Shravana is the fifth month of the Hindu calendar which has a special religious and cultural significance among the Hindu community in Goa. As it is also the second month of the Chaturmas season, it calls for fasting and the observation of additional vows. Just like the Lent is followed amongst the Catholics and Ramazan amongst the Muslims, the month of Shravan is a period of abstinence for the Hindus.
Chaturmas is a period consisting of four
Hindu months beginning from the fourth month (Aashaadh) to the seventh month
(Ashwin). It is deemed best for spiritual awakening, observing fast, performing
penance and connecting with the inner self. It is considered to be extremely
auspicious to visit various temples during this month.
In Goa, there are several rituals and
traditions followed during this period that culminates with Chavath (Ganesh
Chaturthi) festivities.
“During this time, non-vegetarians abstain
from fish and meat, while vegetarians avoid consuming onion and garlic. Some of
the Gaud Saraswat preparations I make are Khatkhate (Goan vegetable
stew), Mangane, Mooga Gathi (sprouted moong in coconut paste),” says
Rekha G Dhumatker.
During this month, the Hindu community celebrates festivals like
Nagpanchami, Gokulashtami, Narali Poornima, and Raksha Bandhan. Besides, each
day of the week, with the exception of Wednesdays, is dedicated to deities.
Most temples and shrines around the state, organise various fairs, bhajans and
kirtans that attract a large number of followers.
Shravan falls in the monsoon season, which brings with It
different variety of wild vegetables like almi (mushrooms), Taro (Colocasia),
Taikilo (Cassia tora), Lutchi bhaji (dragon stalk yam) along with
local okra, ghosali (ridged gourd) and cucumber to name a few. There and
many more variety of wild vegetables are abundantly available in Goa during
monsoon season which are full of health benefits and our ancestors made it a
point to eat every variety at least once during this season. All these
vegetables are cooked into patal bhajyo (curries), sukyo bhajyo (stirfries)
or roas (curries to serve with rice) with basic ingredients like
coconut, red chilies, tamarind, ambade (hog plums), bilimbi which
are abundantly available in Goa.
Sushmita Neurekar, author of ‘Goan Saraswat Traditional Home
Cooking’ says “Goa is known for two distinct cuisines one is Hindu cuisine also
known as Saraswat cuisine and the other is Catholic cuisine. My book has more
than 575 traditional Goan Saraswat vegetarian and non-vegetarian recipes from
our very own Goan homes. As we explore new cuisines and cultures, we are
somewhere letting go of the old, in this process many things get lost or
forgotten and my book is just a small attempt to keep our local traditional
foods and cultures depicted through them alive.”
While Mondays in Shravan are marked with a complete fast for
some, sticking only to certain foods, a sort of ‘partial fast’ is observed on
other days of Shravan.
President
of the Goan Culinary Club, Odette Mascarenhas says, “Goa is known for its
vegetarian food; the bountiful harvest that we get of unique vegetables such as
yam and cucumber”. She further adds, “Khatkhate is a Goan and Konkani dish, a
curry of exotic mixed vegetable stew. This dish is usually prepared for
weddings, pujas, and other occasions. It is prepared with at least five
vegetables and can go up to 21 different combinations of vegetables in its
preparation.”