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Religions | |
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Roman Catholicism | |
Languages | |
Kadodi, Samvedi Boli Bhasha, British English & Bombay Mahratti |
The Kupari (from Portuguese : compadre [1] [2] referring to the godfather of one's godchild; word derived from Kumpari and feminine being Kumari or Portuguese; comadre [3] ) consist of Kadodi Christians and Samvedi Christians, which are a Roman Catholic Brahmin sub-group in the Christian Bombay East Indian community, of the people of Konkan division. They are concentrated mostly in Bassein (Vasai) (Portuguese : Baçaim), [4] India, which is about 60 kilometres (37 mi) north of Mumbai (Bombay) city. Kadodi ancestors were a mixture of Samvedi Brahmins, Goan Konkani Brahmins& Portuguese New Christians; because of intermarriages between them.[ citation needed ] The population is about 40,000 to 45,000. The two Konkani dialects spoken by the Kuparis are Samvedi Boli Bhasha and Kadodi, which are mixture of Gujarati, Marathi & Indo-Portuguese. 97% of the population is Roman Catholic [5] [ original research? ] and the remaining minority is a mixed population of various Protestant Revolutionary denominations.[ dubious – discuss ]
The Samvedi Christian community came into existence during the Portuguese rule of Vasai in the 15th century, when most of the Samvedi Brahmans who converted to Christianity as their possessions were confiscated, and they were ostracised by ultra-conservative Brahmans. Their native speech is known as Kadodi which is a dialect of Marathi-Konkani languages. Till the late 1960s and early 1970s the population was highly dependent on farming.
On 23 December 1534, the Sultan of Guzerat, signed a treaty with the Portuguese and ceded Bassein (Vasai) with its dependencies of Salsette, Mombaim (Bombay), Parel, Vadala, Shiv (Sion), Vorli (Worli), Mazagao (Mazgao), Thana (Trombay), Bandra (Vandre), Mahim, Caranja etc. In 1548, Francis Xavier stopped in Bassein to preach. This marked the advent of Christianity into Bassein. Missionaries with motive of conversions came serve the poor people who were farmers, thus those who were touched by missionaries, were ostracised or expelled from the Maharashtri Brahmin caste and declared as untouchables. These outcasts then converted by Catholic Christian missionaries with promises of land, social status, other monetary benefits etc. The church distributed the seized land amongst East Indians. Along with new names and dress codes the new converts were also endowed with political upper hand during Portugal's rule. Today these missionaries also run schools, hospitals and other such places benefiting both Christians and non-Christians. Despite initial hostility the Christians and Hindus are happily sharing the same neighbourhood. During Portuguese rule, four churches were built in northern Bassein for these converts: The Manickpur "St Michael Church" (1530), one in Nirmal (1557), one in Agashi (1568) and one in Nandakhal (1573). All these churches are still used by the Christian community of Vasai (Bassein).
The Samvedi Christian community is mostly concentrated around these parishes in northern Vasai (Bassein): [6]
The first three in the list Agashi, Nirmal & Nandakhal were the only 3 churches built in north Vasai during the era of Portuguese Bombay and Bassein. Over 9 churches in total were built by the Portuguese in whole of Vasai of which these 3 churches in north Bassein. The parishes under these 3 churches were further bifurcated and brought closer to neighbourhoods, for the convenience the church attendance by parishioners.
The traditional costume of the Samvedi Christian community consists of a Dhoti also called "Ponya" in local language, white shirt, black sleeveless jacket kabja and a red cap with earring vali pierced in the left ear for men, and a red blouse soli with red checkered kashta also called "lugadaa"(a type of sari for women). [7]
Kuparis have been well educated for generations. They are hardworking, which aids their ventures in a variety of sectors. In recent years Kuparis have shown transition towards various sectors, including engineering, medicine, and corporate enterprises. A considerable amount of the Kupari population has relocated to the North America, Europe, Middle East and Australia.
This community is concentrated mostly in Vasai (Portuguese : Baçaim), [8] India, which is about 60 kilometres (37 mi) north of Mumbai. A rough estimate of the population is about 45000.
Most of the kuparis have their ancestry through Samvedi Brahmin community while some trace few relations in the neighbouring Vadval community as well as the Goan community due to inter communal marriages. Minor traces of Portuguese ancestry in this community cannot be denied due to Portuguese intercommunal marriages during Portuguese rule as in case of St. Gonsalo Garcia.
This is the ceremony that is conducted when the foundation stone for a house has been laid. Ceremony begins with the burial of some jewellery into the earth and breaking of a coconut the priest then makes some prayers and blesses its construction. This ceremony has its roots in the Hindu tradition of bhoomi pujan.
Bejimat is the ceremony conducted during the inauguration of a new home. During this ceremony a priest is invited to a home who then prays before the people sprinkles holy water throughout the home and blesses it.
This ceremony is conducted when final funeral rites are given to a person. This is conducted in a church followed by prayers and burial at a cemetery.
This ceremony is conducted on the seventh day of a funeral. During this the affected family dedicates a mass for the dead this is followed by a dining service at the family's place which usually includes meat and alcohol to mark the passing of sorrow.
This is the fast carried out during the lent season of 40 days.
As respect to their Hindu roots they abstain from beef consumption.
Its carried out in the month between March and April
The religious services of the Samvedi Christian community confirm with the seven sacraments of the Roman Catholic faith. Some of them can be seen below.
A new born infant is taken to the church and blessed by holy water and fire in presence of his/her parents, relatives, godmother and godfather .... hence he will be called by a name decide by his/her parents. its almost like a name ceremony.
Also called as the first holy communion because it is the first time when a child baptised as catholic receives the holy eucharist.
Varad i.e. wedding is a ritual where the bride and groom exchange vows in the catholic church. The bride wears a white gown and the groom wears black suit. The bridesmaid and bestman are the witnesses for the bride and groom respectively. The couple exchange wedding rings as a remembrance of their lifetime commitment. There after a reception is done to celebrate the occasion.
Kadodi
Ponya and Lugda are still worn, particularly by old people. With changing times, people have adopted western clothing and fewer people are seen with the traditional clothes. In order to keep the tradition alive, young people do wear the traditional Ponya and Lugda on special occasions such as weddings.
This word is derived from (Nahana in Hindi). This is a ceremony similar to Haldi in other cultures across India which consists of bathing the bride and the groom with haldi(turmeric) and coconut oil. This ceremony typically takes place on Saturday morning(a day prior to the wedding day) early in the morning. The water for bathing is brought from a nearby source of water (a well, borewell or a pond) in a procession with drums and singing traditional songs. This ceremony is followed by attending the morning Mass at the parish Church.
Ayaez means ornaments owned by a married woman given to her by in-laws on a day before the marriage ceremony; also the ornaments given by her parents on the wedding day.
Before the marriage the in-laws of the bride send garlands[aboli, gulshedi, shevanti, etc.]and sweets(laadoo, karji, mesoor, khaja, etc.)to the bride and she distributes it to her relatives and to her neighbors.
It's the day after the wedding day. On this day at the groom's house the relatives play pranks and take money from the newly married couple [also known as postao in Kadodi language]on this day mostly in the evening the bride's relatives dress in old traditional dresses and go to the groom's house singing and dancing with music played on musical instrument known as "GHUMAT"[a drum made from earthen pot which has openings on both the sides one opening is tied with leather] when the bride's relatives reach the groom's house, his relatives play pranks on them like putting spices in the drinks which is being served to them after all the fun the bride's relatives take newly married couple to the bride's place for a day.
With the fast growing urbanization in and aroud the Mumbai City, the Kupari community felt the need to unite & let the newer generations know about their traditions, & feel proud about the 400+ years of history how the community has evolved & come through various challenges over generations & developed its name as the one of the highly qualified & infuential communities in Vasai. The Kupari Sanskruti Mandal, formed the Samvedi Christi (Kupari) Trust, & have organized Kupari Mohotsav since 2012.
A wedding is a ceremony in which two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnicities, races, religions, denominations, countries, social classes, and sexual orientations. Most wedding ceremonies involve an exchange of marriage vows by a couple; a presentation of a gift ; and a public proclamation of marriage by an authority figure or celebrant. Special wedding garments are often worn, and the ceremony is sometimes followed by a wedding reception. Music, poetry, prayers, or readings from religious texts or literature are also commonly incorporated into the ceremony, as well as superstitious customs.
Vasai is a historical place and city located in Palghar district; which was partitioned out of the Thane district in 2014. It also forms a part of Vasai-Virar twin cities in the Konkan division, Maharashtra, India, and comes under the Police Jurisdiction of Mira-Bhayander, Vasai-Virar Police Commissionerate.
Gonsalo Garcia, O.F.M., was a lay brother of the Franciscans from Portuguese Bombay and Bassein in early modern India. He died a Christian martyr in the 16th-century Shogunate of Japan, and was canonised a saint along with his companions, the Twenty-six Martyrs of Japan. He was born at Bassein (Vasai), Baçaim in the Indo-Portuguese era, an exurban town of the present-day Greater Bombay metropolis.
The Bombay East Indians, also called East Indian Catholics or simply East Indians, are an ethno-religious Indian Christian community native to the Seven Islands of Bombay and the neighbouring Mumbai Metropolitan Area of the Konkan division, along the western coast of India.
Fort Vasai is a ruined fort of the town of Vasai (Bassein), Konkan Division, Maharashtra, India. The structure was formally christened as the Fort of St Sebastian in the Indo-Portuguese era. The fort is a monument of national importance and is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India.
Norteiros were a historical people who lived in the former Portuguese exclaves of the western littoral parts of the northern Konkan region, in the present-day Greater Bombay Metropolitan Area and the Damaon territory.
Sandor is a census town falling within the Vasai (Bassein) municipality of the Palghar district, in the Konkan division of Maharashtra, India. Sandoris, the natives of Sandor, are predominantly Roman Catholic Kshatriyas of the Christian Bombay East Indian community, they converted in the colony centred around Bassein, the richest possession of the former Portuguese East Indies with the capital at Velha Goa, in the southern edge of the Konkan region. Prior to the arrival of Portuguese Armadas, there had also been some Nestorians descended from Jewish converts, by the efforts of the apostles Thomas or Bartholomew.
Mangalorean Catholics are an ethno-religious community of Latin Christians from the Diocese of Mangalore and the erstwhile South Canara area, by the southwestern coast of present-day Karnataka, India.
Manickpur is a small village in the Vasai (Bassein) township of the Palghar district in the Maharashtra, India.
Samvedis or Samvedi Brahmins are an Indian Hindu Brahmin community, originating from a group of classical musicians and classical dancers. They follow Sama Veda and believed to have been originated from Odisha, India.
The Marathi—Konkani languages are the mainland Southern Indo-Aryan languages, spoken in Maharashtra and the Konkan region of India. The other branch of Southern Indo-Aryan languages is called Insular Indic languages, which are spoken in Insular South Asia.
The culture of Mangalorean Catholics has been shaped by their Christianisation in Goa, their migrations& their captivity. They adopted elements of the local Mangalorean culture, but retained many of their Konkani customs and values. The ethnic Mangalorean houses of the older generation have spacious porticos, red oxide cemented floors, terra cotta roofs layered with the once famous Mangalore tiles. The houses are usually accompanied by their own private wells or ponds, and are normally attached to orchards of coconut trees, jackfruit trees, ice apple trees, Alphonso mango trees, areca nut trees etc.
The Mangalorean Catholic Cuisine is the cuisine of the Mangalorean Catholic community.
A sanna is a spongy, steamed, and savoury unfilled dumpling originally made of red rice, black lentil and coconut in the Konkan region, by the western coast of the Indian subcontinent. They originated in Goa and Damaon, Mangalore, Bombay and Bassein (Vasai), and are especially popular among Goans, both the Goan Hindus and Goan Christians, and also among the Konkani migrants outside Konkan in Karachi, Sindh, Gujarat, Karnataka and Kerala. They are also loved by the people of the Konkan division, such as the Kupari of the Bombay East Indian community.
Bombay, also called Bom Bahia or Bom Baim in Indo-Portuguese creole, Mumbai in the local language; is the financial and commercial capital of India and one of the most populous cities in the world. It's also the cosmopolitan city centre of the Greater Bombay Metropolitan Area, and the cultural base of the Bollywood film industry. At the time of arrival of the Portuguese Armadas, Bombay was an archipelago of seven islands. Between the third century BCE and 1348, the islands came under the control of successive Hindu dynasties. The Delhi Sultanate had been ruling the area along with Chaul, New Bombay (Thana) & Damaon; with the local administration at Bassein (Vasai) since the raids of Malik Kafur in the Konkan region and across the Indian subcontinent. This territory in North Konkan along with the Bombay islands were later taken over by the Sultan of Guzerat from 1391 to 1534, when he had declared the end of the suzerainty to Delhi, after the Timurid invasion of it. Growing apprehensive of the power of the Moghal emperor Humayun, Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat was obliged to sign the Treaty of Bassein on 23 December 1534; according to which, the Seven Islands of Bombay, Fort San Sebastian of Bassein in strategic town of Bassein (Vasai), and its dependencies were offered to the Portuguese East Indies. The places were only later officially surrendered on 25 October 1535, by the Sultan of Guzerat.
Christianity is a minority religion in Maharashtra, a state of India. Approximately 79.8% of the population of Maharashtra are Hindus, with Christian adherents being 1.0% of the population. The Roman Catholic archdiocese whose seat is in Maharashtra is the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bombay. There are two different Christian ethnic communities in Maharashtra: the Bombay East Indians, who are predominantly Roman Catholic, and the Marathi Christians, who are predominantly Protestant with a small Roman Catholic population.
Bahaghara is the Hindu wedding ceremony performed by Odia people in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the main ritual of an Odia Hindu wedding.
Traditional Hajong marriage is a ceremonial ritual that involves a marriage established by pre-arrangement between families. Within Hajong culture, romantic love and widow re-marriage were allowed, and monogamy was the norm for the Hajong people.
Holy Spirit Church, Nandakhal is a historic Roman Catholic Church in Vasai (Bassein), Maharashtra, India. This church was built in 1573 by Portuguese Missionaries.
Weddings in Myanmar, considered auspicious occasions in Burmese culture, reflect various ethnic, religious, and regional traditions. Depending on an individual's family social economic status, personal preferences and titles held, Burmese weddings can be religious or secular, and extravagant or simple. Wedding expenses are covered by the groom's family. Myanmar is a predominantly Buddhist country, and many wedding customs and traditions are influenced by Buddhism.