Hey everyone,
I was passing by the coastal Indian city of North Paravur road,
and I saw several big blue signs written ‘Synagogue’.
Then I was curious to check it out,
and here I'm!
This lush green nature passage is access to the synagogue.
It's so peaceful and serene here
with the sounds of nature.
Yeah so this is the one we've been looking for..
Now we are right in front of the
Chendamangalam Jewish Synagogue at Kottayil Kovilakom,
which is one of the eight Jewish synagogues built in Kerala,
and this one is believed
to date back to 1614.
This padippura is the main entrance
to the synagogue.
Unfortunately,
we can't get in today..
I think it's closed due to the pandemic.
We'll come back for an inside tour later.
I think the museum has displays
that talk about Jewish culture and beliefs.
Here's a tombstone with Hebrew inscriptions on it.
The Cochin Synagogue was
for the white or Paradesi Jews
and all other 7 for the black or brown
or Malabari Jews.
That says this one was for blacks.
Hmm
I can see how life was once here
for the Jewish community here
before they immigrated to their homeland
since 1948.
That was shortly after Israel became a nation in 1948.
Look at these arched windows and the high roof..
I see a mix of Kerala and western architecture.
Nearby this synagogue,
there's a church, a mosque, and a temple
that talks about the religious harmony that exists in this place.
The jews migrated,
even though they had not experienced
any antisemitism in their communities.
They turned the synagogue to municipal authorities,
and they left.
Most of these fell into neglect as
India's Jewish population has shrunk.
But it's a happiness
to see the Kerala Govt preserved it as a Jewish history museum,
and It's a monument for the Jewish in Kerala.
I think the only one functioning synagogue is the one in Kochi.
It would be fascinating to see the infrastructure,
exhibitions, and art inside.
And the secluded cemetery here is also going
to the bucket list for the next visit.
I'm not sure if there are Jewish residences around.
One on the left side of the synagogue looks like that.
We'll explore that too later.
I wanna mention that
the first synagogue in India was built in Kodungallur;
I'm so proud to say that because
that's the city I grew up in.
And I'm collecting the folktale I heard about it.
Jewish people consider Kodungallur as their Jerusalem,
and they believe the Kodungallur land sand is holy,
and they make sure to have a handful of it in their homes.
Anothing thing,
reaching the destination was a bit confusing
even with the GPS and the blue sign on the roads,
but the locals here were..
they were really helpful.
Otherwise, we might have lost direction.
Right in front of us is the other attraction I mentioned before
—the ancient Holy Cross church.
Again this one goes to the bucket list for the next time.
Traveling through the Jewish ruins
reminded me of the folk stories I heard about them.
I'm so pleased that
I got to visit the center of Jewish culture in Southern India
and to see the remains of some Jewish heritage on my unexpected trip.
Too much Jewish history lay silently in this air.