The Gated Communities of the 21st
Century are ‘gated’ in order to intimidate and prevent people from entering.
These gates carry a hostile look whereas gates of the past were happy and friendly
and meant for the purpose of welcoming people. Look at the gates of our
beautiful temples such as Shantadurga temple at Kavlem, Mhalsa temple of
Mardol/Mhaddoll, Mangeshi temple, Bhagwati at Pednem, Bhagwati at Parshe,
Ramnath at Ramnathi-Bandoda etc, they welcome you with warmth and fill you with
their serene and soothing look.
I am truly fascinated by the gates of
the Bhagwati temples of Pedne town and Parshe village of ‘Pedne’ taluka. The
Bhagwati Pedne temple’s ‘Mahadwar’ (big main gate) is flanked by two huge stone
elephants and looks very charming. Similarly, I find the ‘Deepmall mahadwar’ of
Bhagwati temple of Parshe’ flanked by two ‘deepstambas’ or lamp towers’ the
most beautiful in the whole of India. The heritage houses of Goa during the Portuguese
rule had gates with two ‘soldados’ (soldiers) saluting you. Many houses had
gates showing two lions greeting you. Heritage houses built during Portuguese
rule also have beautiful gateposts with beautiful finials for ornamentation. In
Caranzalem, I found a beautifully carved shipwreck memorial adorning a gate of
a heritage house now completely in ruins.
At Old Goa near the St Cajetan Church,
there is a beautiful temple doorway or gate dating to the Kadamb era showing a
perforated screen with Kadamb motifs such as the lion emblem, gods and
goddesses, and floral and faunal motifs. The ASI has mistakenly identified it
as the Adilshah’s gate which is incorrect. The plaque there needs to be
corrected and should state that it is the Kadamb temple gate or doorway of the
vestibule standing at the 16th Century Adilshahi palace site.
Two heritage-historic gates that
distinctly stand out at Old Goa, the erstwhile Capital of the Portuguese, is
the famous Viceroy’s arch and the gate of the college of St Paul. The origin of
the Viceroy’s arch is dated to 1597-1600 when it was built by Dom Francisco da
Gama, and the gate of St Paul dates to 1542. The Viceroy’s arch is a welcome
gate to ceremoniously herald in the Portuguese governors and Viceroys who took
charge of their office in the Capital. The Viceroy’s arch was restored in 1954.
The Gate of the Collegio de Sao Paulo (College of St Paul) is a landmark gate
and is the only relic of this grand Goa University of the 16th Century which
educated young men in Christian theology and trained them for priesthood.
On the Kadamba plateau at Old Goa
stands the gate of the fort on the Rajbid, the ancient Royal highway of the
Kadamb Kings. The Cabo Raj Niwas at Dona Paula has a beautiful gate. The palace
of the Deshprabhus at Pednem too has a beautiful gate.
In some cases, the gates stand as
entrances to the city. For example, at Ancient Goa’s first capital, Chandrapur
or Chandor, there is an area known as Kouddi (Cavorim) which is a gate of the
fort now called Chandor Kott. The forts had special people appointed to keep a
close watch at the gates. The gatekeeper of the Halarn fort built by the
Bhonsles of Sawantwadi was Killedar Gomaji Sawant who fought the Portuguese by
refusing to let the Portuguese enter the gate of the Halarn fort on the banks
of the Chapora river and died fighting the Portuguese in circa 1746 AD.
Facing the St Catherine’s Chapel at Old
Goa towards the river is a gate of the fortification wall of the city of Ela
(Old Goa), existing since the Adilshahi times 1498 and rebuilt by the
Portuguese. It is this gate through which Afonso de Albuquerque entered the
island of Goa (Tiswadi) in 1510 and conquered Goa from the Adilshah of Bijapur.
It is a laterite stone gate.
The need of the hour is for home owners
and concerned people to preserve these intricate gates and gateways for
posterity.
