Paradesi Synagogue: A Jewish heritage

 

The Paradesi synagogue as it is locally known is the oldest Synagogue in India & one that is still open for services of the Jews. The name Paradesi is given to the synagogue to highlight the importance of the foreigners in moulding the fabric of Kochi. Synagogues for Jews were not just places for liturgical service but also a place of study & assembly which the Paradesi Synagogue offered the Jews in the old Jew Town of Cochin. The synagogue was built in the year 1598 long after the Jews came to the shores of Kerala. The synagogue is said to have been built by Spanish & Dutch Sephardic Jews with architecture reflecting the tastes of different cultures present here during the times, European, Chinese, Indian, and Arabic. The Jews who built the church were also unique as they were referred to as White Jews.

The Synagogue is a white walled rectangular building with tiled roof & an iron gate at the front decorated with the Star of David. The central structure also houses the clock tower with clocks on all 4 sides with numeric characters from Hebrew, Roman, Malayalam & Arabic dialects. This clock tower was a later addition made by the Dutch East India Company when the reconstruction was done in the 18th century. The synagogue is also a place which houses antique treasures like the most important gold & silver decorated Torah scrolls, a rug that was gifted by the last Ethiopian emperor Selassie I, the interior of the synagogue are adorned with beautiful chandeliers & decorative lamps made in glass, silver & brass brought from Belgium. The most unique feature within the synagogue are the hand painted ceramic tiles one sees paved on the floor with each tile having a different design & said to have been brought from China. The 2000 years old copper plates inscribed in the Kannadiyezuthu script with the communities charter of Independence & privileges granted by the Cochin Raja is also available for all to see. The pulpit in the centre of the synagogue is a marvel built in brass & the well carved teak arc is for women with gilt columns are also one to praise. The Torah scrolls are kept in the Arc along with two cold crowns which were presented to the Synagogue by the Kings of Kochi & Travancore. The portraits inside the synagogue give visitors a timeline & important moments of arrival of Jews & how they prospered in the land.

The Jews came to the shores of Kerala in the 4th century & soon became prominent people who believed in doing business & were known for their integrity & humility. They set up their business & trade in Kodungallur. To assemble their people, a synagogue was built in Kodungallur & is considered to be the oldest. The Jews who came to Kodungallur were later joined by other Jews like the Black Jews who were from Malabar & the persecuted refugees who fled from Europe due to the atrocities of the Portuguese. The current synagogue was built when the Jews decided to give up their trade in Kodungallur & move south to escape the plunder of the Portuguese who had started affecting their trade in the 14th century. The Jews were taken in by the Kochi Raja & it was his kind heart which made him grant the Jews a small piece of land near the Mattancherry palace to build the Synagogue. The synagogue thus built was a simple structure unlike what one finds now. The Portuguese after the arrival of Vasco Da Gama became a powerful rule in the Malabar region as they started capturing more coasts along the sea. They finally arrived at Kochi & their enmity with the Jews led them to attack the synagogue & burnt it down in 1662. In the fire that ensued, most parts of the synagogue were destroyed & the Jews were left with no synagogue. It was only when the Dutch regained power from the Portuguese that the reconstruction of the synagogue started. The time of the Dutch is considered to be the golden era for the Jews in Kochi as they allowed more shops along the Mattancherry streets, houses were built & business flourished which was productive for all, the Jews, Dutch & the Kochi Raja. The reconstructed synagogue is what one sees today, it has undergone many repairs over the centuries.

Today the synagogue is open to all visitors & the services are conducted only when the minimum quorum of ten male members is met.  As the number of the Jews in Kerala dwindled due to many reasons, one was the formation of Israel as a country which made many Jews migrate back to their promised land leaving behind only a few families who still stay around the Jew Town & Mattancherry. The Paradesi Synagogue has been a place of solace for many over the centuries & is the place which makes one remember the contributions made by the Jews to Kerala & its way of life.