"GROWING UP JEWISH IN INDIA" (2021) by Ori Z. Soltes (ed.)-a beautifully illustrated account of the three Jewish Communities of India (Baghdadi, Bene Israeli and Cochini)

Recently published [May, 2021 in India; forthcoming December, 2021 outside India] "Growing up Jewish in India: Synagogues, Customs, and Communities from the Bene Israel to the Art of Siona Benjamin"; Edited by Ori Z. Soltes [Published by Niyogi Books, New Delhi, 320 pp.] is not just another book on the Jewish communities of India. The six chapters contributed by experts in the area, enriched with over 150 fabulous illustrations are a delight to read through. To have a better picture, Majha House, an Amritsar based platform for art and culture has hosted the author Ori Z. Soltes to discuss about the book, and you can watch the full 45 minutes video here.

I am particularly interested in the chapter on Cochin Jews by Orna- Eliyahu Oron and Barbara Johnson which explores all the eight synagogues of Kerala with some interesting snippets, some of them could be entirely new to many. Excerpts from Orna's award winning Master's Thesis (2004) in Hebrew (unpublished) which is perhaps the most thorough study on the Torah Arks of Kerala Jews to date, appears for the first time to the English-speaking community. Prof. Barbara C. Johnson, who did both her Master's and Ph.D. Theses on Cochin Jews and published several articles on the Kerala Jewish communities of India and Israel does not need an introduction. The article is an up-to date resource for anyone interested to know the general history and current status of the synagogues of Kerala. This chapter (2) spread over about 90 pages with 48 images inserted between sections of variable text, occupies a rather major portion of the 320-page book. 

The oldest photographs in the article are from David G. Mandelbaum's 1937 collection of slides. There are three photographs showing the interior of Thekkumbhagom Synagogue of Mattancherry that has never been published before. This is huge, considering that even getting an image of the exterior of the synagogue is so hard (see here), the authors have done a great job and come across a rare gem. Another photograph from Mandelbaum is that of Thekkumbhagom Synagogue of Ernakulam, also from 1937. There are also images of Kerala synagogues taken between 1957 and 1981 and some of them I  believe especially the ones provided by Barbara have not been reproduced elsewhere.

On a personal level, I had the privilege to contribute 14 photographs (photos taken between 2011 and 2019) to this article representing the current state of the synagogues of Kerala. I am also happy to notice that three of these photographs appeared as double page spreads in the book. The number of photographs appeared synagogue wise are:

Kadavumbhagom-Mattancherry (2); 

Paradesi-Mattancherry (2); 

Kadavumbhagom-Ernakulam (2); 

Thekkumbhagom-Ernakulam (1); 

Chendamangalam (3); 

North-Paravur (2); 

Mala (2). 

FRONT & BACK COVER

TORAH ARKS OF THE JEWS OF KERALA

The Torah Ark, also known as Heichal or Aron ha'Kodesh is a chamber or cabinet that houses the sacred Torah Scrolls. In Kerala, the wooden Torah Arks are highly ornate, intricately carved and elegantly designed. All the Arks of Kerala are positioned on the wall facing Jerusalem, i.e. at the western end of the synagogue. Out of the 8 extant synagogues of Kerala, the arks of all except that of the Mala have survived. This is a remarkable achievement considering that except for the  Paradesi synagogue, the remaining 7 synagogues were abandoned or unattended for decades after the Jewish community emigrated to Israel from early 1950s onwards. The Thekkumbhagom synagogue in Mattancherry was completely demolished in 1960s; the nearby Kadavumbhagom sanctuary was turned into a godown and left to decay; and the Mala Synagogue was transformed into a local community hall and primary school. The situation was not different with other Malabari synagogues as well until the early decade of 21st century, when Government Organisations, Private Institutions and individual initiatives together played significant roles in changing the dismal conditions. Today, Parur and Chendamangalam synagogues are Jewish museums open to the public; Kadavumbhagom-Ernakulam is a fully functional beautiful synagogue; Mala synagogue is being renovated and beautified; heavily ruined Kadavumbhagom synagogue-Mattancherry is under early phases of restoration; and Thekkumbhagom synagogue-Ernakulam is already a protected monument waiting for its turn of restoration.

THE JEWISH CEMETERIES OF KERALA

Recently, I have been posting images from different Jewish cemeteries, and with Paravur cemetery, I have covered all the extant Jewish graveyards of Kerala. I tried my level best to include as much details of these cemeteries as possible. I am sure by now you might have noticed that most of these graveyards are overgrown, hard to navigate and the tombs are dilapidated and crumbling. The only exceptions are the Paradesi cemetery in Mattancherry and the new cemetery in Ernakulam, but then these sites are not open to the common public. To sum up, there are six surviving Jewish cemeteries in Kerala-one in Mattancherry, two in Ernakulam and one each in Mala, Chendamangalam and North Paravur. I also discussed about at least four extinct Jewish cemeteries-two in Mattancherry, one in Fort Kochi and a graveyard hypothesized at Kodungallur. We also saw tombstones in Paradesi synagogue courtyard which are supposedly from the extinct cemeteries of Mattancherry. Headstones are also exhibited in the courtyards of North Paravur and Chendamangalam synagogues.

THE NEW JEWISH CEMETERY OF ERNAKULAM REVISITED

My first visit to the cemetery was in January 2011 and since then I made two more trips to the site in November, 2016 and November, 2019. In 2011, I took photographs of the overgrown cemetery only from the south side, so the tombstones were not captured. Although, in none of the trips I could enter the locked cemetery, I managed to obtain more close-up photographs of the tombs and their headstones during my later visits. Today, it is the only functional Malabari Jewish Cemetery in Kerala. For more about the historical background of the cemetery see my earlier post here. The plaque installed at the main entrance will give you a brief introduction. The cemetery became functional only by mid 20th century. It is interesting to note that when the old cemetery of Ernakulam became defunct in 1945, the land for the new cemetery was allotted to Ernakulam's Jewish community (Thekkumbhagom and Kadavumbhagom) by the Municipal Council at a nominal price of Rs. 1! (Prem Doss Swami Doss Yehudi, 1989). As you can observe, most of the tombs have headstones facing west towards Jerusalem, but there a few of them installed in opposite direction. At the northern end of the cemetery are six poles with a concrete rectangular slab in the middle. This arrangement is to support a temporary canopy at the time of funeral services when the coffin is placed over the slab. In the Paradesi cemetery, there is a permanent open hall for this purpose. Jewish symbols of menorah and star of David are visible on the northern wall. The tombstones have both English and Hebrew texts unlike the older Jewish tombs of Kerala which have Hebrew inscriptions alone. The side path bordering the eastern boundary of the cemetery is called 'Chakkamadom Lane'. Interestingly, Chakkamadom is the area of former Malabari Jewish cemetery in Mattancherry and Chakkamparambu is a field in Kodungallur thought to be a Jewish graveyard by some.

THE JEWISH CEMETERY OF NORTH PARAVUR (PARUR) & TOMBSTONES IN THE SYNAGOGUE COURTYARD

 

North Paravur (Vadakkan Paravur) or Paravur/Paravoor (Parur) had once a flourishing Jewish community. Among the eight Jewish communities of Kerala that were active until mid-20th century, only Paravur was part of erstwhile Kingdom of Travancore and the remaining all [Cochin (3), Ernakulam (2), Chendamangalam (1) and Mala (1)] were under the Kingdom of Cochin. Paravur synagogue is the largest of Kerala's extant synagogues and architecturally the most complete. A Hebrew dedicatory inscription kept in the synagogue compound dates the structure to 1616 AD. Traditional accounts would assign an earlier date, according to which an older synagogue existed at Paravur in 1164 AD. Jewish historian Adv. Prem Doss Swami Doss Yehudi (1989) even asserts that the first Paravur synagogue may have been built in 750 AD! There was a time when the Jews of Paravur were the wealthiest and influential lot among the Malabari Jewish community. The prosperous community numbered 306 in 1948, and almost all of them lived near the synagogue. Naturally, one would expect to find a proportionally large Jewish cemetery used by the community over centuries. Ironically, Paravur cemetery is the smallest of the extant Jewish cemeteries in Kerala. Measuring a meagre 3 cents, this narrow piece of rectangular strip of land is obscurely positioned in an area where Paravur's many educational institutes  are  located. The densely overgrown cemetery is less than a kilometer east to the synagogue and situated adjacent to 'Excellent College' (see Map below). The graveyard is so overgrown with weeds and climbers that sometimes the entrance gate and the tombs would remain completely hidden and you would have no hint that a cemetery was anywhere in sight

TOMBSTONES DISPLAYED IN THE COURTYARD OF CHENDAMANGALAM SYNAGOGUE

There are a few tombstones displayed inside Chendamangalam synagogue's compound on the north-west corner of the boundary wall. It is not clear if they were brought from the Jewish cemetery or discovered from the synagogue premises while the restoration work was conducted. Seven tombstones with Hebrew inscriptions are exhibited along with a large granite slab which appears blank to me.

Photo: September, 2019

KOTTAYL KOVILAKOM, CHENDAMANGALAM JEWISH CEMETERY

In the following posts we will discuss about a Jewish graveyard located in a sleepy village of Kerala that has been rarely explored. The three-acre graveyard at Kottayil Kovilakom, Chendamangalam is the second largest Jewish cemetery in Kerala after Mala. Today, it lies in a dismal state located deep inside a remote corner of the village. Tourists who flock to the synagogue at Chendamangalam rarely visit the Jewish cemetery, partly because not many are aware about its existence and partly because it's accessibility is tricky. Other than a few Jewish tourists and a minuscule fraction of history enthusiasts, not many would put an effort visiting this important heritage site. 

LOCATION OF CHENDAMANGALAM JEWISH CEMETERY

The cemetery is accessed through a narrow dirt path running beside the Chendamangalam Juma Masjid (mosque ). At the end of the short path is a few flight of steps that will take you to the back side of the mosque and from there its only a 5 minutes walk to the unguarded cemetery entrance. During rainy season, it would not be wise to take this narrow footpath packed with thick vegetation.

THE TOMBSTONES OF CHENDAMANGALAM JEWISH CEMETERY

A few years ago when the cemetery was cleared, about 53 tombs (51 or 81 according to other estimates) were enumerated. I could manage to photograph around 25 tombs with headstones, but the Hebrew inscriptions were legible only in a few of them. This however does not include many tombs without grave markers, but they could be identified based on the laterite stone rubbles left out from the original structures. In certain cases, remains of two or three tombs were clubbed together as a pile and in other instances a few scattered stones partially buried beneath the ground were all that was left. There was one particular intact tombstone lying on the ground as if some one has intentionally removed it from the original monument. I believe some of these tombstones would be irrecoverably lost unless conservation measures are taken immediately. 

1-Abraham Nehemiah (d. 1964)-See more here

CRUMBLING & DILAPIDATED TOMBS OF CHENDAMANGALAM JEWISH CEMETERY-on the verge of extinction

WALKING THROUGH THE DIRT PATHS OF CHENDAMANGALAM JEWISH CEMETERY

CHENDAMANGALAM JEWISH CEMETERY-An overgrown graveyard

The eternal resting place of Chendamangalam Jews is located on the slope of a small hillside. The unprotected cemetery is uninviting due to the overgrown vegetation and lack of maintenance. A few tombs must be still visible, but you need to be a little adventurous to tackle the spiny bushes and heavily grown weeds. One should also be careful about snakes while walking over the leaf litter under trees. I managed to get a snap of one calmly crawling under the dried leaves. To be on a safer side, it is better to wait for the cemetery to get cleared up properly, but unfortunately this might not occur frequently. In a well maintained state, you can use narrow dirt paths across the cemetery to explore many hidden tombs which otherwise are hardly visible. The following photos will give you an idea how different the cemetery looks before and after cleaning.

A TOMB IN THE JEWISH CEMETERY OF KOTTAYIL KOVILAKOM, CHENDAMAMANGALAM

Photo: September, 2019

In the upcoming posts, I plan to upload photographs taken during my visits to the Jewish Cemetery at Chendamangalam. Like most other Jewish Cemeteries in Kerala, the Chendamangalam cemetery is also left unattended, concealed by thick vegetation and virtually inaccessible during most times of the year. However, if you are lucky to be on the spot at the correct time when the plot gets cleaned, and yes it does happen sometimes, that is the best opportunity to explore the tombs. The largest tomb in the cemetery and the only one usually traceable is that of 'Abraham Nehemiah' whose burial date is given as 1964 in Hebrew letters on a fine marble tombstone. The tomb is a large impressive funerary monument compared to the simple dome-shaped tombs of Malabari Jews which are usually devoid of any structural decorative elements other than a tombstone carved out of granite or sometimes marble slabs. There are a few exceptions though-the tombs of Kabbalist Nehemiah Motta (d. 1615) in Mattancherry and  Nehemiah Moshe (d. 1927) in Ernakulam old Jewish cemetery. As you can see from the 1995 photograph that the original structure had a pediment on the top  which is however lost now. It seems there was some sort of an engraving on the pediment as well. The marble headstone is flanked by triple engaged columns arranged in two tiers. The rear view of the tomb shows a small border on the top arranged in the form of small semicircular arches.The writings on the tombstone were quite legible earlier, but had faded significantly when I paid my first visit to the site on 2011. Currently, measures have taken to highlight specifically the name and the burial date of the deceased in black. I am sure descendants or relatives of Abraham Nehemiah in Israel can throw more light about him.

A RARE PHOTOGRAPH OF THE GATE HOUSE OF KADAVUMBHAGOM SYNAGOGUE, MATTANCHERRY BEFORE IT'S DESTRUCTION (PRE-1960S)

The synagogue's gate house is the building on the left side of this photograph. For more photographs of the intact synagogue before it was destroyed a few decades before, see my previous blog entry here.

STARTING A NEW BLOG ON ST. THOMAS SYRIAN CHRISTIAN MONUMENTS OF KERALA

https://syrianchristianmonumentskerala.blogspot.com/

CRANGANORE AND THE SILVER TRUMPETS OF JERUSALEM TEMPLE

'Notisias dos Judeos de Cochim'-Mosseh Pereira de Paiva's famous Portuguese report from 1687 (English translation by Monsignor F. Fegueiredo and published by S. S. Koder, 1968), attributes the legendary origin of the Jewish community of Kerala to two waves of migration. Thus, the first batch arrives from Mayorca/Majorca (Modern Mallorca is the largest island in the Balearic Islands of  Spain in the Mediterranean) to the coast of Malabar in the year 4130 (370 AD) amounting to '70 to 80,000 souls (Israelites)', 15,000 of them settles in Cranganore with their leader Joseph Rabban and the remaining 'famous Rabbis, men with means and others settles down in Maday, Peryapatnam and Cherigandaram'; and the second group comes in the year 4250 (499 AD) from an unknown land.

JEWISH & CHRISTIAN SETTLEMENTS OF THIRTUR OR THURUTHUR

Thirtur, an island village in the outskirts of Cranganore (Kodungallur) had a small Jewish settlement in 18th century. The earliest document that supports the existence of a Jewish colony at Thirtur is the Hebrew letter of Ezekiel Rahabi in 1768 (Koder, 1949). The letter identifies a Jewish community there with one synagogue and 40 Jewish families. In fact, it is said that the whole island belonged to the wealthy Jewish merchant, Ezekiel Rahabi (Moens, 1781) or he purchased large acres of fields on the island, and used it during summer months as a retreat. Not only that, at Thirtur he settled a few Malabari Jewish families, and built a synagogue in 1750 or 1756 (Fischel, 1962), but for reasons unknown, it became dysfunctional in 1761. There is another narrative that Tipu's invasion and the subsequent migration of Jews to Cochin and other Jewish settlements resulted in the decline of Thirtur. However, if Tipu had attacked Thirtur, the event would have happened three decades later in the late 1780s or early 1790s.

JEWISH & CHRISTIAN SETTLEMENTS OF PALUR (PALAYUR), CHATTUKULANGARE (ARTHAT) & KUNNAN(M)KULANGARE (KUNNAMKULAM)

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.

TOMBSTONES OF THE PARADESI SYNAGOGUE COURTYARD

Tombstones previously displayed at the courtyard of Paradesi Synagogue. Photos: March, 2017

TOMBSTONES FROM AN EXTINCT JEWISH CEMETERY IN MATTANCHERRY

In a previous post, I discussed about the remains of an old Jewish cemetery from Mattancherry. I promised to attach more photographs from the House IV (see the Map), so this is a continuation to the early upload. For reasons I am not aware of, tombstones from the old Jewish cemetery are preserved in the courtyard of this 3-storied private residence in Mattancherry. I could trace 11 tombstones inside the courtyard of the house. Nine of them are stacked in a slanting position and arranged in two rows of four and five each. The tombstones, except (2) and (7) have Hebrew inscriptions on them, and those without the inscriptions might be having the engravings on the opposite side. The remaining two tombstones (10 and 11) are stacked horizontally with concrete slabs inserted in between, to form a stone block for washing clothes. Tombstone-10 is large and thick, but I couldn't retrieve the inscriptions, as dismantling the heavy stack single-handedly inside a private property was not a pleasant task. Anyway, for photography purposes, I had to do do a bit of cleaning the mess and rubbing the inscriptions. It is not known how long the tombstones will remain in the site, so these photographs would be a backup for future references. The position of tombstones are labelled 1 to 11 (see photographs below).