Goencho Sahib unites us all. We have many such unifying factors. Every generation of the people of Assolna, Velim and Cuncolim have grown up with the belief that the Goddess Shantadurga of Fatorpa is the sister of Saude Saibin of the Church of Our Lady of Health in Cuncolim. The festival of the Sontrios in Cuncolim and the devotional visits of the Catholics to this temple is a graphic representation of this undying belief. Tomorrow is both the feast of Milagres Saibin at Mapusa and the Shree Devi Lairai Zatra at Shirigao, both to be celebrated on the same day after thirteen years, on April 24 this year.
As per tradition the Milagris feast is celebrated on the third Monday following Easter while the temple festival of the Goddess Lairai falls on Vaishaka Shudd Panchami, which implies that both these occasions are celebrated only one or two days apart each year. It is quite rare that the Lairai zatra coincides with the same date, as it has happened only twice, in 1970 and in 2010.
Devotees are looking forward to the celebrations of the two sisters of two different faiths scheduled for the same day. There is a tradition to offer oil to the Milagris Saibin from the Shirigao Devasthan and mogra flowers are offered to Lairai Devi from the St Jerome Church in Mapusa. This is indeed a day when both Hindus and Catholics will worship the Goddess and the Saibin with equal zeal and fervour.
Dr Maria de Lourdes Bravo da Costa e Rodrigues writes in her book, ‘Feasts, Festivals and Observances of Goa’, that it is believed that the two sisters visited each other on the day of their respective festivals. Our Lady of Miracles or Milagris Saibin was originally known as Nossa Senhora de todos as Bens (Our lady of All Blessings) but as she performed many miracles for her devotees, it earned her the name,’Milagris’. Both Catholic and Hindu devotees offer, our Lady of Miracles candles, oil, money and miniature body parts made of wax, in exchange for favours granted, on the feast day. Our lady of Miracles is a sister of their Goddess Lairai of Shirigao –a temple located fifteen kilometres away. Folklore tells us that Milagris Saibin would send flowers as a gift to her sister, Goddess Lairai, during the zatra. Lairai would send in turn oil for her sister’s feast.
Milagris Saibin, is believed to be the deity Mirabai, a sister of Goddess Lairai. A temple dedicated to Mirabai was located at Mayem which no longer exists. Thereafter it is believed that Mirabai now took on the form of, ‘Our lady of Milagris’ for her devotees. Mirabai’s six sisters are still worshipped in the different temples of Goa like Lairai at Shirigao, Mahmai at Mayem, Kelbai at Mulgao and Morjai at Morjim. The Mahalasa at Mardol, retreated to Parye village in Sattari. Their only brother, Khetko is venerated at Chopdem. Legend has it that another sister, Ajadeepa it is believed went to an island called Anjadip.
These sisters are worshipped as gramdevatas or village deities by the gaonkars of Goa. As per Oral folklore, it was a fight between Lairai and her brother Khetko that is said to have separated the siblings. These sisters are also known as Maya which means ‘First Mothers’. Since all are still sisters, it is understood that people worship at either their temples or churches. It is an emotional explanation of how Goans are still one people with one culture even if, on the surface they are divided.
Lairai is worshipped in the anionic form of a Kalash. Each year a kalash filled with water and a few buds of jasmine flowers which are symbols of Goddess Lairai are carried in a ceremonial procession by a Dhond (priest). The ceremonies culminate when devotees walk through fire as acts of repentance by the two sisters who had mistreated their brother.
According to Robert S Newman in his book ‘Of Umbrellas, goddesses & dreams: Essays on Goan Culture and society’, he argues that Goa’s common culture is on a regional pattern that is found all over India, a pattern that always involves synthesis and co-existence of cultural elements of different origins. In Goa, there is a strong awareness of common ancestry or kinship even though a change of faith took place as early as the sixteenth century. Although the Goan churches and temples continue to provide traditionally distinct content to the people, however in form and style popular religious practice has ended to move closer together in the past few centuries.
Many people, irrespective of castes and religion, worship or honour the same deities at certain religious festivals. Thousands of Goans come together and through common rituals or participation, receive strong emotional lessons on the nature of power and divinity, the sources of power and relief, and proper methods of worshiping the Deities. Among such events are the zatras of Shantadurga Kunkallikarin, Shantadurga Verodikarin, Shri Damodar Zambaulim, the Zagor at Siolim, the fire walking ritual at Shirigao and the feast of Our Lady of Milagris at Mapusa. Goans in large numbers experience their shared kinship at such events celebrated in different parts of Goa. This sharing and bonding of communities have contributed greatly to the record of religious harmony in Goa. Although it is under political threat today, it is still better than other parts of India.
Goans worshipped the Mother Goddess in a number of forms even before the Portuguese arrived. As Santeri, Amba, Mahamaya, Navadurga, Shantadurga and so many more. With the coming of the Portuguese, the Virgin Mary was introduced in her various versions. Goans thus turned from one form of Mother Goddess to worship another. Many temples dedicated to the Mother Goddess were rebuilt as churches dedicated to Our Lady. Therefore there is a strong element of synthesis resulting in a syncretised Goan culture.
J Freeman in his monumental work, ‘Introduction: The cross-cultural study of the Mother Worship’, description of the Mother Goddess fits Goa perfectly. He describes her as “a central cultural symbol that contains multiple meanings in different contexts and serves as a unifying symbol for widely divergent elements of a culture”. One can therefore read Goan religious festivals as a text which expresses Goan culture to Goans themselves. The festival of Goddess Lairai and the feast of Milagris Saibin described here express the bonds of common origin and a sense of identity to the people of north Goa and in certain ways to all Goans–it is the faith that they are children of the deities that have long ruled their land and specifics of caste, class and religion are set aside before the Goddess and the Saibin.
Democracy has its own pitfalls. Elections and electoral politics many a times divide the people as vote-banks consolidate and help victories. We require other occasions to bind communities. What better occasion than feasts and zatras that forge a strong bond of unity and bring the people together. Such unity in diverse communities strengthens the societal ethos. We are fortunate to have the divine blessing of the Goddess Lairai and the Milagris Saibin, both mothers to their many common devotees.
(Prof (Dr) Sushila Sawant Mendes is an Author and
Professor in History, Govt College of Arts, Science & Commerce, Quepem)