made vows in the church for getting an heir and when they were blessed, one decided to feed 500 or 1000 of the faithful, while the second called about 4000 (Ferroli, 1939, pp. 409-410).
x) 1632: Edapally Padiyola- a resolution passed against the Portuguese Jesuit Archbishop Stephen Britto by St. Thomas Christians under the leadership of Archdeacon Gheevarghese at Edapally Church on 25 December 1632. In this document, St. Thomas Christians are introduced as 'Malankara Mar Thoma Nasranis', and their geographical distribution is set between Kollam (at south) and Palur (at north).
xi) 1657: Joseph of St Mary Sebastiani, the Apostolic Commissary appointed by the Pope, on his first expedition to Malabar (5th February, 1657 to 7th January, 1658), visits Palur church and meets the Vicar. He calls Palur, "primo luogo della Chrstianita della Serra"- the primary place of Christianity in Malabar and is specific while recording the patron saint of Palayur church as St. Cyriac (Giuseppe di S. Maria, 1666, p. 88)
xii) 1787-the First Angamaly Padiyola- In this resolution signed by the representatives from 84 St. Thomas Catholic Churches, Paluru (Palayur) is listed 79th (see more about the padiyola under Arthat).
xiii) Palayur Copper Plates/ Palayur Pattayam/Palayur Chepped
Four thin copper plates (roughly 30cm x 5cm in size) were discovered from Palayur Church, which were written in old Malayalam and Tamil Vattezhuthu script, and dated from Kumbam, 781 M. E. (1606), Chingam, 852 M. E. (1677), Mithunam, 856 M. E. (1681) and Meenam, 918 M. E. (1743), respectively. They remained in obscurity until early 1920s, when Fr. Henry Hosten brought them into limelight through his personal efforts. The first to be published was the 4th plate (1743) in the Travancore Archaeological Series-Volume III (1921, pp. 211-214) by K, V, Subrahmanya Aiyar. The Plate 2 (1677) and Plate 3 (1681) were followed by A. S. Ramanatha Ayyar in Travancore Archaeological Series-Volume VI, Part I (1927, pp. 84-91). The contents of the plates are essentially registration details about- the sale of a land for interest due on money lend by Vicar of the Palayur church (Plate 1), sale of a land to the church (Plate 2), mortgage deed on a land transacted by the Vicar for a loan with interest (Plate 3), and the complete purchase with the libation of water of a free hold property by the Vicar of the church (Plate 4). Remember this was a time when regular banking systems were not available and the church acted as a bank and lend-out money against land mortgage. The plates provide a few interesting insights such as the names of the vicars functioned in Palayur, viz. Itty (Isaac or Ignatius?) in 1606 and Chaku (Jacob) in 1677 and 1681. This shows that Palayur had its own vicars who could function independently at early 17th century without depending an outside church. We also learn how the name Palayur gets evolved from 'Palur' (1606) to 'Palaiyur' (1677 and 1681) and finally to the modern 'Palayur' (1743). Another important information shared by the plates is that the church was in the name of Maquriaka (1671) and Maquri (1681), the short form of Mar Quriakose (St. Cyriac) in Syriac. All the four sets of plates are currently displayed at the Palayur Church Museum. A translation of all 4 plates in modern Malayalam is given in Kokken (1999, p. 39-45).
Four thin copper plates (roughly 30cm x 5cm in size) were discovered from Palayur Church, which were written in old Malayalam and Tamil Vattezhuthu script, and dated from Kumbam, 781 M. E. (1606), Chingam, 852 M. E. (1677), Mithunam, 856 M. E. (1681) and Meenam, 918 M. E. (1743), respectively. They remained in obscurity until early 1920s, when Fr. Henry Hosten brought them into limelight through his personal efforts. The first to be published was the 4th plate (1743) in the Travancore Archaeological Series-Volume III (1921, pp. 211-214) by K, V, Subrahmanya Aiyar. The Plate 2 (1677) and Plate 3 (1681) were followed by A. S. Ramanatha Ayyar in Travancore Archaeological Series-Volume VI, Part I (1927, pp. 84-91). The contents of the plates are essentially registration details about- the sale of a land for interest due on money lend by Vicar of the Palayur church (Plate 1), sale of a land to the church (Plate 2), mortgage deed on a land transacted by the Vicar for a loan with interest (Plate 3), and the complete purchase with the libation of water of a free hold property by the Vicar of the church (Plate 4). Remember this was a time when regular banking systems were not available and the church acted as a bank and lend-out money against land mortgage. The plates provide a few interesting insights such as the names of the vicars functioned in Palayur, viz. Itty (Isaac or Ignatius?) in 1606 and Chaku (Jacob) in 1677 and 1681. This shows that Palayur had its own vicars who could function independently at early 17th century without depending an outside church. We also learn how the name Palayur gets evolved from 'Palur' (1606) to 'Palaiyur' (1677 and 1681) and finally to the modern 'Palayur' (1743). Another important information shared by the plates is that the church was in the name of Maquriaka (1671) and Maquri (1681), the short form of Mar Quriakose (St. Cyriac) in Syriac. All the four sets of plates are currently displayed at the Palayur Church Museum. A translation of all 4 plates in modern Malayalam is given in Kokken (1999, p. 39-45).
The Palayur Copper Plates, Church Museum
All Photographs: April, 2015
The church-lists incorporated in the writings of Raulin Joannes Facundi (1745. pp. 428-429), Anquettil Du Perron, A. H. (1771, pp. 183-189) and Paulinus, A.S. Bartholomaeo (1794, pp. 267-269) are important in the study of pre-Portuguese St. Thomas Christian churches and their affiliation to various denominations after the Synod of Diamper in 1599. Palayur emerges as Pallur or Palor (Raulin, p. 427 and 429), Pallour (Du Perron, p. 185) and Palur or Pallur (Paulinus, p. 267 and Map) and the church is found dedicated to St. Macaire (du Perrron) or St. Macharii (Paulinus). I believe the saint mentioned here is St. Mar Quriakose (St. Cyriac) and not St. Macarius of Jerusalem (4th century) as some assume. Orientalist, Thomas Yeates has given a catalogue of St. Thomas churches in his 'Indian Church History' (1818, pp. 134-138) and 'Palur' with a church is placed under the Church of Rome (p. 135).
xv) Christian Folk Songs
Palayur appears as 'Palur' in two Malayalam Christian folk songs, Ramban Pattu (Thomma Parvom) and Margamkali Pattu. These ballads give detailed records of the missionary activities of St. Thomas in Kerala and how he established the famous 7 churches including the one in Palayur.
a) Ramban Pattu or Thoma Parvam
It is said that this ballad was originally composed in the first century by a disciple of the Apostle named Ramban (monk) Thomas of Maliakkal family in Niranam and his 48th generation successor, another Ramban Thomas from the same family abbreviated it into the present form. The ballad consists of 448 lines and it describes the missionary activities of St. Thomas and his martyrdom in South India. According to the song, St. Thomas spends one year (or one month) in Palayur, baptizes 1050 (or 1250) natives and erects a beautiful Sleeva or Cross (Lines 136-144), he also makes a second visit to Palayur (Line 202) on the way to his martyrdom in Mylapore. According to the song, St. Thomas arrives Maliankara (Kodungallur) in 50 AD, and not in the traditional date of 52 AD (Line 24). There is also an interesting reference to 40 Jews being converted by St. Thomas in Maliankara, the only time Jews are mentioned in the song (Line 52). The historic value of this ballad is strongly disputed due to its dubious nature and several modern scholars believe it of recent origin for promoting vested interests. Others, though, accept the ballad as a post-18th century modern composition, would argue the existence of older and early forms of the song preserved in oral traditions. The date in the manuscript differs with versions and given differently: 1061, 1101, 1601 etc. (Thomas, 1935, p. 61; Mundadan, 2001, p. 30). Orientalist and historian, Alphonse Mingana, famous for his 'Mingana Collection' is highly critical of Thoma Parvam and writes harshly in his "The Early Spread of Christianity in India" (1926, p. 509): "there is as much history in them as in some good stories of the Arabian Nights Entertainments". Church scholar, Joseph T. K., who rejects the South Indian traditions of St. Thomas do not date Ramban Pattu before 1892. The ballad was brought to the attention of modern scholars while Fr. Bernard Alenchery published the song in his Magnum Opus, 'Marthoma Christianikal' in 1916 (pp. 98-109 of 2nd edition, 1992). The line numbers of the ballad quoted here are from Alenchery's text.
b) Margamkali Pattu
It is the traditional song used for Margamkali, originally an all-male performing art in the form of a round dance practised by the St. Thomas Christians. The
song in modern form is comprised of 14 padams (parts) and 450 lines. It essentially tells the life and missionary activities of St. Thomas
in Kerala and is heavily dependent on the 3rd century Apocryphal
work, the Acts of Thomas. Today, Margamkali is performed mainly in the Knananya Christian community, who attribute the ballad to a 17th century priest named Anjilimuttil Itti Thomman Kathanar of Kallissery diocese of Kottayam. In 1910, the complete text of Margamkali songs were published by Lukose P. U., in "Ancient Songs of the Syrian Christians of Malabar (pp. 153-165)" with a vernacular title "Malayalathile Suriyani Kristhyanikalude Purathana Pattukal". In one of the manuscripts, the date given at the end of the song (Strophe XVI, Line 1) is 1732, July 28 (In Henry Hosten's translation in George Menachery, The Nazranies, pp, 522-525). From the writings of Correia Amander (1564), Francisco Dionysio (1578), Giovanni Pietro Maffei (1585), Antonio de Gouvea (1606) etc., we learn that folksongs commemorating the life and the miraculous deeds of St. Thomas were widely sung by the Marthoma Christians when the Portuguese arrived in Kerala in the 16th century. A
strong case can be built with Gouvea's observation about a dance form
performed by a group of young men at Angamaly before Archbishop Dom
Alexis Menezes in 1599, which he notes began after the dancers signed
themselves with the cross, followed by the recitation of Lord's Prayer
and a song in honor of Saint Thomas (Gouvea, 1606, p. 351). Taking cues from the above writers, noted church scholar, Thomas P. J. (1935, p, 56-57) proposes that the aforementioned pre-Portuguese songs represent early forms of Margamkali Pattu. Nasrani folk culture specialist Chummar Choondal is of the opinion that Margamkali Songs were drafted out sometime in 17th century (Vellian, 1986, p. 91). Unlike Ramban Song, Margamkali Pattu is less detailed with location-wise activities of the Apostle, but it depicts his journeys, miracles performed, martyrdom suffered, and the seven churches and crosses established including the one in Palayur (Part IX, Line 57 in Lukose, 1910, p. 159). The ballad is perhaps the earliest written document available that connects Palayur with the Apostle.
xvi) Nagara Grantha Variola: This unusual palm-leaf document is first introduced to the English speaking world by Fr. Henry Hosten, a Belgian Jesuit missionary and notable historian who visited the region in 1924. According to Hosten, it belonged to the family of a Kalathum Namputhiri (Kalathur Mana) of British Malabar and in which it is written: "Kali year 3153 (52 AD) the foreigner Thomas Sanyasi came to our village (gramam) preached there, causing thereby pollution. We therefore came away from that gramaom (Palayoor)" [Tanima, 2007a, p. 30]. This is a strong statement connecting Palayur and St. Thomas and more importantly a non-Christian source arguing for the credibility of the tradition. However, Hosten himself admits of not seeing the original or able to procure a copy of the document. Currently, we don't know about the whereabouts of this artefact, and therefore, unless the document is critically analysed, it is not possible to make any meaningful judgement on its authenticity.
6.2.2) Archaeological Evidences:
Ruins of an old Hindu temple was shown to the visitors as a proof for the antiquity of Palayur from 19th century at least. William Logan (1887, Volume 2, p. 411) describes: "The only relics of any age about tho place now are some carved stones, including part of a Siva lingam stone and a wornout Vatteluttu inscription, the spoils of a Siva shrine also in tho neighbourhood". A decade later, C. A. Innes (1908, p. 408) confirms Logan's observation, when he writes: "The ruins of the temple are pointed out with great pride not fifty yards from the church, and close by is the tank, now choked with weeds". Not much has been done in the field of archaeology, nevertheless, we learn at least two minor excavations were carried out in Palayur, one in early 20th century and the other on November 1994. The first attempt, if it could be accepted as an excavation, occurred when Fr. Thalakkottoor Kuriakose (d. 1924) was the vicar (1904-1909) of Palayur Church. We have limited knowledge about this excavation and most of the findings are not available today (perhaps not preserved intentionally). Fr. Henry Hosten comes very helpful here as he systematically records the details and writes: "It is this priest (Fr. Kuriakose) during his incumbency, found stones from a pagan temple on the site where the church of Palayur now stands.....I hope such excavations will eventually be tried under expert supervisions" (Tanima, 2007a, p. 36). When Hosten visited Palayur in 1924, these items were carefully photographed and notes were made. The captions of two such photographs taken on February 20, 1924 give specific details of the items recovered, to quote the full titles: Photo 1: Stones dug up from near the church and showing former Hindu occupation. The boy standing has on his own left a big yoni (part of Shiva-linga worship), which is distinctly Hindu. Note the shaven head of three of the men, Christian. Photo-2: Stones found within the grounds of the church and inserted in a wall for safe keeping. Two yalis (monsters), at the top of the arch, spout out in opposite directions the curvatures of the stone; miniature temple door between two high pillars; on either side between the pillar and the curvature of the stone, a Hindu divinity not identified. In addition, he narrates about two tanks (ponds) and notices some ruins and an enormous stone lying near one of them (Tanima, 2007a, pp. 29, 36). It would be wonderful if we can have a look into these photographs as Hosten's collections are very hard to access. Most of the collected material in his life time are preserved at Vidyajyothy College Library, Delhi in 42 bound volumes and 28 cardboard boxes, Volume 20 has the much valuable records and photographs of all the churches he visited at Kerala in the early 1920s.
The pillared miniature Hindu temple door from the compounds of Palayur Church
Courtesy: James E. J. (1979, Thesis)-The Thomas Christian Architecture of Malabar. It's current location is unknown.
Remains of Old Palayur Church Kept at the Church Museum
Photo: April, 2015
According to a critical study on the historical quest for St Thomas by Fr. George Nedungatt (2008, p. 341), a second excavation was performed by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) inside the Palayur church on 1 November 1994 and further explorations were kept in hold "for fear of the repetition of the tragedy that befell in Ayodhya, presumed to have been built on the site of a demolished Hindu temple; the mosque was demolished by Hindu extremists in 1993, unleashing bloody clashes between Hindu and Muslims". A bilingual signboard installed on the northern wall of the church gives details in English and Malayalam. One can still see the foundation of an earlier building carefully protected under a wired mesh. Among the other things discovered, was supposedly a skeleton buried in the direction of east, and based on that, identity of the individual is ascertained as a Jewish Christian priest! How such a conclusion was reached is not explained, but it is definitely a boost to the tradition of a Jewish presence in Palayur. Today, Christians in Kerala, the St. Thomas community at least perform their burials by putting the head westwards, so that the deceased can face east, which is the direction of the 'Garden of Eden' or Paradise (Genesis 2: 8) and the direction of the Second Coming of Jesus (Matthew 24: 27). Contrarily, in all the Jewish cemeteries of Kerala the dead are buried with their heads towards east so that they can face west, the direction of Jerusalem. I guess the logic applied here is if a person is buried inside a Christian church facing Jerusalem, he has to be a Jew by birth! Even if we take the assumption logically feasible, it is not possible to know if the same burial traditions were followed in Palayur before 16th century. The whereabouts of the skeleton is unknown today and it is preserved somewhere, a more detailed study on the subject can settle down some of these wild speculations. The display panel also says that when the excavation reached the sea level, scattered remains of skeletal fragments were discovered and it appeared that the church was built over a Jewish cemetery near the seashore!
Foundation of the old church and the site of skeleton discovered.
All Photographs: March, 2020
Arthat-a small village positioned near the traditional Palayur, also stake claim for St. Thomas tradition. According to the Orthodox community, St. Thomas established a church in Arthat and the present St. Mary's Orthodox church stands on the site of an ancient Jewish synagogue. To mention some of the far-fetched theories put forward by local historians: 1) The Essene Jewish community (of Dead Sea Scroll fame) settled in Arthat-Kunnamkulam region in the first century AD; 2) Paloura mentioned as the port city of Ponnani in the writings of Pliny the Elder (1st century AD) was the ancient Palur, and it was a center of Buddhists, Jains, Arabs and Jews; 3) St. Thomas reached Palayur through Muchiri-the three lipped port system (Ponnani, Chettuva and Chavakkad) and not via Kodungallur. 4) Ponnani functioned as a main port in first century, whereas Chattukulam (Arthat) was its auxillary port; 5) Ancient Palur was a large area encompassing the current sites of Arthat, Kunnamkulam, Pazanji, Kattakambal, Pengamuck etc.; 6) There existed a prominent trade route between Ponnani (Palur area) and Alexandria before Christ and in the hill of Chattukulangara (Arthat) was a Jewish settlement (Joothakunnu or Jew Hill) and a synagogue; 7) In Mattom, 10 km from Palayur was another Jewish colony and it is attested by De Paiva (1687).
These and many similar suggestions have no strong documentary or archaeological support, and can be strongly challenge-a few for instance :
1) Pliny never mentions about Paloura in his writings. The closest he gets is a place called Tyndis or Tundis, 500 stadia (92 km) from Muziris (Natural History VI: 26) and it is usually identified with Kadalundi (Kozhikode district), but Ponnani (Malappuram district) is also a possibility (Gurukkal and Whittaker, 2001). However, Ptolemy in the 2nd Century AD describes Paloura specifically on the Gangetic Bay (Book I: Ch. XIII; Book VII: Ch. I, 16), which is in the East Coast of India (Bay of Bengal) and not in Malabar region. Scholars have extensively studied about the ancient ports of India, and Paloura is identified with modern Paluru (Paloor or Palur) village on the coast of Odisha in the Ganjam District (Gerini G. E., 1909, pp. 47, 743) or Dantapura of Kalinga Kingdom currently located in the Srikakulam District of Andhra Pradesh (Levi, S., 1926). Though, noted church scholar, Thomas, P. J., (1932, p. 263) takes Paloura as Palayur of Kerala, but without any supporting evidence.
2) Muttom of De Paiva (1687) is modern Muttom near Cherthala, and this is the view held by the Jews of Kerala. In the Hebrew letter (1768) of Ezekiel Rahabi, where he mentions about the existing Malabari Jewish settlements of his time, Muttom is clearly identified further south of Mala (Koder, 1949, p.3). Note that Palayur is 60 km north of Mala.
3) The Patriarch of Antioch, Ignatius Pathros (Peter IV) visited India from 1875 to 1877. During the reforms he introduced through the Mulanthuruthy Synod (29 June-1 July, 1876), 18 canons were adopted and the church (Jacobite) was divided into 7 Episcopal Sees (dioceses), viz. Angamaly, Cochin, Kandand, Kollam, Kottayam, Niranam and Thumpamon. Cheeran (2013, pp. 8, 27) argues that the Patriarch named the churches of Cochin in 'Palur Metropolis', and his successor, Patriarch Ignatius Abded Aloho II (Abdulla II) wrote a pastoral letter in Syriac in 1909, addressing Arthat church as part of 'Palur Metropolis'. The first claim is a speculation only and even if the second evidence, an early 20th century letter from of an Antiochian Patriarch is accepted, it doesn't prove in anyway that Arthat was the ancient Palur in the early centuries.
4) The
more fanciful Essene theory of Arthat-Kunnamkulam is discussed in
detail by Mathew (1984), but you must let your imagination run wild, to follow the contention of the author.
8) Early Testimonies for Arthat
When we ponder through the written records, Arthat also has limited early documentary support.
i) 1606: Arthat was known as Chattukulangare and the earliest reference is in Gouvea's Jornada. Gouvea distinguishes Arthat from Palayaur when he writes specifically about Chatacolangaree and Pallur as separarate churches in the land of the king Samorin (Malekandathil, 2003, p. 443). The Archbishop Menezes visited many Syrian churches before and after the Synod of Diamper (1599). However, it is clearly stated in Jornada (Malekandathil, 2003, p. 443), that he did not make a personal visit to both these churches, but was aware of their existence and conditions of the respective communities.
ii) Church List of 18th and Early 19 century: In the church lists, Arthat is Cottacolongate (Raulin Joannes Facundi, 1745, p. 428), Schatta Kolangouri (Anquettil Du Perron, A. H., 1771, p. 185) and Cshatukulangare (Paulinus, A.S. Bartholomaeo, 1794). Paulinus does not include the church in his list, but notes the name in his map instead. Du Perron specifies that the church was dedicated to Virgin Mary and shared by the Catholics and Jacobites. Yeates (1818, pp. 134-138) has no Arthat-Chattukulangara in his list, which is quite surprising, because he has worked under Claudius Buchanan who visited and wrote about Arthat in detail.
iii) 1787-the First Angamaly Padiyola (Resolution)-A document drew up by the representatives of 84 St. Thomas Catholic churches in a meeting convened at St. George Main Church, Angamaly, demanding Rome to consecrate native bishops for them, citing the arrogance of foreign (Carmelite) prelates. Chattukulangara is the 75th church in the list. It is also an indication that Arthat had a strong Catholic community before Tipu's attack.
iii) 19th century: Documents
Two important documents related to Arthat Church from early 19th century should be taken into consideration are:
1806: Arthat Padiyola (Resolution): This is an open declaration of faith executed by the Vicar and 12 parishioners from reputed families of Arthat Church before the Malankara Metropolitan Mar Dionysisus-I or Mar Thoma VI (1765-1808), that they are not bound to obey the prelates of Rome, Antioch and Babylon or any other foreign countries. The document in Malayalam Vattezhuttu script was written on Makaram, 981 M.E. (February, 1806) on the one side of a copper plate measuring 56 cm x 4 cm. In fact, the plate was lost, only to be rediscovered in mid-20th century and it was published for the first time in 1968. The Padiyola often claimed as a Magna Carta by the Indian Orthodox community, however fails to mention anything about the St. Thomas legends of Arthat! For more details see Mathew, 2010 (Ph D Thesis).
The Arthat Padiyola
The padiyola was discovered in two pieces, broken in the middle of the plate.
a) 1825: Arthat Palli Pattu (Arthat Church Song). This poem consists of 103 stanza and 412 lines. It was written by one Panakkal Ikkakku Kuriappan, who probably was an eyewitness to Tipu Sultan's invasion and the destruction of Arthat church. The church is introduced as 'Chattukulangarepalli-renowned in eight directions in the name of the Mother of our Creator, Jesus' [Lines 9-12. see Mathew (1994), p. 57]. The main theme of the song is about the efforts undertaken by a priest in Arthat, named Joseph, later Malankara Metropolitan Pulikottil Joseph Mar Dionysius-II (1742-1816), seeking intervention of Shakthan Thampuran or Rama Varma IX (1751-1805)-the Rajah of Cochin, in settling the dispute over the ownership of the church between the Orthodox and Catholic sections. The text further expands on how the King solved the conflict by casting lots and the Orthodox received the church while the Catholics had to be satisfied with the ancient Cross thought to be erected by St. Thomas himself. In addition, the damage inflicted upon the Church by Tipu's invasion; a slightly modified version of the apocryphal 'Acts of Thomas', are also narrated. Surprisingly, despite being lavishly detailed on the importance of Arthat to the Orthodox community, nowhere in the song is a reference to St. Thomas arriving and finding a church in Arthat ! For a detailed study on the song, refer Arthat Pallippattum Charithara Reghakalum (1994) by Mathew, P. C.
iv) 19th century: Reports
A special mention has to be made of foreign delegates from early to mid-19th century who visited Arthat-Kunnamkulam churches and made detailed reports. Interestingly, two of them shared the same nationality, designation and surname, and as a result are often misquoted!
a) 9 December, 1800: Dr. Francis Buchanan (1762-1829), a Scottish physician who arrived in India in 1794, was employed by the East India Company for 20 years in a number of capacities, but he is mainly remembered for the two surveys he conducted: 1) in Mysore in 1800 and 2) in Bengal in 1807–14. In his 'A Journey from Madras through the Countries of Mysore, Canara and Malabar (1807)', an elaborate report of his visit to Arthat-Kunnamkulam area is given. His description on Arthat church goes (Buchanan, 1807, p. 392): "An old church is situated at some distance on a beautiful rising ground. It is now unroofed ; but the walls, although built of indurated clay only, continue very fresh and strong. The altar is arched over with the same materials, and possesses some degree of elegance. The burying ground is at the west end of the church, where the principal door is placed". The unroofed church indicates that it was as Tipu's soldiers left in a dilapidated state. The Arthat Palli Pattu also hints the defunct building unattended for almost three decades after the demolition.
b) 14 January 1808: Rev. Dr. Claudius Buchanan (1766-1815)-a Scottish Theologian, missionary and former Vice Provost of Fort William College of Calcutta (Kolkota), gives an account of his travels in the south and west of India in his book 'Christian Researches in Asia' (1812). He paid two visits to Kerala, the first trip was between November, 1806 and January 1807, and the other in January, 1808 (Buchanan, 1812. p. 116). It was in the later trip he visited Arthat. Unlike some authors have written, Buchanan does not mention Arthat or Kunnamkulam in 'Christian Researches in Asia'. In fact, we get details about Buchanan's Arthat-Kunnamkulam visit from one of his diary entries which was carefully added in 'Memoirs of the life and writings of Claudius Buchanan'-a two-volume biography written by Rev. Hugh Nicholas Pearson based on the diaries and letters of Claudius Buchanan. Buchanan visits the 'Principal Church' with Colonel Macauley [Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800-1859)], presented to the church a large gold medal 'in the name of all the Syrian churches in Malayalim' (Kerala) and writes emphatically: "There is no person in the town but Nazarenes" (Pearson, 1817, p. 155). Though, Buchanan does not name the church, it is identified with the St. Lazarus Pazhayapally of Kunnamkulam by Whitehouse (1873, p. 178), Hosten (1924-In Tanima, 2007a, p. 39) etc. There are others who believe it was the St. Mary's Orthodox Cathedral in Arthat (Mathew, 1994, p. 88; Cheeran, 2013, p. 178). The medal known as the Pathak, made of solid gold weighs 8.75 pavan (70
gram) and measures 17 cm (diameter) and has gained the reputation of being one of the most priceless treasures of the St. Lazarus Church in Kunnamkulam. Depicted on the one side of the medal is the 'Presentation of Jesus at the Jerusalem Temple', while the other side has His baptism in Jordan River. It seems an attempt was made by
the Patriarch of Antioch, Ignatius Abded Aloho II (Abdulla II) during his stay in Kerala (1909-1911)
to keep the Pathak with him, but had to part with it when
the church decided to take legal action (Cheeran, 2013, p. 88). No wonder, when Hosten wanted to have a look on the medal in 1924, he found that it was jealously guarded in the church treasury, opened only by a combination 12 keys distributed among 5 people (formerly 12), and had to spend a full day to get an access (Tanima, 2017a, p. 39-40)!
The Gold Medal gifted by Claudius Buchanan.
Buchanan also mentions about Tippu's invasion of Arthat and records seeing the massacre site. In his own words: "Tippoo invaded this Syrian colony in 1789. The people pointed out to me the grove of trees on which the Christians were hanged" (Pearson, 1817, p. 155). It is certain that the horror of Tipu's brutality was fresh with the memories of the community and perhaps even eyewitnesses to this dark chapter were present among the crowd. According to local sayings, an aged priest was beheaded inside the main altar and 19 parishioners were hanged on teak trees in the church compound, their death is said to be commemorated every year on November 14-15 in the Arthat church. Even today, many prominent christian families in the southern and central districts of Kerala would claim their ancestry from Arthat and Palayur.
c) 1820: In the survey records of Ward and Conner, who visited the region in February, 1820: "Aurthatt whose ruins crowning an eminence are seen from a distance and yet command regard, it was destroyed by Typoo, at least every thing but the walls, some exertions are now making to restore it to its former state" (Ward and Conner, 1893, p. 54). This indicates that Arthat church was in ruins even 30 years after Tipu's invasion. Palayoor is however, recorded as a town in Chowkaad (Chavakkad) District, entirely Christian in population with a spacious church (p. 89).
4) St. Thomas Christian churches belonging to various denominations have emerged around St. Mary's Arthat Church and not surrounding the Palayur catholic church. Today there are 7 churches belonging to 4 denominations in Arthat alone.
Facade of Arthat St. Mary's Cathedral
Photo: May, 2015
Photo: January, 2016
Photo: September, 2016
Photo: June, 2020
Photo: September, 2016
Photo: January, 2016
Photo: Januray, 2016
St. Lazarus Pazhayapally, West Bazar
Photo: July, 2015
Old Photo (undated), Source: Unknown
Photo: July, 2015
15) Palayur and Vestiges of Jewish History
Photo: March, 2020
More importantly, from Eyyal (10 km from Arthat and 15 km from Palayur), 34 indigenous silver punch-marked coins (Mauryan Period), and 12 gold (aurei) and 71 silver (denarii) Roman coins were unearthed. The coins dated from 123 BC and 117 AD were discovered accidentally by a farmer in October 28, 1945. The Roman coins of Eyyal hoard are from the period of Augustus (27 BC to 14 AD), Tiberius (14 to 37 AD), Claudius (41 to 54 AD), Nero (54 to 68 AD), and Trajan (98 to 117 AD). This is an important find because it indicates the strong trade ties the region had with Rome in the first century Apostolic period. I understand the coins are distributed among the various Government museums of the Kerala State. Earlier, the coins were preserved in the Achaeological Museum of Thrissur and some are said to be kept at the Numismatic Museum of Koyikkal Palace, Nedumangadu in Thiruvananthapuram district. For a more scholarly treatment of the topic see, Unnithan (1963), Gupta (1965), Sathyamurthy (1992) etc.
19) Conclusion
d) 1853: A few decades after Buchanan, Rev. Thomas Whitehouse, formerly Minister of the Government Church, Cochin arrives Arthat-Kunnamkulam. Though, the Arthat church was in ruins while the Buchanans were visiting, it was restored at the time of Whitehouse's arrival in 1853. In his "Lingerings of Light in a Dark Land" (Whitehouse, 1873, p.176), we find this interesting quote: "The mother church of this group (Christians of Kunnankulam) is Arth, or, as more commonly called, Arthátta Church, which, standing on a hill with its priests' houses and other ecclesiastical buildings about it, presents & picturesque appearance in the beautiful landscape which surrounds it on all sides. This edifice was one of the few Syrian churches which suffered in Tippoo's invasion of Malabar - his troopers having set fire to it, so that its roof and all the woodwork was destroyed. When first visited, in 1853, it had been very nicely restored in all its parts, and was cleaner, and in every respect better ordered than most Syrian churches. Everything about it seemed good of its kind, and yet chaste and simple, whilst the walls were not disfigured by a single superstitious painting or fresco-the usual small wooden crosses and simple wooden candlesticks being the sole ornaments of the chancel or altars." Whitehouse visited Arthat a second time in 1856 and he provides a detailed report on the celebration of the feast of 'Nativity of Virgin' and the Nercha (Love Feast) followed (1873, pp. 177-178). The feast is still held every year in the month of September 8 as the main festival of Arthat church.
9) Buchanans, Whitehouse and the Case for Arthat
It should be noted that although both Buchanans visited Arthat-Kunnamkulam, neither of them wrote specifically about Palayur! Francis Buchanan (1807, p. 407) though never mentions Palayur by name, includes the place under Chowgaut (Chavakkad) and writes: "Chowgaut, which, for what reason I don't know, is called by the natives, Shavacadu, or deadly forest. The town (Chowgaut) is a small place, chiefly inhabited by Moplays and Nazarens, and is the sea-port belonging to the Nazareny town named Cunnung Colung Curry (i.e. Kunnamkulam)". Note that Buchanan identifies Chavakkad as a port belonging to Kunnamkulam and elsewhere he records the journey he took from Arthat to Chavakkad on a canoe (p. 393), indicating inland waterways connected both the places. Buchanan spends three days in Chavakkad, yet he doesn't visit Palayur Church, instead we are informed that the 'Nazareny priest (Papa) of Chowgaut' (p. 408) waited to see him and share some information. This observation of Buchanan is often cited by the Arthat group to claim that the Catholic church in Palayur was known as Chavakkad church and that there was no connection to St. Thomas whatsoever, or else he would have mentioned the tradition at least. Another point they put forward is why would Claudius Buchanan gift the precious gold medal to Arthat church 'in name of all the Syrian churches in Malayalim', if Palayur was the church established by St. Thomas lying only a few kilometers away. Whitehouse (1873, p. 31), who is the most descriptive here, is the least impressed with Palayur as he writes, "Of Palur little can be said having any special interest", he does discuss the St. Thomas legend of Palayur in detail, but points out that the church was dedicated to St. Macarius and that Chavakkad (adjacent to Palayur) "forms the port of the large Syrian town of Kununkullam, where the descendants of the old Christians of the country are now in great force". The observations of Francis Buchanan and Thomas Whitehouse that Chavakkad port was controlled by Arthat-Kunnamkulam (and not Palayur) even at late 19th century, would show their strong influence in the area, says the Arthat supporters. Palayur, they suggest is only a chapel dedicated to St. Cyriac and was originally under the St. Mary's Orthodox Church in Arthat. Having said so, what is more ironic is that none of the authors discussed above attribute a St. Thomas connection to Arthat-Kunnamkulam, which is strange because despite their long interactions with the leading members of the church, and meticulous recording of their traditions, the Apostolic origin of the region does not come into picture at all!
10) Other Arguments for Arthat:
1) Arthat is a hilly region and the St. Mary's Orthodox church stands at the summit of 'Arthat Hill'. Palayur on the other hand is near sea level, and in the first century it was probably under sea supported also by its sandy soil terrain and the abundant distribution of sea shells in the region today.
2) Arthat Church is dedicated in the name of Virgin Mary, while Palayur church was originally a St. Cyriac church (a martyr saint of 4th century AD) and it was changed to the Apostle's name only after 1949.
3) The church in Arthat and not Palayur was attacked by Tipu Sultan in the late 18th century and memories were still fresh when Francis Buchanan and Claudius Buchanan paid visits to the region in the early 19th century. Though, Catholics authors would argue that Palayur was also not spared by the Sultan and the church was desolated and burnt to ashes (Alenchery, 1916, p. 687; Varghese, 1926, p. 14).
2) Arthat Church is dedicated in the name of Virgin Mary, while Palayur church was originally a St. Cyriac church (a martyr saint of 4th century AD) and it was changed to the Apostle's name only after 1949.
3) The church in Arthat and not Palayur was attacked by Tipu Sultan in the late 18th century and memories were still fresh when Francis Buchanan and Claudius Buchanan paid visits to the region in the early 19th century. Though, Catholics authors would argue that Palayur was also not spared by the Sultan and the church was desolated and burnt to ashes (Alenchery, 1916, p. 687; Varghese, 1926, p. 14).
4) St. Thomas Christian churches belonging to various denominations have emerged around St. Mary's Arthat Church and not surrounding the Palayur catholic church. Today there are 7 churches belonging to 4 denominations in Arthat alone.
5) Notably, the Catholics (Syro-Malabar) also vouch for St. Thomas tradition in Arthat and they have two churches in the very site. A red stone where St. Thomas is thought to have prayed and a granite cross supposedly erected by the Apostle himself are displayed in one of their churches! Why would Catholics bring the St. Thomas legends to Arthat if they already have one in nearby Palayur or do they claim the Apostle established two settlements close to each other?
6) Traditions of an ancient Jewish settlement surrounding a 'Joothakunnu' ('Jew Hill'-the modern Arthat Hill) is suggested. Since there were no Namphuthiri Brahmins in first century Kerala, the Orthodox Christians believe a Jewish Arthat will fit more comfortably with St. Thomas story.
11) Arthat and Palayur-Orthodox vs Catholic
The dispute between Orthodox and Catholics over the worshipping rights in Arthat Church gained momentum after the Coonan Cross Oath (1653) and by the end of 18th century the conflict was so strong that the church had to be closed. The situation turned worse when Tipu Sultan's soldiers burnt the Arthat Church in December 1789, the roofless building remained unattended for about 16 years (1789 to 1805-see Mathew, 2010, p. 165). A decision was taken finally to divide the properties between the rival factions through casting lots under an order given by the Cochin Rajah, Shakthan Thampuran in Edavam 980 Malayalam Era (1805). The Royal Decree (Theetooram) was issued five months later on 7th Thulam 981 M.E.(1805), but Shakthan Thampuran passed away a month before on 13 Kanni, 981 M.E.(September, 1805). The Orthodox received church (St. Mary's), while the Catholics got the cross. The question one might normally ask is how can a cross be equivalent to a full church? Either the cross was special or it may be a Kurishupalli meaning the 'Chapel of the Cross', which is more like an oratory. Catholics would argue that it was not any ordinary cross, but one erected by the Apostle himself and attached to it was a small chapel. In the decree though the word used is Kurishu (cross) and not Kurishupalli. Orthodox historian Fr Joseph Cheeran (2013, p. 233) counter argues on the basis of Arthat Pallipattu that there was no cross (Kurishu) involved, but it was the Kurishupally of Chavakkad (i.e. Modern Catholic Palayur). Anyway, according to local historians, the dilapidated St. Mary's Orthodox church was renovated in 1807 and the Catholics built a new church near their chapel (or cross) in 1826, the current Holy Cross Church of Arthat. It should be noted that, the reports of Ward and Conner, however indicate otherwise, as they find Arthat Church still in ruins at the time of their visit in 1820. The cemetery on the north side of the Arthat cathedral is one of the largest Christian cemeteries in Kerala. However, it should be noted that the area of the cemetery comes to around 1 hectare (2.5 acres) , and not 4.5 acres as some sources exaggerates. At the time of Francis Buchanan's visit in 1800, the graveyard was much smaller and positioned in the west side of the church as he notes (1807, p. 392-393): "The burying ground is at the west end of the church, where the principal door is placed. From its being very small, the graves must be opened long before the bones are consumed. As the graves are opened for new bodies,the old bones are collected, and thrown into an open pit near the corner of the church, where they are exposed to the view of all passengers".
ARTHAT ST. MARY'S CATHEDRAL (ORTHODOX)
Facade of Arthat St. Mary's Cathedral
Photo: March, 2015
The Gate House
Photo: May, 2015
The Arthat Orthodox Cemetery
Photo: May, 2015
Interior of the Arthat St. Mary's Cathedral
Photo: May, 2015
Photo: January, 2016
ARTHAT HOLY CROSS CHURCH (CATHOLIC)
Photo: September, 2016
Today, both factions have a church and chapel in Arthat close to each other-the St. Mary's Cathedral and a cemetery chapel for the Orthodox; and the Holy Cross church and a chapel for the Catholics. The Catholic version begins with St. Thomas establishing a Christian community and erecting a cross in Arthat, and a proper church by the end 3rd century known then the Chattukulangara Church (the current Catholic chapel). They further claim that when the community expanded over time, a larger worshipping place was required and as a result, by the end of 9th or beginning of 10th century a new church was built in the name of Virgin Mary (the current Orthodox Cathedral of Arthat). Though St.Thomas legends are common for Arthat's Orthodox and Catholic communities, their beliefs on who inherited the actual Apostolic site remain in contradiction. The Catholics would argue that the Kurishupally (the chapel) and the open air cross were established by St. Thomas, while the Orthodox takes only their Cathedral (St. Mary's) as Apostolic, the open air granite cross they say was only a Catholic addition from the 19th or later centuries. The Orthodox prefers to call their cathedral as the Head Church (Thalapally) or the Mother Church of Arthat. Ironically, a parallel Catholic tradition holds that Arthat's Christian community originated from Palayur in recent centuries. The Orthodox historians would suggest that Palayur was only a side chapel formed somewhere in the 9th century under Arthat main church (Cheeran, 2013, p. 248). Both versions are rendered in Malayalam and displayed in their respective church compounds. Though both groups nicely begin their history from St. Thomas in 52 AD, then all at a sudden, a big jump in time takes you to the 16th century Portuguese era (Catholic) or 18th century Tipu Sultan's period (Orthodox), as if nothing happened in between for centuries! It is unfortunate that there are no historical records available to corroborate these claims and counter-claims, but we are bound to accept their versions from oral traditions and local sayings only.
Church History -St. Mary's Orthodox, Arthat.
Photo: January, 2016
Church History- Holy Cross Catholic Church, Arthat.
Photo: June, 2020
12) The Granite Cross & The Bleeding Stone of Arthat
It is said that at the base of the current granite cross standing on the front courtyard of the Catholic chapel in Arthat was an old cross made by St. Thomas himself! Hosten attests this legend during his visit to Arthat on February 20, 1924, and notices: "within a small chapel, near and belonging to the Romo-Syrian church, there is a cross, [left out] of wood, is of the double superposed T shape, and it is said, as in the case of the Golden Cross on Malayattur Hill, that the pedestalis built above and hides a cross made by St. Thomas" (Tanima, 2007b, p. 34). Note that Hosten finds the new cross made out of wood and not of granite as it exists today. Less than two decades later, in 1941, Cardinal Eugene Tisserant also records the same discovery (Hambye, 1957, p. 2, fn: 2): "At Arthad a strange cross painted on a roughly hewn stone block was found under the open-air cross of the Catholic church". Hosten further adds that a pilgrimage was conducted every year on the Sunday after Easter to the site. A similar ritual is performed at a much grander scale in Malayattoor, one of the most important Christian pilgrim centres in Kerala. It is self evident that Malayattur had its strong influence in developing some of these St. Thomas rituals followed in Arthat.
St. Thomas Open Air Granite Cross, Holy Cross Catholic Chapel, Arthat
Photo: March, 2015
Photo: June, 2020
Photo: March, 2017
Stories on St. Thomas does not end with a cross, behind the same Catholic chapel is a reddish stone said to discovered from the hill where the Apostle used to pray. The folk lore goes somewhat like this: 'Once upon a time women went to cut grass in the Arthat Hill, while sharpening their sickle they discover blood dripping from a rock in the shape of a cross'. This bleeding stone cross becomes a new addition to the St. Thomas legend in Arthat. Anyway it is only a recent invention, had it been known earlier, Hosten would have definitely noted that in 1924. Relics associated with St.Thomas' life is not new for Catholic traditions in India. For example, one can still see in Mylapore and Malayattoor, stone-engraved foot and hand prints of the Apostle and St. Thomas bleeding crosses carved in rocks. Additionally, women finding a bleeding cross under similar circumstances is told in South Pallippuram of Alapuzha District, another place associated with St. Thomas legends, here (St. Mary's Forane Church) however the cross is preserved instead of the stone.
The Bleeding Cross Stone (Raktha Kalkurishu Para), Holy Cross Catholic Chapel, Arthat
Photo: September, 2016
Photo: March, 2015
13) Kunnamkulam-a Syrian Christian Center
One more site we need to discuss is Kunnamkulam, a municipal town 2 km north-east of Arthat. This is different from the Kunnamkulam village of Kodungallur where the Joothalulam (Jew Pond) is located (see here and here). Municipal Kunnamkulam is a well known trade center in Kerala famous for its printing and book binding industry and a hub of the Orthodox Syrian Christian community. Within the town limits of Kunnamkulam, there are more than two dozen churches and chapels, mostly Orthodox. The Christian section of Kunnamkulam is locally known as Angady (Bazar) area, characterised by the densely packed line houses. The four main bazaars identified by their geographical directions are-the Vadakke (North) the Thekke (South), the Kizhakke (East) and the Padinjare (West) Angadis. The four bazars merge at a junction called 'Nadupanthi' (the 'Middle Point'). The more dominant East Bazar is called the Big Bazar. The 'Angadi Veedukal' (Bazar
Houses) were arranged on either sides of a dense grid of narrow streets
with the front room functioning as a shop and the rear rooms used for
residential purposes, and they still remain without much structural alterations and upon careful observation you may find them resembling the Jew Streets and the Brahmin Agraharams of Kerala.
Map 1
KUNNAMKULAM BAZARS (ANGADIS) & THE LINE HOUSES (ANGADI VEEDUKAL)
Nadupanthi Junction
Photo: June, 2020
East Bazar (Kizhakke Angady)
Photo: May, 2020
West Bazar (Padinjare Angady)
Photo: May, 2020
South Bazar (Thekke Angady)
Photo: May, 2020
North Bazar (Vadakke Angady)
Photo: May, 2020
In each of these bazars is a church that play a significant role in their social and religious life. Historical records do not suggest the existence of churches in Kunnamkulam before 18th century. The oldest is perhaps St. Lazarus of Chiralayam in North Bazar, believed to be active from the mid-18th century. St Lazarus (Pazhayapally) of West Bazar is the most prominent church of Kunnamkulam and it has a recorded history post-Tipu's invasion (1789). The church of South Bazar named after the Apostle St. Mathias is also known as Ambalapalli or 'Temple Church' because it was a Hindu Temple converted into a Christian worship house under an order issued by Rajah of Cochin, Shakthan Thampuran in 1805. The Hindu structure is still retained in front of the church but the main sanctuary building is from 1101 M. E. (1926). The St. Lazarus Churches in North and West Bazars are said to be established in the lands donated by the Chiralayam and Manakkulam Hindu Rajahs, respectively. Built in 1852, St. Thomas Church of East Bazar is the youngest among the four. Interestingly, the Kurishupallies of St. Lazarus (Pazhayapally) and St. Mathias Orthodox Churches are in the name of St. Kuriakose (St. Cyriac), the same saint to which the Catholic Palayur Church was originally dedicated-both groups revering a common non-Apostolic saint is somewhat rare now. Tipu Sultan's conquest in Arthat (1789) resulted in the mass migration of Christians to nearby Kunnamkulam and to the southern parts of Kerala. Gradually, with the local support Hindu Kings, Manakulam, Cheralayam and Kakkad, called the Thalappilly Rajahs, the town flourished into a well established trade center.
KUNNAMKULAM CHURCHES
St. Lazarus Chiralayampally, North Bazar
Photo: April, 2015
Photo: Januray, 2016
Photo: Januray, 2016
St. Kuriakose (St. Cyriac) Kurishupally of St. Lazarus Pazhayapally
St. Mathias Ambalapally, South Bazar
Old Photo (undated), Source: Unknown
Photo: Januray, 2016
Photo: Januray, 2016
St. Kuriakose (St. Cyriac) Kurishupally of St. Mathias Church
Photo: December, 2020
St. Thomas Puthenpally, East Bazar
Photo: June, 2016
Photo: June, 2020
14) Kunnamkulam-Documented History and Early Testimonies
14.1) Etymology
The word Kunnamkulam literally means Hill (Kunnu) and Pond or Tank (Kulam), but Valath V. V. K. (1992, p. 165), one of the well respected toponymist in Malayalam language, attribute the etymology to Kunnan+Kulam, where Kunnan is either the name of an important person or a Hindu Dravidian deity. I have heard a similar version from a local resident in Kodungallur who says the word is derived from Kunnante (Kunnan's) Kulam (Pond). Kunnamkulam is known as Kunnamkulangare (കുന്ന൦കുളങ്ങരെ) or Kunnankulangare (കുന്നൻകുളങ്ങരെ) in older records. It is not the Kulam but the Kulakkare (ponde edge) that is important, argues Valath (1992). In the writings of European authors it is amusing to see how Kunnamkulam is transformed into 'Cunnung Colung Curry Angady' (Francis Buchanan); Kunnankullam and Kunnankullamgerry (Thomas Whitehouse), Koonunkoluncurray (Ward and Cooner) etc. Valath (1992) cites four village records from 1814, 1818, 1821 and 1832, where Kunnamkulam appears as either Kunnamkulangare (കുന്ന൦കുളങ്ങരെ) or Kunnamkolangare (കുന്ന൦കൊളങ്ങരെ). Of particular interest is the 1818 document (not 1763 as cited here) which is a decree from the king (Rajah of Cochin?) asking the residents of Kunnamkulangare to strengthen their roofs with clay tiles instead of the fire-prone thatched coconut leaves so as to avoid the incidences of fire hazards that damaged 108 shops in 1817 and 11 in the same year. From the beginning of 20th century, the modern name Kunnamkulam began to get more acceptance. It is however pronounced differently in Malayalam, കുന്ന൦കുള൦ or കുന്ദ൦കുള൦, while the former name is preferred by the locals today. Kunnamkulam became a full fledged trade center after December 1789 when Arthat Christians moved in to the region fleeing Tipus's invasion.
14.2) Early Documentation
A documented history of Christianity in Kunnamkulam does not go beyond 300 years. We can infer that Kunnamkulam had a Christian colony by the mid-18th century at the latest from two accounts. 1) Antiochene delegate and the Maphriyono (Catholicos), Mor Baselios Shakralla III from Aleppo, Syria who was active in Kerala from 1751 to 1764 and later buried in the Kandanad Martha Mariam Church, stayed in the St. Lazarus Church of Chiralayam, Kunnamkulam (Cheeran, 2013, p.77). This would indicate that Kunnamkulam had a church at least two decades before Tipu's invasion of Arthat in 1789. 2) Claudius Buchanan in 1808 quotes about Hyder Ali addressing Kunnamkulam as Nazaraney Ghur or the city of the Nazarenes-the Syrian Christians (Pearson, 1817, p. 154). There is a possibility that Hyder had been to Kunnamkulam personally, a suggestion corroborated by local traditions in the region as well (Cheeran, 2013, p. 78). Historically, Hyder Ali (d. 1782) attacked Malabar twice in 1766 and 1774, and in August, 1776, the northern portion of Cochin (Kochi) and the Fort of Trichur (Thrissur) were invaded (Aiya, 1906a, p. 382), hence Kunnamkulam could have been a part of this conquest.
14.3) Another early document on Kunnamkulam is the report of Dr. Francis Buchanan who was in the town on 9 December, 1800, His first stop was Cacadu (Kakkad) in Kunnamkulam which he finds "very beautiful: its round hills covered with grass are separated by fine verdant fields of corn, skirted by the houses of the inhabitants, which are shaded by groves of fruit" and opposite to it was the Christian Kunnamkulam identified as "a Nazaren, or Christian village, named Cunnung Colung Curry Angady, which looks very well, being seated on a rising ground amid fine groves of the Betel-nut palm". Buchanan then meets their Papa or priest (usually identified as Pulikottil Joseph Mar Dionysius-II) and writes: "his ancestors have been settled in the country for many generations, he was very fair, with high Jewish features"-a statement often cited by local historians to argue for their Jewish heritage. However, they skip the next sentence "The greater part of the sect, however, entirely resemble the aborigines of the country, from whom indeed they are descended". Furthermore, the Papa shares the legend of St. Thomas with Buchanan on how the Apostle arrived and took up his residence at Meila-pura (Mylapore) near Madras 1740 years ago (that would date St. Thomas' arrival on 60 AD and not 52 AD), later established a church in Cochin, and was martyred on his return to Meila-pura. He also adds the Cheraman Perumal legend and the King's conversion to Islam. Strangely, this local priest of Arthat-Kunnamkulam, who later becomes the Malankara Metropolitan (the highest authority of Syrian Orthodox community) is silent about the apostolic origin of Arthat as if the legend didn't exist in his time! On the other hand, if the legend was circulated in the area, it is difficult to accept that he was not aware about such an important tradition associated with his own native place. Buchanan personally visits Kunnamkulam which he calls the 'Nazareny village' and gives the following note: "which (i.e. Kunnamkulam) contains many houses regularly disposed, and full of people. For an Indian town it is well built, and comparatively clean. It has a new church of considerable size". The new church here is not identified, it could be either the Pazhayapally (St. Lazarus Church) or Chiralayam Pally (St. Lazarus Church) of Kunnamkulam. For more details and the quotes attached here, see Buchanan (1807, pp. 390-392).
14.4) On 14 January 1808, Rev. Claudius Buchanan makes a visit to Kunnamkulam. He testifies the Christian nature of the Kunnamkulam by identifying the 'Nazarani Bazar' of the village and notes how Hyder Ali, the father of Tipu Sultan called the area, 'Nazarani Ghur'. Buchanan has all praises for the village while narrating: "We first proceeded from Cochin to the famous Shanscrit college at Trichiur, and thence to a district of the Syrian Christians which I had not before visited. It was named, by Hyder, Nazarani Ghur, or the city of the Nazarenes. It is a beautiful place, fertile and populous. The town is four square, having four gates, built on the side of a hill, with steps cut in the rock from street to street, surrounded by lofty groves of palm and other trees. A verdant meadow winds about the foot of the hill, and the whole country is a scene of hill and dale" (Pearson, 1817, pp. 154-155).
14.5) From July 1810 to the end of 1821, an extensive survey of the Travancore and Cochin States were executed under the superintendence of British Lieutenants Benjamin Swain Ward and Peter Eyre Conner and on 21 February 1820 (Ward, 1891 p. 97) they arrive Caccad (Kakkad), a suburb of Kunnamkulam. Ward and Conner observes Kunnamkulam as a prosperous and wealthy Christian town with several churches and over 400 houses. The author devotes a long passage to the importance of the region which is worth quoting in its entirety (1893, pp. 51-52): "Koonunkoluncurray (i.e. Kunnamkulam) may be considered as the Capital of the Thaullapulley District, it is one of the largest Christian Towns in Cochin or indeed on this part of the Coast, picturesquely situated on the declivity and summit of a low hill crowned by its several Churches, a distant view impresses a belief of its importance or claims to attention, a notion however that a nearer approach immediately corrects, as in fact it contains nothing deserving any particular regard, within its limits are about four hundred houses, two - thirds of which belongs to the Syrians, the Romo-Syrians occupying the remainder, the Town was once encompassed by a Bamboo hedge and entered by two Gates, but those ornaments or defences are either decayed or destroyed, the streets present some share of regularity and many tolerable houses are seen, there is a very large population, and the Bazar (well attended and supplied) is full of bustle and activity disproportionate indeed to the value of its wares, which with the exception of Cloth ( all kinds of this article are here procurable) consist for the greater part of the various but ordinary produce of the neighbouring country, it is however one of the largest Marts in the Northern part of Cochin, (particularly for grain one of its chief exports) being frequented by and supplying almost all the Inhabitants belonging to the Company's Districts immediately here. South of the Ponani River, a considerable traffic is carried on between the large Town known under the above name and this place, the intercourse between them being facilitated by the inland Navigation (one of the most important advantages belonging to Koonunkoluncurray) connecting them". In the same report, they mention about nine churches (five Syrian and four Roman-Syrian) within the District (Thaullapulley or Thalapally), four out of them in Koonunkoluncurray (Kunnamkulam) alone, and the two at Kunnamkulam with large and spacious edifices. The average size of the congregation reported for the Syrians (Jacobite Orthodox) was 457, while the Romo-Syrians (Catholics) had a higher number of 651 (Ward and Conner, 1893, p. 54).
14.6) Next to arrive was Rev. Thomas Whitehouse in 1853, who depicts Kunnamkulam as the largest native Christian town in Malabar with a population of 8000 and notes in detail about the famous churches in the town and its neighborhood (1873, pp. 178-184).
14.7) From early 20th century we have two interesting testimonies on Kunnamkulam by Indian authors. Indian historian and civil servant during British rule in India, Dewan Bahadur V. Nagam Aiya wrote the high status maintained by the Christian women of Kunnamkulam: "certain Syrian Christian women particularly of a Desom called Kunnamkolam wear clothes as Nambudiri women do, move about screening themselves with huge umbrellas from the gaze of profane eyes as those women do, and will not marry, except perhaps in exceptional cases and that only recently’ but from among dignified families of similar aristocratic descent" (Aiya, V. N., 1906b, p. 123).
14.8) Reputed anthropologist Rao Bahadur Ananthakrishna Ayyar, L. K., well known for his works on the castes and tribes of Mysore and Cochin, has also made an important study on Syrian Christians of Malabar. In his 'Anthropology of Syrian Christians' (1926), he quotes (p. 16): "Not far from the village of Palur in the Syrian (Christian) town of Kunnamkulam, settled the descendants of the Brahman converts from the abandoned village, among whom many of the old social customs were once in vogue, some being still observed". Coming from a Brahminic background, it is interesting to note how Ayyar also like Nagam Aiya observes the higher status shared by the women of Syrian Christians in Kunnamkulam, in his words (p. 246): "The Christian women formerly used to wear their loin dress like the Nambuthiri women, and to hold an umbrella to avoid being seen by males while going out. It is in a way still in vogue among the women of Kunnamkulam in the Cochin State" and that (p. 231) " The women of the well-to-do classes especially at Kunnamkulam, Trichur and Irinjalakkuda do not differ in appearance from those of thc corresponding classes among the Hindus".
In a nutshell, all these records reinstate the Christian nature of Kunnamkulam, but there is no hint for a Jewish life flourished in the town. However, there have been efforts to establish a link between Jews and the native Christians of Kunnamkulam, primarily by assigning a Jewish ancestry to them. Some of the major arguments put forward by the proponents of this theory are: 1) A first century Essenic Jewish settlement in Chiralayam, Kunnamkulam; 2) A Jewish trade center in nearby Chattukulangara-Arthat; 3) Resemblance between the Jews of Kerala and Kunnamkulam Christians in their strong mercantile culture, common residential architecture (eg. closely packed line houses with shops in front and living area at rear end), similar customs (eg. Passover rituals, marriage ceremonies etc), and worshipping pattern (eg. structural similarities of church and synagogue), and matching physical characters (eg. Buchanan's statement about their priest having Jewish features). However, most of these are speculations and the similarities are merely coincidental. Nevertheless, the Syrian Christians of the region proudly guard their age old traditions. Kunnamkulam and its neighbouring areas are one of the few places left in Kerala where a few of the pre-Diamper customs and rituals of St. Thomas Christians are still practised. Attend a traditional marriage ceremony of a Syrian Christian family in the locality and you will have the privilege to observe many rituals that are rarely practised in other parts of Kerala's Christian community. Having said that, like everywhere in the world, with the younger generation showing less and less interest in their ancestral traditions and rituals, it is only a matter of time when these ancient customs will become only a record of history.
15.1) Joothakunnu/Judakunnu (Jew Hill)
Today, a small chapel named 'Jew Hill Monument' reminds the lost Jews of Palayur. Curiously enough, the monument erected by the local Christian community stands on a small hill (almost flattened out today) considered to be once the site of a synagogue (extinct now). The older generation in Palayur still remember the uphill landscape of Jew Hill. This chapel monument consecrated on 23rd December, 2006, by the Archbishop of Thrissur (Chittilappilly, 2013) is decorated with the Jewish symbols like the Star of David, Menorah, Ten Commandments etc. Why would Christians erect a monument for Jews if there was no Jewish relation to the site? Some would argue that Christians have a hidden agenda to popularize their St. Thomas legends, however, one should also take into consideration that the Jews of Kerala have independent tradition associated with Palayur. William Logan, the famous Administrator of Malabar (who held the position 7 times between 1869 and 1887!), in his exhaustive classic work, Malabar Manual (1887, Volume 2, p. 411) records: "in immediate proximity to the existing modern (Palayur) church there is a mound with small debris strewn about it, which is still known as the site of the “Jews’ church,” and which was evidently occupied by a building of some kind in former times". The most detailed account of this tradition appears in the writings of C. A. Innes (Malabar Administrator-1906 and 1911 to 1915), who followed up Logan and wrote extensively about the people of Malabar and customs of different castes at length in 1904-1905 period. Innes' works were compiled by his successor F. B. Evans (1915-1919) in 2 volumes in the 'Madras District Gazetteers'. The Volume 1 of this work, 'Malabar and Anjengo' (1908) has an interesting passage on the 'Jew Hill' of Palayur, discussed under Ponnani Taluk, Chavakkad division. Let me quote the full passage on Jew Hill for a better understanding of the text: "Close to the church is a garden known as Jews Hill, some time the site of a Jewish Synagogue. When the Jews left Palayur they are said to have bestowed a neighbouring piece of ground upon a Tiyan on condition that he would place every night a lighted lamp on the site of the synagogue. The custom was kept up till within last ten years; but the ignorant and ungrateful descendant of the original Tiyan affirms that he used to light the lamp to drive away a devil. A granite slab bearing a long inscription, in worn out vattezhuttu which was found on Jews Hill is now preserved in the Deputy Tahsildar's office" (Innes, 1908, p. 451).
A couple of inferences can be made out from Innes. 1) Before the chapel was built, the site was a garden and was known as 'Jews Hill'; 2) The 'Jews Hill' was once the site of a synagogue and the Jews of Palayur made arrangements with a Hindu family to light lamp on their defunct synagogue. The custom of lighting lamps on abandoned synagogues by non-Jews were not uncommon in Kerala. We know reports claiming such practises were conducted on the site of other extinct synagogues at Kunnamkulam, Kochangadi and Muttam; 3) The ritual was practised in Palayur until late 19th or very early 20th century, but the original purpose was somehow forgotten by the last descendant of the family who inherited the privilege. It would then suggest that the person who performed the ritual during Innes' visit was unaware of a synagogue there; 4) A granite slab with Vattezhuthu inscription was discovered from 'Jews Hill' and was preserved in the Deputy Tahsildar's Office of Chavakkad. Earlier, William Logan (1887, Volume 2, p. 411) also attested "a wornout Vatteluttu inscription" from Palayur, but he doesn't specify it was from Jew Hill. When Henry Hosten visited Palayur in 1924, he finds the same inscription "a long one in Vatteluttu and fragmentary" in the Tahsildar's office but records that it was brought from the dilapidated Fort William of Chettuvah along with a Dutch inscription in memory of Wilhem Blasser, the First Commander of the Fort who died on 1723 (Tanima, 2007a, p. 37). However, the date of his death given by Cotton (1905, p. 264) is 2nd February, 1729.
Unfortunately, none of these reports address specifically the Vatteluttu script. However, we have a rare reference that provides certain interesting insights in this regard. Professor Rangacharya V., who studied over 12,000 inscriptions from the Madras Presidency region and published 'A Topographical List of the Inscriptions of the Madras Presidency' in 1919 in 3 volumes, reports the stone tablet lying under a tree in the Deputy Tahsildar's office of Chavakkad in 1905. He finds the record damaged in the middle, however, what is interesting is that, he could read 'Valluva-nadu' in line 5 and 'Palaiyur' in line 14 of the inscription (Volume 2, p. 1045). He also points out that this is the same Vatteluttu inscription which Robert Sewell (1882, p. 250) mistakenly identified as 'in Roman Characters on a granite slab' from Chavakad. This would then suggest that the inscription certainly has a connection with Palayur even if we cannot conclusively prove that it was discovered from the Jew Hill, and Sewell's note could be the earliest documented reference to this artefact.
Another intersting account from the same period appears in the pamphlet, "A Brief History of Palayur Church (1926, p. 8)" by Manhali Varghese. He reports of seeing ruins of a Jewish Synagogue in the site of "Judanmaruda Kunnu" or "Jews' Hill", located a furlong (200 m) from the church and that the hill was in the possession of a Christian. He further adds: "The former owner of the site had very recently dug the foundation of the ruins of the Synagogue and taken a number of old granite stones found to have buried deep under the ground", and that "some of them (Jews) occasionally visited the place". Nevertheless, this is an indication that Jewish memory of the site was fresh even in the early 20th century. The Dutch and the Vatteluttu inscriptions are still preserved in the Chavakkad Taluk Office compound today. The Vatteluttu inscription is barely visible now, but on careful analysis we can see a few lines inscribed near the top section of the tablet. We know from Rangacharya's observation that there were at least 14 lines that could be identified in 1905. There seems to be a crack near the centre which is currently plastered with a thin layer of cement, also corroborating Rangacharya that the record was damaged in the middle.
Vattezhuttu Inscription from the Jew Hill of Palayur
Tombstone of the Dutch Commander Wilhem Blasser (1723) from Chettuvah
[Both photographs taken from Chavakkad Taluk Office in December 2020]
The Jew Hill Monument
All photographs: December, 2016
15.2) Government Registers
There are reports of old village records in Palayur, mostly land documents, where the area surrounding the Jew Hill is designated as 'ജൂതന്മാരുടെ കുന്ന്' or 'Joothanmarude Kunnu' (Jew's Hill)-Varghese, 1926, p. 8. This is an interesting piece of information as it would be an official recognition of the Jewish site in Palayur.
15.3) Jewish Place Names in Palayur
Modern Palayur or Palayoor is an area consisting of four wards under the Chavakkad Municipality of Thrissur District. The biggest attraction at Palayur is of course the famous St. Thomas Syro-Malabar (Catholic) Church. Palayur center, a few feet from the church is a short stretch of the 'Chavakkad-Kanjani' Road bordered by a few shops and commercial establishments. Upon keen observation, you might find the name 'Judan Bazar' (ജൂതൻ ബസാർ) displayed in English and Malayalam in the signboards of a few shops, an indication that the Jewish link to the place is not forgotten. Interestingly, an advertisement hoarding placed on the entrance of a side street running beside a nearby mosque has the name 'Jew Street' given in the address. I don't remember seeing a 'Jew Street' sign displayed during my previous visits to Palayur. "The signboard was officially added by Christians recently", commented a local resident. In the Google Map database, the street is 'Moscow Colony Road' which joins 'Palayur Angadi Road' from the south. The 'Jew Hill Monument' is less than 200 m from the Palayur Church and is also labelled in both Malayalam (ജൂതകുന്ന് സ്മാരകം) and English. In addition, a kilometer east to the Palayur church on the Chavakkad-Kanjani Road is a place called Angadithazham which could be roughly translated as 'down hill bazar'. There is a belief in the region that in the early centuries, the main market of Palayur was in the 'Jew Hill' and it was run by the Jews. Though, Jews were gone and the hill was gradually flattened out, `Judan Bazar' and 'Angadithazham', the place at the foot of the bazar still retained their names. Around a kilometer south of Angadithazham is 'Kayal Kadavu' which joins the diverse network of Kerala's inland canal systems through the Chettuavah backwater. In 1848, when Malabar Collector, H. V. Conolly constructed the famous Canoly Canal from Kozhikode to Kottappuram in Kodungallur (170 km) by joining rivers and streams, Chavakkad-Palayur was part of the system, but today the side stream that directly connected Palayur to the Ponnani-Kottappuram water body is not visible.
Modern Palayur or Palayoor is an area consisting of four wards under the Chavakkad Municipality of Thrissur District. The biggest attraction at Palayur is of course the famous St. Thomas Syro-Malabar (Catholic) Church. Palayur center, a few feet from the church is a short stretch of the 'Chavakkad-Kanjani' Road bordered by a few shops and commercial establishments. Upon keen observation, you might find the name 'Judan Bazar' (ജൂതൻ ബസാർ) displayed in English and Malayalam in the signboards of a few shops, an indication that the Jewish link to the place is not forgotten. Interestingly, an advertisement hoarding placed on the entrance of a side street running beside a nearby mosque has the name 'Jew Street' given in the address. I don't remember seeing a 'Jew Street' sign displayed during my previous visits to Palayur. "The signboard was officially added by Christians recently", commented a local resident. In the Google Map database, the street is 'Moscow Colony Road' which joins 'Palayur Angadi Road' from the south. The 'Jew Hill Monument' is less than 200 m from the Palayur Church and is also labelled in both Malayalam (ജൂതകുന്ന് സ്മാരകം) and English. In addition, a kilometer east to the Palayur church on the Chavakkad-Kanjani Road is a place called Angadithazham which could be roughly translated as 'down hill bazar'. There is a belief in the region that in the early centuries, the main market of Palayur was in the 'Jew Hill' and it was run by the Jews. Though, Jews were gone and the hill was gradually flattened out, `Judan Bazar' and 'Angadithazham', the place at the foot of the bazar still retained their names. Around a kilometer south of Angadithazham is 'Kayal Kadavu' which joins the diverse network of Kerala's inland canal systems through the Chettuavah backwater. In 1848, when Malabar Collector, H. V. Conolly constructed the famous Canoly Canal from Kozhikode to Kottappuram in Kodungallur (170 km) by joining rivers and streams, Chavakkad-Palayur was part of the system, but today the side stream that directly connected Palayur to the Ponnani-Kottappuram water body is not visible.
Map 2
Judan Bazar (Jewish Bazar)
Photo: March, 2020
Photo: May, 2017
Jew Street of Palayur
Photo: March, 2020
Photo: March, 2020
Angdaithazham
Photo: May, 2017
Kayal Kadavu
Photo: May, 2017
Photo: May, 2017
Palayur Angady Road
Photo: December, 2016
16) Arthat and Vestiges of Jewish History
The hilly landscape of Arthat is self evident from the steep slopes while you approach the village. At the summit of the hill is the St. Mary's Orthodox Church and from the church a sharp downhill road towards south-west direction towards Guruvayur town will take you to a large 4-acre pond, known locally as Chattukulam (the whip pond). According to local Christian traditions, the Arthat Hill was formerly a Joothakunnu (Jew Hill), and there was a synagogue on the summit. The Apostle frequented the hill for prayer and established a cross there, and the synagogue gets converted to a church in the name of Virgin, the current St. Mary's Syrian Orthodox Cathedral. Some suggest that the hill was known as 'Vayaliparambil Kunnu' (literally Field+Land+Hill), however, like Joothakunnu, that name is also not used today. Notably, there is a prominent Jacobite Syrian Orthodox Christian family settled near Angamaly with the name Vayaliparambil who claim their ancestry from Arthat. It is not just the hill, but the nearby large pond Chattukulam also has a legend associated with St. Thomas. There are multiple versions of this story connecting the Apostle and the pond, such as he meets- a group of people digging a pond meant for Nampoothiri Brahmins; or comes across a group living near a rocky terrain faced with severe water shortage; or himself denied with water by a local family on his way to the Arthat Hill for praying. Anyway, long story short, having failed to obtain water either for himself or others, St. Thomas strikes the bottom of a dry land or a hard rock with his girdle as a whip, and suddenly water gushes out from all sides to form the Chattukulam-the pool raised by whip (or Chatta in Malayalam). Another legend, though it did not get much recognition, says that the pond was used as a Joothakulam (Jew Pond) by the Jewish community of Arthat! Apparently, the pond existed first, and thus, the church on the shores of Chattukulam came to be known as 'Chattukulangare Pally'- literally the church on the edge of whip-pond. Adding further twist to the story, the Hindus have an identical legend, the only difference is that instead of St. Thomas, it was Guruvayurappan (Lord Krishna) who performed the miracle for quenching the thirst of his cattle, and he used a proper whip instead of a belt or girdle (Punnose, 2008, pp. 199, 202). Modern Chattukulam is only 4 km from Guruvayur, one of the most important pilgrim centers for Hindus in Kerala. Locals would proudly tell you that Chattukulam has never gone dry in their living memory even at extreme summer.
Map 3
Chattukulam Pond
Photo: May, 2016
Photo: March, 2020
17) Kunnamkulam and Vestiges of Jewish History
We
need to look into a testimony from 20th century, in fact, it is an
eyewitness account from a Jew suggesting the existence of a synagogue in
Kunnamkulam! This unique detail is provided by a Malabari Jew
named Mordecai Elias settled in Jerusalem to Prof. P. M. Jussay. Mordechai tells
Jussay, how he was offered a shelter in a house at Kunnamkulam, at the
back of which he saw a heap of ruins of a synagogue and a lamp burning
over it, and the ritual was followed by the owner of the house on Friday
evenings, i.e the beginning of Jewish Shabbat (Jussay, 1986, p. 159). Lighting of a lamp on
the site of an abandoned synagogue seems to be a practise continued with
other synagogues of Kerala, in Palayur by Hindus (Innes, 1908, p.
451), Kochangadi by Muslims (Daniel and Johnson, 1995, p. 128) and Muttam
arranged by the Halleguas (Puthur, 2006, p. 140). Apparently,
the rituals soon died out with time, the location of
Kochangadi and Muttam synagogues are non-traceable, as for Palayur, a Christian monument stands on a spot known as the 'Jew Hill'. A synagogue in Kunnamkulam is unheard of by anyone in the region,
nor are there any local legends or traditions to support this view.
Perhaps the ruins he found was in Arthat which is only 2 km from
Kunnamkulam, afterall the Christian community of Arthat also had a
tradition of a synagogue in their locality. Another suggestion is that,
since Kunnamkulam is a renowned trade center, members of the Palayur
Jewish community came for business, settled there and established a
synagogue. Jussay (1986, p. 147) speculates that the Jews of
Palayur was so populous that the excess moved to Kunnamkulam. We know at least a few Jewish families lived in the 'Mission Road'
(or Mission Angady) of Kunnamkulam (David, 2016, pp. 99-100), and I personally can attest, one of
them remained there until the late 20th century. Nevertheless, even if
there were ruins of a synagogue in Kunnamkulam or nearby Arthat in 20th century, until we come across any convincing evidence, it's existence will remain an unsolved mystery.
Map 4
Mission Angadi Road (Mission Bazar Road)
Photo: June, 2020
18) The Antiquity of Arthat-Kunnamkulam-Palayur
Despite
the absence of any primary documentary and archaeological evidences
connecting either Palayur or Arthat to first century Apostolic origin,
it is an undisputed fact that the area had human settlements from late
Iron Age period. The abundance of megalithic structures (500 BC to 300
AD), mainly burial monuments distributed in the region are relics from
the past supporting the antiquity of the region. There are at least 8 major megalithic sites within a 8 km radius from Kunnamkulam. The structures
include rock-cut laterite caves (Munimada), dolmens, Nannangadis (burial
urns) and memorial monuments unique to Kerala, viz. Kudakkallu (umbrella or mushroom stones), Thoppikallu (hat stones) and Pathikallu (hood stones). The eight megalithic locations near Kunnamkulam are: 1) Kakkad (rock-cut cave),
2) Porkkalam-Vedakkad (dolmen and rock-cut caves), 3)
Kattakambal-Chirakkal (rock-cut cave), 4) Chowannur (rock-cut cave), 5) Chermanangad (Kudakakkallu, Thoppikallu, Pathikallu), 6) Eyyal (rock-cut cave), 7) Kandanissery (rock-cut cave), and 8) Ariyannur (Kudakkallu). Here is a nice general article on the megalithic monuments of Kerala with some beautiful photographs.
Map 5
Kakkad
Porkkalam
Kattakambal
Chowannur
Cherumanangad
A Typical Kudakallu (Umbrella or Mushroom Stone)
Eyyal
Ariyannur
Kandanissery
All photographs: January, 2018
A Roman Gold Coin of Tiberius Caesar (AD 14-37) from Eyyal
Photo Courtesy: Sathyamurthy (1992)
A Jewish association to Palayur is generally accepted. The question however, is where to fit the Jewish chapter in Palayur's history. It's hard to give a convincing short answer due to the limited information and the vague data available. However, it is plausible that Palayur had a synagogue in the 16th century, as evident from the Torah finials engraved with the date 1565 and the name 'Palu(r)' in Hebrew. A letter from the Jesuit priest, James Fenicio S. J. also attests a Jewish presence at Palayur in early 17th century. In addition, Jewish traditions and folk songs emphasize the importance of Palayur. Whether Palayur had a Jewish community in the first century is a different matter, though it cannot be proved by any means, a possibility cannot be ruled out. As for the Christian community, their own traditions strongly support a Jewish presence in Palayur. Moreover, even today, place names associated with Jews are preserved in old government registers, street names, signboards etc. One such name, 'Joothakunnu' (Jew Hill), still persists in the memory of the local community and a Jew Hill monument has been shown as the site of a former synagogue.
For the Christians, Palayur is one of the 7 churches [Kodungallur, North Paravur, Palayur, Kokkamangalam. Niranom, Nilackal (Chayal) and Kollam] established by St. Thomas. Historically, Palayur is an important Syrian Christian center and the church was initially dedicated to the 4th century saint St. Cyriac. None of the pre-18th century records, give a direct reference to St. Thomas establishing a church in Palayur. Although, the Christian folk song Ramban Pattu and the spurious palm-leaf document (Nagara Grandhavariola) corroborate the legend, many secular scholars date them to 19th century or even later periods and we can't confirm the age of the folklore before it was written down. In
Jornada, Gouvea mentions about the 'Law of St. Thomas' in Palayur and
how the parishioners defended St. Thomas' dominance over St. Peter, but
these can be applied to any pre-Portuguese Syrian Christian church.
Fenicio's letter (1607) is the closest we can get, his observation that
Palayur is the oldest (primus) among all the churches in Malabar, could
be an indirect hint to St. Thomas tradition. Given the pre-Portuguese
origin (before 16th century) of Margamkali Pattu, it will be
the earliest written document attesting the St. Thomas legends of
Palayur.
In the case of Arthat, the supporting evidences are even more limited. None of the documents we discussed including the Arthat Padiola (1806), Arthat Palli Pattu (1825), or reports from the visits of Francis Buchanan (1807), Claudius Buchanan (1817), Thomas Whitehouse (1873), Ward and Conner (1893) associate Arthat with the missionary activities of St. Thomas. Similarly, Kunnamkulam, a strong Syrian Orthodox center with dozens of churches and chapels, is a continuation of Arthat's Christian community after Tipu's invasion (1789), and a Jewish presence in the town was much recent and in anyay remained miniscule and temporary for a short period. A Jewish link to Arthat is assigned through 'Arthat Hill' (formerly Joothakunnu or Jew Hill), Chattukulam Pond (formerly Joothakulam or Jew Pond), St. Mary's Orthodox church (former site of a Synagogue), and Chattukulangare Bazar (formerly a Jewish Bazar)-however, none of these bracketed claims have any historical backup or primary documentary support, but are based on pure local legends, which are relatively recent as well.
The earliest references about the traditional seven churches established by St. Thomas in Kerala are documented in two letters from 1720s. The first is a Syriac letter entitled "Of the things which happened to the Syrians (on the Malabar Coast) and their history", written about the year 1720, by
a Jacobite priest named Mathai or Mathew, who is identified as
Veticutel Mathai Kathanar (Vellian, 1986, p. 41). The document (MS 1213) preserved in the Leiden Academic
Library of Netherlands, has churches Moljokare (Malankara), Kutkajel (Kottakayal,
i.e. North Paravur), Irapeli (Erattupetta or Edapally), Gukamaglam
(Kokkamangalam), Nernam (Niranom), Tirubokut (Thiruvithancode) and
Mailopur (Mylapore). English translations of this letter by
Hosten, H., and Visscher, J. C., and notes by Joseph, T. K., have appeared in 'Indian Antiquary', Volume 56 (1927), pp. 41-46, 81-88. The other
document of relevance is also a Syriac letter from the same period,
written by the Malankara Metropolitan of St. Thomas Christians, Mar Thoma IV in 1721 to Carolaus Schaaf, a Dutch Scholar from Leiden and it has enlisted Corignalore (Kodungallur), Parakar (North Paravur), Irapelli, Kokamaglam (Kokkamangalam), Niranam, Mailapore and Tirobancore (Thirivithancode) churches. An
English translation of this letter is given by Mingana (1926, p. 481). As you can see Palayur (Palur) is absent in the both the lists, which is quite surprising given the
abundance of St. Thomas legends surrounding the place. Also, if there was such an important tradition in Orthodox Arthat, why would the Malankara Metropolitan, Mar Thoma IV- the highest authority of Orthodox Syrian Christian community in Kerala, or the Jacobite Syrian Orthodox priest failed to include Arthat
(Chattukulangara) in their lists is equally surprising. Note that, Kollam and Chayal (Nilackal), among the traditional seven churches, are also not included in the lists. Dutch-born Jacobus Cantus Visscher (d. 1735), Chaplain in the St. Francis Church of Fort Kochi from 1717-1723 wrote a series of 37 'Letters from Malabar' (the last letter was written on 1723 and they were posthumously published in 1743); Letter 16 (Drury, 1862, p. 105) quotes a similar account by the Chaldean Metropolitan Mar Gabriel and the 7 churches are named Maliapore (Mylapore), Maliankarre (Maliankara), Cottacay (Kottakayal or N. Parur), Repolym (Edapally), Gokkomangalam (Kokkamangalam), Pernatta (Niranom?) and Tiroeusngotta (Thiruvithancode)-Palayur is absent again!
There is no denial that St. Thomas oral traditions of Syrian Christians in Kerala are pre-Portuguese (before 15th century) in origin. One
of the most striking features of these traditions is the consistency with which they have been
maintained and passed by word of mouth by the community from generation to generation. Moreover, there are no rival claims anywhere in the world to invalidate these tradition. For example, the martyrdom of St. Thomas has never been attested by any other Christian community outside India. A pre-Portuguese Christian presence in Palayur and Arthat is also attested by documentary evidences, and we know that both churches existed before the Synod of Diamper (1599). St. Thomas legends in the region are very strong, however, a documented Palayur- or Arthat- specific Apostolic tradition appears only after the 17th century or at least that is the case with the available written records.
For more about the St. Thomas Syrian Christian Heritage of Kerala visit my new blog HERE.
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Very informative post. Actually there were total Church or 7and half church St Mary's CHURCH Thiruvithamcode Arapally in the year 63 A.D .
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