MAGNNEM (Prayers) - By Domnic Fernandes (Anjuna, Goa)

Dear Gulf-Goans,

The following Konkani article was written for Anjuna Church 3rd quarterly magazine ‘San Miguelicho Avaz,’ 

which was released this week; I thought I would share it with you all. English translation follows after Konkani 

version.

Thank you.

Moi-mogan,

Domnic Fernandes

Anjuna, Goa

Mob: 9420979201

MAGNNEM

Dhorm’ ek xist asa. Amkam xist aslear sogllem sarkem zata ani tharear poddtta; xist naslear jivitachi duspott

zata.

Jivitan magnnem gorjechem asa. Magnnem korop mhonnchem Deva ani amchea modekat gonnovp

(communication.) Dhor disa magnnem korun ami Deva sovem amchi soirigot vaddoitanv.

Adli pillga nhoich fokot Comunhanv ani Krism ghevpache toiearen Devak magnnem kortalint punn hi sonvoim tim apunn morosor chalu dovortalint.

Hemch asa veglleponn atanche ani adle pillge modem. Adli pillga Dev Rochnnar mhonn sot mandtali dekun

Dev tanchem magnnem tabortob aikotalo ani tancher aplo axirvad ghaltalo. Aiz ami Deva vorte mhonn

somzotanv ani dekunuch amchim magnnim aikonk Dev uxir korta ani Devachem besanvui amcher asonam.

Jezun kaiborem amkam orthaborit “Amchea Bapa” magnnem dilam. Punn kitlim zannam hem magnnem

zotnaien mhonnttat ani tacho orth aplea jivitak lagu kortat kai? Eka kira porim ami magnnem dekor kortanv ani tacho orth monan golloinastannam tem mhunnot ravtanv. “Amchea Bapa” hachea dusrea bhagachim utram ami bore baxen niall’lear tinch utram amkam sasnnanchem jivit favo korunk xeoktat.

Choddxe zannank magnnem mhonnchem ek visex suddsuddai (an extra activity) – fursodichem kam’ (a part-

time exercise.) Ami magnnem korunk zai mhonn kortanv. Jednam TV-cher tore-torechim cholchitram ani

khellache kariokram ami polletanv tednam amkam puro zainam ani jem’ einam, punn jea vellar magnnem suru

kortanv teach vellar amchea bhejean devchar ghusta; panch minut zanvchea adinch jemencheo ghantto marunk ami suru kortanv ani hea porim magnnem sogllea vostum poros olkem mhonn dakoll kortanv.

Sod’deak, ami magnnem korun Devak ulo martanv fokot amkam goroz poddtta tednam nam zalear Devacho

ugddas korunk amkam bilkul vell mellonam. Avgoddaiank sampoddttanv vo duent poddttanv tednam ami

igorjen dhanv martanv ani Devak ani sogllea santank toxench Saibinn Maink ulo martanv. Titlench nhoi, ami

angovnneo pasun kortanv ki zori amchem maglelem kam’ zait zalear ami om’kea santak vo khursak ladain

korteleanv mhonn vo Tamil Nadu vochon Vailankani Saibinnink bhett’teleanv mhonn.

Punn amchem kam’ zatanch ami Devak visortanv ani portun ‘Devak divnk mhaka vell nam’ oslo akar ami

dakoll kortanv – “kam’ zalo voiz melo” mhuttlelea porim.

Amchea bhurgeaponnar ami xist xikleanv tea pormonnem disak panch pavtti magnnem korunk zai:

(1) Sokallchea panch horar igorjechi poili ghantt vazta. Hi ghantt amkam zagoita ani sokallchem dhormik

vachop korunk ugddas korta. Amchea bhurgeaponnar ami he ghanttichea avazar utt’ttaleanv, Devak

dhinvastaleanv ani sokallchim prathonnam kortaleanv. Atanchi sonsot oxem korta kai?

(2) Sokallchea sov horar igorjechi dusri ghantt vazta. Hi ghantt amkam sokallchem magnnem korun amcho dis suru korunk ani dispott’ttea povitr misak vochonk ugddas korta. Adlea kallar choddso lok sov horanchea misak igorje vetalint. Amchea modlim kitlim zannam oxem kortat kai?

(3) Donparchea bara horar igorjechi tisri ghantt vazta. Hi ghantt amkam donparchem rozar korunk ugddas korta.

Adim, choddso lok hi ghantt vazlea uprant donparchem jevonn jevtalint. Aiz-kal donparchea jevnnank amkam vogotuch nam. Donparche ghanntichea avazar ami rozar kortanv kai?

(4) Sanjechea sat horar igorjechi chovti ghantt vazta. Hi ghantt amkam tinsanchem vo Aimorechem rozar

korunk ugddas korta. Adlea kallar hi ghantt vazlea uprant konnuch ghora bhair panvoll ghalinaslint. Hi ghanntt

vazchea adim bhurgeamnim ghorant bhitor soronk zai aslem nam zalear Aimori mhunnon kabar zatanch amkam khast melltali. Amchea modlim kitlim zannam Aimorechi ghanntt vaztam ghoran bhitor sortat kai, ani ami Aimori mhunnttanv kai?

(5) Ratchea att horar igorjechi panchvi ghanntt vazta. Hi ghanntt amkam ratchem magnnem korunk ugddas

korta. He ghanntticho avaz aikotanch lok meleleanchea othmeank rozar kortalint. Hi ghantt vaztam ami

meleleanchea othmeank rozar kortanv kai?

Hea voir boroileli xist ami pallttanv kai? Nam. Portun zalear ami amcho vell dhondeak, fungsanv-ank ani TV-

veleo kariavolli pollovn sartanv.

Jednam avoi-bapui chukta tanchim bhurgim apunnuch vatt visortat. Avoi-bapuicho kaido dhor rati bhurgeank

ekttavn Saibinnicho ters rozar korunk punn oxem korche bodlek tim tankam viret (excuse) kortat mhunnon:

“To/tem xikpan revoddlolo/revoddlelem asa.”

Tech baptin, jednam nimanneo porikxeo lagim pavtat, toch avoi-bapui Deva lagim magtat tankam porikxeo

bore baxen borovnk adar divnk. Titlench nhoi, uprant dhondo kelelea porim avoi-bapui Deva ani santam lagim koblat kortat ki zorui tancho put/dhuv nimanni porikxea pas zait zalear apunn Igorjechea/kopelachea adharak umke ozar poixe ditelint oxem mhunnon. Zorui bhurgeam sovem Devak divnk pondra minut nam, Dev aplo vell amkam kiteak ditolo ani amchim magnnim kiteak aikotolo? Avoi-bapain aplea bhurgeank bore dhormik riti-rovixen voir kaddunk zai. Konknnint ek mhunn’ni asa: “Fuddlem zot cholta toxem fattlem cholta.”

Ghov-bailam eka ghorant jietat punn tim borobor rozar/magnnem korinant. Tor tanchean khuxeal jivit koxem

jieonk zata? Tanchea modem koslem-nam-koslem goir somzut utpon zatoch asta ani oxem ghoddonk karann

tim Deva sorxilim koddsorleant. Zaite pavtt ghov ani bail kuxin magnnem kortat ani somzotat ki tanchim

bhurgiim kuxin magnnem kortat astelim mhunnon – hacho porinam? Ek futt poddlolo ghorabo! Kednaim

okosmat konnanchoi okasianv aslear ani bhurgeank rozar korunk maglear tankam “Amchea Bapa” pasun sarki mhunnonk einam! 

Avoi-bapain magnneank oromb divn bhurgeank fuddem cholonk xikovnk zai. Oxi ek mhunn’nni asa: “Zo

kuttumb sangata rozar korta to sodanch sangata jieta.” Hem amchea monan dovrum-iea ani zorui ami amcho

kaido pallunk visorleanv zalear amchea jivitachi novsorni korun Dev-bhirantichem suki jivit jieonk tozvit

korunv-iea.

Aiz-kalchea kallar magnnem ekdom gorjechem kiteak magnnem amkam sondi dita Devak fuddo korunk ani 

tannem dilelelea sorvoi denneank dhinvasunk ani toxench peleacchea gorzank ani koxtt-dogd bhogteleam pasot 

magonk. Jezun mhullam: “Darar mar ani dar ugoddttelem; mag ani tuka melltelem.” Tor ami sodankal 

magnnem korunk sonvoim korum-iea nhoi fokot amkam goroz tednam bogor dispott’ttem. 

Moi-mogan,

Domnic Fernandes

Gaumvaddi, Anjuna, Goa
--------------------------

ENGLISH TRANSLATION

MAGNNEM (PRAYER)

Religion is a discipline. If we have discipline, everything falls in place and turns out to be right; if not, life gets

messed up.

Prayer is necessary in life. It is a communication between us and God. By praying to God every day, we

increase our relationship with God.

Past generations did not just pray to God when they attended the Catechism classes in preparation of their first Holy Communion and Chrism but they continued the praying until they died.

This is the difference between today’s generation and past generations. In the past, they believed in God the

Creator; hence, their prayers were almost immediately answered and they were blessed. Today, we think we are greater than God; hence, our prayers are rarely answered.

Jesus gave us a meaningful prayer - ‘Our Father.’ But how many say it carefully and apply its meaning to our

lives? We memorize our prayers like a parrot and keep on repeating them without even realizing what they

mean. If we reflect on each word of the second part of the ‘Our Father,’ those words can help us attain eternal life.

For most of us, praying has become an extra activity - a part-time exercise. We just say it because we are

required to say it, without meaning it. We don’t feel tired or fall asleep when we watch a long movie or a TV

serial or cricket match but when it comes to prayers, more specifically the daily Rosary, we begin to toll the

bells within less than five minutes thus making our prayer look less important than all other activities.

Presently, we pray to God only when we need favors otherwise we don’t have any time for God. Whenever we are in difficulty or fall sick we rush to the Church, pray to all the saints and to Our Lady and even make a vow to celebrate a litany in thanksgiving to a cross or a particular saint or to pay a visit to the shrine of Our Lady of Vailankani in Tamil Nadu.

Once we get our favor(s), we are back to our ‘no time for God’ attitude – Kam’ zalem, voiz melo (Once you are cured, the doctor is forgotten) - ungrateful patient.

According to the discipline that we learned in our childhood, we are supposed to pray five times a day as

follows:

(1) At the ring of the first Church bell at 5:00am - MATINS: wake-up reading. It is a wake-up call to

parishioners. As children, we woke up at the sound of the Church bell, thanked God for helping us to wake up, said our morning prayers and began our morning studies. How many children do this today?

(2) At the ring of the second Church bell at 6:00am - LAUDS: morning prayers. It is a reminder to parishioners to begin their day with prayers and to attend daily holy mass. In the olden days, most people went to Church for 6:00 o’clock mass. How many of us do this today?

(3) At the ring of the third Church bell at 12:00pm - SELT: mid-day prayers.

It reminds parishioners to say mid-day prayers followed by lunch. Most people in the past ate their lunch soon after the mid-day Church bell rang. Today, we have no timing for lunch. Do we pray at the sound of the noon Church bell?

(4) At the ring of the fourth Church bell at 7:00pm - VESPERS: evening prayers. It reminds parishioners to say their evening prayers, which is usually followed by the Angelus. In the olden days, nobody stepped out of the house after the Angelus bell rang. Children were required to report back home before the Angelus bell rang or else they were punished as soon as the Angelus was over. How many of us return home by 7:00 pm? And, do we say the Angelus?

(5) At the ring of the fifth Church bell at 8:00pm - COMPLINE:  night prayers. It is a reminder to parishioners to say their night prayers. People prayed for the departed souls at the stroke of this bell. How many of us do this today?

Do we follow the above-mentioned discipline/principle? No. On the contrary, we devote our time to business, attend countless parties, watch TV programs, etc.

When parents falter, children automatically go astray. It is parents’ duty to gather their children and say rosary every night but instead of doing that they excuse them by saying: “S/he is busy studying.”

By the same token, when final exams approach, those very parents pray to God to help their children pass in

their exams. That’s not all, as if dealing in business, they then make a deal with God and saints that if their

son/daughter passes, they would donate certain amount of money to the Church/Chapel.

If children do not have fifteen minutes to spare to say a rosary, how can we expect God to give us His time and grant us what we ask for? Parents must bring up their children with good religious ethics. There is an interesting Konkani adage: “Fuddlem zot cholta toxem fattlem cholta” meaning people always follow the leader.

Although husband and wife live together, they don’t pray together. So, how can we expect them to live a happy life? There is always some kind of misunderstanding between them; that’s because they have drifted away from God. Many a times each partner prays separately and they assume that their children, too, must be praying separately - the result? A split family! Whenever there is an occasion and if these children are asked to say a prayer, they can’t even complete the “Our Father” prayer!

Parents must take the initiative of saying prayers at home and give a good lead to their children. It is said: “A

family that prays together stays together.” Let us keep this in mind and if we have forgotten our duties let us

rectify ourselves and try to live a God-fearing, happy life.

Prayer is the need and necessity of the hour because it gives us the opportunity to really turn to God & thank 

Him for all the blessings we enjoy and to pray for the needs of those that are suffering. Jesus said: “Knock on 

the door and the door shall open; ask and thou shall receive.” So, let us make it a habit to pray not only when we 

are in need but always.

Moi-mogan,

Domnic Fernandes

Gaumvaddi, Anjuna, Goa 

[As forwarded to gaspar almeida, http://www.goa-world.com/

on June 21, 2011 via email]

MY FIRST SCHOOL AND TEACHER - Part 1

MY FIRST SCHOOL AND TEACHER – PART 1

MY FIRST SCHOOL

The Portuguese never made a concerted effort to promote education in Goa. As a result, even by the beginning of the 20th century very few Goans were educated. Job opportunities were few. Therefore, some opted for English Primary Schools so they could at least migrate to the neighboring Union of India or proceed to Africa and/or the Middle East in search of a job.

Initially, educational institutions in Goa were controlled by the Church through different religious orders. Thus, in the beginning of the 19th century, the primary education was limited to Parish Schools. As Governor Generals changed, so did the educational system in Goa.

By the beginning of the 1950s, the Goa Freedom Movement had gained momentum. The Portuguese were worried. All of a sudden they realized that they had failed in their duty to provide basic education to Goans. Therefore, they hurriedly introduced as many Primary Schools in villages as possible.

A student, who wished to study through a medium other than Portuguese, had to necessarily pass his Primeiro Grau exam and only then he could continue his studies in that medium, which was mostly English.

Since the prerequisite to join English medium was Primeiro Grau, many joined Portuguese Primary Schools, thus increasing enrollment figures substantially. This was the reason why suddenly Portuguese Primary Schools sprung up in villages from the third decade of the last century.

Primary Schools were promoted by Pedro Francisco Massano De Amorim (1862-1929) during his tenure as one of the Portuguese Governor Generals to Goa from 1926 to 1929. Although Anjuna was one of the most backward villages in Goa, it was one of the first villages to have a Portuguese Primary School.

Around 1890 a move was initiated to establish an Escola Primária at Anjuna. The construction of a building for the purpose was begun at Tembi at an elevated ground at the center of the village, but, as usual, after the structure reached the plinth level, it had to be abandoned because of internal bickering among various cliques in the village.

The building was finally erected by the main road, about two hundred meters away from the original site - it still exists and functions as a Marathi Xalla (school.)

Portuguese Primary Schoolm, Anjuna, Goa.

http://bit.ly/PortuguesePrimarySchoolAnjuna (Photo by Joel D’Souza)


For those days, it was a big building with the following dimensions:

Length – 35 meters

Width – 11 meters

Height of main walls - 4.50 meters

Inner width of L-shaped corridor – 3.10 meters

The wooden roof on the right side rests on 15 huge pillars, as can be seen on the photo, each measuring 2.50 meters high by 0.50 meters wide, built at an equal distance from each other.


A parapet all around the corridor closed the gaps between pillars. Whenever we wanted to exit sideways, we had to jump from the parapet. Now, they have opened up a portion of the parapet and installed a steel gate.


A concrete footpath has now been built on the outside of the parapet with a metal pipe railing to hold and climb the slanting path, as can be seen on the photo. The open gaps between pillars of the whole corridor are now closed with steel grills.


The school is well-ventilated. The hall had two main entrance doors - it now has four doors.


Initially, there were 18 windows – 9 facing the road, 7 on the inside of the corridor, and 2 by the main entrance. Now, two more windows have been added at the west end of the hall – a total of 20 windows.


During our time at the school, a solid wooden partition divided the vast hall into two sections. These sections were meant for morning and afternoon sessions but only a morning session was held.


Presently, two laterite stone walls divide the hall into three sections and Marathi classes are held in all the three sections.


The original wooden partition was used to create a small office at the west end of the hall, which now has been converted into a washroom.


Since the entrance was wide open, goats, cows and buffaloes would enter the corridor during the rainy season and dirty the place. Therefore, a wooden gate was installed, which now has been replaced by a steel one.


We entered the corridor by stepping on seven steps, which still exist.


There is a cross by the roadside just ten meters away from the school entrance. This cross is called “Dovorneancho Khuris.” A dovornem is an olden-day laterite stone pedestal meant to off-load a pantt’ttem or basket filled with material, which is then pulled back from the dovornem and placed on the head without anyone’s help.


Usually, a dovornem consists of a large, single pedestal but here it has two pedestals at two different levels – a lower pedestal and upper pedestal. Head load was placed on both pedestals; hence, it is a unique cross in Anjuna.


The lower as well as upper pedestals and the main stand on which the cross rests, are now covered with glazed tiles except the cross, which remains in its original shape. A zinc sheet top serves as a shade over it now and protects it from the sun and rain. The annual litany was held on May 4, 2011 (instead of May 3.)

As can be seen in the background of the photo of the cross, an oddachem zhadd or banyan tree (only a few are left in Anjuna now) next to the cross, welcomes everyone to the school.

 http://bit.ly/DovorneanchoKhurisAnjuna (Photo by Joel D’Souza)

This tree did not only provide us its shade but also helped us in our physical activities - we swung on its roots from one end to the other during our free time and even before and after school. Sometimes, we joined two roots with a knot, placed a piece of wood, sat on it comfortably and swung from the tree.

Today’s children may have seen such swinging in Tarzan movies but we were real-life Tarzans of that era, as we swung from one root to the other like monkeys! Sometimes we missed to catch the root at the other end, fell down and broke our crown or fractured an arm! So, what! That was part of our adventurous life!

The whole area around the school is presently enclosed in a stone compound wall. 


The exact date when the School came into existence is not known but it is estimated to have been constructed around 1910. A couple, Antonio Athaide Lobo of Siolim and his wife, Claudina Noronha, taught at the Escola Primária in Anjuna.


So, the school building is definitely more than one hundred years old. The very fact that it survived for over a century proves that the material used was genuine and of high quality, and, of course, it was well-maintained.


If timely maintenance is done, the building can last for another hundred years, but will it escape the axe of demolition and replacement by a concrete structure? That’s the biggest question!


This was my first school where I learned Portuguese alphabets, and it is here that the foundation of my education was laid!


I loved my school very much. I also liked my school building and its yellow color, which continues to be the same till today.


We joined the Portuguese School with Konkani as our mother tongue. We did not write Konkani but we spoke Konkani all the time; we explained and expressed ourselves in Konkani. Our teacher also used Konkani to explain to us. 


Those days, Escola Primária was colloquially known as ‘Aula,’ which roughly translated means a class or a teaching place – a school. In fact, the Aula was the landmark of Anjuna – the passengers would tell the conductor of carreira or public carrier to stop at the Aula lagim/kodde or by the school. When people questioned us: “Tumi khuim gel’leat?” (Where had you been?) We answered: “Ami aulak gel’leanv” (we had been to the school.)

_________________
MY FIRST SCHOOL AND TEACHER – PART 2

PRE-LIBERATION PRIMARY SCHOOL DAYS

Attending school during our time was not easy, as children had a lot of responsibilities at home. But most of these children were successful in their lives because they were all-rounders. Here are some of the difficulties that children faced during their primary schooling then:

Children woke up at the sound of the Church bell at 5:00am - MATINS or wake up call, thanked God for helping them wake up, said their morning prayers and studied for an hour.

Since they were required to help their parents, the next hour was devoted to home duties beginning with washing of vattleo-konnfo or utensils, which included pitullchem tost or brass basin, pitullcheo vattleo or brass plates, matieche buddkule or earthen cooking pots, matiecheo tovleo or earthen curry vessels, kott’tteche dovle or coconut-shell spoons, etc.

They swept the cow-dung floor daily and cleaned the compound of fallen leaves every alternate day. After the cow-dung floors were replaced by cement or tiles, they had to sweep and mop the floor.

Some children had to go to a neighbor’s well to fetch water early in the morning, as until the late Fifties/early Sixties few individuals had wells.

The owner of the well drew water from inside the house with the help of a pulley - the outsiders had to draw water baimchea kannttar ube ravon or by standing on the border of well.

Children had to be experts in drawing water from the well – a little slip of the razu or rope would break the earthen pot, and a little imbalance of feet could land them into the well. Hence, they preferred to draw water from one of the corners of the well, if the well was square in shape, so they could draw up matiecho kollso or earthen pot filled with water safely without hitting the walls.

Before leaving for school, children were required to water plants in their courtyard, including coconut trees.

While mothers prepared breakfast, some children were required to go to a porsum or orchard to water vegetation like onion plants, chilli plants, etc. Here they drew water from an onnddo or pond by standing on a maddacho korvo or coconut log.

In the summer, children also assisted their parents in preparing fields for kharif paddy cultivation e.g. tefam foddunk or to break the clods with a difllo or mallet and in leveling the fields.

Their hard work in the porsum and xet or field was well-appreciated by their parents, as it resulted in self-sufficiency in their homes. Unlike today, they never ran short of items like onions, chilies, rice, etc, which lasted throughout the year.

Some children, especially girls, were required to help their mothers in preparation of chapattis - main breakfast item. On Sundays, children had to assist parents in miscellaneous work.

Some children were required to graze their cattle (cows, buffaloes, goats, etc) on the hill or in the fields. They carried their books with them and studied their lessons while their cattle grazed.

In the evening, they had to make sure every member of the cattle got inside the stable. Similarly, they had to count chicken and chicks before closing kombiyancho ghudd or coop.

Children had to wash and iron their own clothes. Since there was no electricity, it was a tough job for us. We gathered kott’tteo or coconut shells, set them on fire and then fed kollxe/inglle or embers into an iron box.

I joined Escola Primária at the age of 5 but most of my colleagues were more than twice my age; hence, they were old enough to carry out most of the tasks mentioned above except ironing of clothes, which only a few could afford.

Unlike today, when parents either transport their children to school in school buses or private cars or hired mini buses or motorcycles, we went to school on foot. The greatest joy for us was to have a bullock cart ride once in a while provided the cart rider agreed to give us a ride.

Parents of present generation see off their children to school and receive them back at the bus stop or outside their homes. We didn’t receive that type of treatment; there was no time for that, as parents were busy round-the-clock making both ends meet. They knew we were back from school when they saw us around.

Unlike today, villages had red-mud roads, which were full of pot holes.

Most children went to school barefooted. As children, we kicked anything and everything that we came across on the road imagining it was a football! Thus, we sometimes hit a protruding stone on the road and injured our toes. Did we return home? No! We carried on our journey and attended school with toes bleeding!

We received (local) treatment only after we returned home, but sometimes we were treated with a beating for getting hurt! That’s why many a times children didn’t tell their parents about injuries sustained but somehow mother would become aware while bathing the child.

During the monsoon, pot holes on roads were filled with rain water causing mini ponds of different shapes – round, oblong, square, rectangular, and they became breeding ground for frogs.

On our way back home from school, we walked at ease and often played with water in pot holes. At times we would stop by a slightly large pot hole with a lot of water and empty water from it with our feet until tiny frogs jumped out and ran helter-skelter. We caught some of these tiny creatures and placed them in an empty ink pot. Since there was hardly any traffic movement on roads, frogs survived in pot holes without getting killed.

We attended the school come rain or shine. Sometimes the road between the present location of Sirsat shop and Aniket Bar-n-Restaurant was submerged when it rained incessantly for 3-4 days at a stretch but we waded to and fro and attended school; that’s how we grew up as courageous children!

Today’s children carry their books in backpacks, which are loaded to the brim until their backs bend! We carried a few books in a cloth bag.

One of the students, Agnelo D’Souza from Igreja vaddo or Church ward brought his books in a potem or big bag; hence, he was nicknamed “potekar.” He was one of the first Anjunkar to migrate to Portugal soon after Goa’s liberation.

In today’s world, children use markers on erasable boards and flipcharts - we used ardósia or slate and lápis de ardósia or slate pencil. We used single-lined and double-lined caderno or notebook to write on. For our drawings, we used plain or blank paper notebooks.

Today children begin their educational career by using ball point pens but we learned to write with fountain pens.

As children, we bought a caneta com aparo (pen with a nib) or aparachem pen or fountain pen, which had a light wooden holder. We always carried extra nibs in a compass box. To use the pen, we had to carry a tinteiro or ink pot. Once we reached school, we took out the tinteiro from our bag and placed it on the desk. We then wrote our exercises by dipping pen in the ink pot.

As in the olden days, some of us used pens made from porcupine quills and eagles’ feathers. Porcupines were hunted on Anjuna hill with a bhalo or spear during cashew crop season.

http://bit.ly/FeatheredPen

By the end of the day, the tips of our fingers (thumb, index and middle finger) would be partly colored in blue ink – a trade mark we had been to school and written.

One has to hold the pen and write lightly or else the nib breaks. This is why most olden-day students had very good handwriting, which is not the case with the present generation because they use ballpoint pens.

As children, we loved craft work. We bought craft paper from Messrs. Janardan P. Bhobe and Loja Coulekar (now Kavlekar and Sons Bookstores) in Mapusa.

Nowadays, children buy readymade gum bottles; more recently gum sticks, and complete their craft work easily. We had to prepare the gum ourselves. Although gum was available from many types of trees, the best gum came from cashew trees.

We would go on the hill with a koito or machete and put some gashes on cashew trees. Dik or sap oozes from gashes, dries up and strips of gum, which look like molten wax, hang on the trunk of tree.

After a week or so, we would revisit the cashew trees, collect strips of gum and bring it home. We broke strips of gum into pieces, placed them in an empty ink pot or any other empty bottle, added water and left it there for at least two days, and voilà – within 48 hours we had the best homemade gum, which was much better than readymade gum!

Some children, who didn’t want to visit the hill, used cooked rice grains to paste their craft work, but it was not as effective as our gum.

Nowadays, parents give plenty of pocket money to school-going children and some of them spend all that money on junk food, chocolates, etc.

We did not get any pocket money, neither when we were young nor when we grew up. Mind you, there were no shops in Anjuna except one - more on this topic sometime later.

However, the house next to our school ran a khobreacho ghanno or an oxen-driven oil mill, which ground khobrem or dried coconut kernel and extracted coconut oil.

We would run to Domingo Ghannekar’s place during our free time, approach his wife and take a handful of freshly produced hot pêndd or pinnace of coconut and devour it hurriedly.

Hot pêndd is very tasty but since it is dry, it makes one thirsty. So, we would head towards their water well, draw a kollso of water and quench our thirst.

Finally, we would pluck a few leaves of hortelão or pudina from vases on baimcho kantt or border of the well, munch it and end our pêndd-eating session. This is the type of life we lived, which was not only interesting but also healthy!

The only luxury that we occasionally enjoyed during our childhood was purchase of laddoo or milam, which Ms Boddki (a clean shaven widow) prepared and sold in a small room in Purshotam Shirodkar’s backyard in Gaumvaddi.

Today, children complain bitterly whenever electricity is shut down because they cannot study in the absence of light or cool themselves with an electric fan.

How do you think we studied? Electricity arrived in Anjuna in early 1970s. Our only friend at night was biddbiddtto ghasleticho divo or flickering kerosene lamp, which lit our homes and helped us study our lessons. If the lamp ran out of kerosene we had to fetch it ourselves, fill it in the lamp, adjust the wick and continue our studies.

Parents of the present generation spend a lot of money on their children’s education that includes extra tuitions and yet some of them are not successful despite having a luxurious life.

It was not so with us. There were hardly any tutors available then. There was an old goldsmith, Shreedar Chodankar in Fôger Vaddo, Gaumvaddi, who used to come home to give tuitions to young children but his services were limited due to his age. Moreover, most parents could not afford to spend on tuitions. So, it became each child’s responsibility to study and pass – mind you, most children’s parents were illiterate!

Today even Play Schools have mandatory uniforms. We went to school in casual clothes, without any uniform.

We grew up under very difficult circumstances but the good thing was that by the time we graduated from High School or College/University, we knew most aspects of life and were able to handle/run a home independently. Remember, “Necessity is the mother of all virtues!”

But it is not the case with the present generation. Who do you think is responsible for that? Obviously, the parents, who pamper their children and instead of making them do the simplest things in life, they engage them only with books. For each and everything parents’ only excuse is: “They are busy with their studies!”

At the end of their High School or College/University, they may qualify for a job but as far as life is concerned, they are nowhere close even to daily requirement.

They then spend as many years to learn life skills which they failed to learn while focused on their academics. Thus, what they could have learned and achieved simultaneously, they have to spend time and learn separately. Remember, “A child educated only at school is an uneducated child” (George Santayana.) Furthermore, “You can get all A’s and still flunk life” (Walter Percy.)

Moi-mogan,

Domnic Fernandes
Anjuna, Goa
Mob: 9420979201
                                                                                                    

_________________Moi-mogan,


Domnic Fernandes
Anjuna, Goa
Mob: 9420979201
                                             To be continued......

The Sacred Heart of Jesus High Schools and their Founders

The Sacred Heart of Jesus High Schools and their Founders - PART 1

Anjuna is laced with 26 wards – one of them is GAUMVADDI. It’s a unique ward because it is also known by nine other ward names as follows:

1) BAIRO SAM JÕAO or St. John’s ward named after the patron of the ward, Sam João Batista or St. John the Baptist. Some old-timers still address their letters to their loved ones at Rua de Sam João or St. John Street/Road, and the postman has no problem in delivering them to the individuals in Gaumvaddi.

(2) GAUMCHI-ARADDI

All the houses located by the foot of the Gaumvaddi hill on the east side come under ‘Gaumchi-Araddi’ - my house is one of them.

(3) VOILO VADDO

The Prabhus or Porobos, who were the original moradores (residents) or ganvkars, selected the prime elevated sites for residential purposes and they called this belt of dry uplands ‘Voilo Vaddo.’

They then assigned various sectors in the Gaumvaddi to hereditary occupational groups and thus created a small scale industry within Gaumvaddi.

The Anjunkars were an agricultural community. They were and are still a hard-working people. We cultivated paddy fields, nachnno or millet and grew home produce like onions, chilies, vegetables, etc. and supported our families. For centuries, Anjuna met all her requirements locally - it was an independent and self-sufficient village.

(4) POROBO VADDO

The belt of dry uplands is also known as ‘Porobo vaddo’ because most Prabhus or Porobos lived and still live there.

(5) FOGÊR VADDO

The main profession of Porobos in Voilo Vaddo was to make explosives and fireworks; hence, it came to be known as ‘Fogêr Vaddo.’

Birth marks the beginning of the reign of the god of fireworks. Thereafter, every event in the life of the people, public and private, sacred and profane, Hindu and Christian is loudly proclaimed and celebrated through the voice of gunpowder.

Until the late Eighties, two of the descendants of the ‘Fogêr’ community, popularly known as “Thontto Purso, Fogêr” (lame Purshotam, the manufacturer of artificial fireworks) – his full name was Purshotam Sadashiv Porob - he was called thontto or lame because one of his legs was deformed - he was a polio victim, and his younger brother, Mungês or Mangesh – his full name was Mangesh Sadashiv Porobo, known to all as “bhero Munges” (deaf Mangesh) because he was hard of hearing, were in great demand to make fireworks for the feasts and other occasions in Anjuna, Parra, Arpora, Nagoa, Calangute, Candolim, Assagao, Siolim, Pernem, Mapusa, etc.

Whether they are kids, youngsters, or older people, everybody enjoys the fireworks like crackers, skyrockets, petards, small and big gornal (hand made grenades,) twinkling anars, furious rockets, vibrant sparklers, cyclonic ground discs (phirki), etc.

Fireworks, including "kombo ani kombi" (hen and rooster) at the Vespers, was an added attraction because of which people made it a point to attend the Vespers however busy they might have been. It was so famous and in demand in the days gone by that it was always kept as the last item of the evening.

With the brass band in the background, Mungês would start firing petards, gornal, etc. and treat our eyes to the jet power of rockets, which kept on ascending into the sky before bursting into thousands of colored sparks, which ultimately landed in adjoining fields.

Our joy knew no bounds when Mungês introduced the exhibition of the Catherine Wheel, to culminate finally in the incandescence of the ‘Gate’. People would not move from the site until they witnessed the kombo-kombi fireworks display.

When the kombo-kombi was lit, those present said in utter astonishment: “Polloiat, kombo-kombi kaiborim distat!” (Look at the beautiful rooster-hen!) The hen lastly laid luminous eggs at which people remarked: “Polloiat, kombi kaiborim bhangarachim tantieam ghalta!” (Look, the hen is laying beautiful golden eggs!) And that would mark the end of the fireworks display. It was a bonanza for our eyes and ears.

On the feast day, too, fireworks added worldly (not spiritual) colors to the celebrations.

Thontto Purso and Mungês were so safety conscious that they built four small rooms at Toleacho Bandh (strip of land beside the pond) and stored their gunpowder there, away from residential area.

Just as rice, wheat, millet, lentils, etc. were ground at home on a “dantem” (millstone,) they hired a couple of women to grind gunpowder for them on two “dantim.”

One of the rooms at Toleacho Bandh was solely used to prepare fireworks. Finished fireworks were dried and stored in a separate room.

Bhero Mungês passed away on August 15, 1988. He was 88 years old. Exactly a year later, Thontto Purso passed away on August 15, 1989. He was 98 years old.

Today you get a variety of fireworks but they are not manufactured manually – they are factory-manufactured.

Did you know that the fogêr or manufacturers of artificial fireworks in Voilo Vaddo treated people for burns? Yes, they treated all degrees of burns at home. They mixed gunpowder with coconut oil and prepared some kind of ‘pomada’ (ointment), which was applied liberally over the burns and, voilá, burns were cured within a week or more depending on the gravity of burns – without getting admitted in a hospital!

(6) SONAR VADDO

A slice of Voilo Vaddo is also known as Sonar Vaddo and that’s because the sonar or goldsmith came from this part of Anjuna. It is believed that their workmanship was of a very high quality - some of the best goldsmiths came from Gaumvaddi. The Chodankar family still reside here as descendants of the original race.

(7) PADR AGNELO VADDO

Recently, the Sonar vaddo is also known as Padr Agnel vaddo because, as we all know, Ven. Fr. Agnelo was born in Sonar Vaddo/Voilo Vaddo.

(8) SOKOILO VADDO.

All houses in the low lying belt come under Sokoilo vaddo.

(9) PEDRO BHATT

In Sokoilo Vaddo, we have ‘Pedro Bhatt’ and this is where, in the 19th century, a great person, Jacob Conceição de Souza, was born to Caetano Bernardo de Souza and Dulcina de Souza, who produced sons like Walter and Ligouri, who were far-sighted visionaries and pioneers of education.

The 19th century produced noteworthy sons in Gaumvaddi, but God’s greatest gift to us was Ven. Fr. Agnelo (January 21, 1869 - November 20, 1927).

For centuries, Anjuna was true to its old adage: “Anjuna fuddem ganv nam ani Anjunkarank nanv nam” (Anjuna lacks a village beyond it; and its people lack any fame for themselves). It was dormant till the middle of the last century, when it suddenly shot to world fame from the late Sixties because of the hippies who made it their paradise.

The 19th century was the era when transportation hardly existed and bullock carts creaked and rumbled over Anjuna’s pot-holed roads.

Primary institutions set up by the Portuguese to formally educate people were not sufficient to cater to their needs neither were they accessible to all.

This gave rise to private institutions and individuals shouldering the burden of teaching and educating the Goans.

These institutions prepared and trained students for the primary and secondary exams besides training people in different professions.

Primary education was made compulsory by a decree of the Government and the teaching had to be exclusively administered in Portuguese or Portuguese-Marathi, Portuguese-Gujrati and Portuguese-Urdu combinations – the English language was nowhere on the scene!

English education in Goa was started by Mr. William Robert Lyons, a Jesuit Scholar, popularly known as Fr. Lyons, when he founded a school in Arpora in 1887 and named it ‘St. Joseph’s High School’. During colonial times it was known as ‘Collégio de Arpora S. José.’

The establishment of an English school was a turning point in the economic and social set up of Goa.

The prevailing conditions at that time had forced many a Goan to leave their birth place in search of greener pastures elsewhere. The youth were anxious to learn English in order to make a living in the then British India and British East Africa.

On the other hand, education beyond the primary level had become the sole privilege of the affluent Goans who could afford to send their sons to Panjim or outside Goa. A few of the middle class and hardly any of the poor class could afford to do the same to improve their state in life.

Employment opportunities during the Portuguese regime, especially to those who learned English, were next to none. This is why Goans who had studied English had to migrate and take up jobs in the neighboring cities like Bombay, Poona, Belgaum, Baroda, Ahmedabad, etc.

Towards the end of the nineteenth century, the exodus to British overseas territories was in full swing. So, the desire to learn English increased. Consequently, small English teaching schools mushroomed all over Anjuna village but all of them vanished except one in Gaumvaddi.

Jacob Conceição de Souza from Gaumvaddi was one of those Goans who had to leave Goa and take up employment in Belgaum. He was employed in a post office where he worked his way up and became a Postmaster.

We do not know how much Jacob studied but the very fact that he returned home from Belgaum as a retired Postmaster, proves that he was an educated person.

He received a monthly pension of Rs.75, which his grandson, Archibald, collected for him from the Mapusa Post Office.

Upon his return home, Jacob set up an English teaching school in his house in Gaumvaddi (presently ‘Bougainvillea Hotel - Grandpa’s Inn’, owned by Lucindo Faria, son of Phyllis Virginia Faria from Morodd, Mapusa - grandson of Alphonsus Ligouri D’Souza,) around the first decade of the 20th century, but there are no records to support this fact.

However, Dr. Teresa Albuquerque, a highly reputed historian, writes the following in her book: ‘ANJUNA: Profile of a village in Goa’:

“In 1891, we know from an article written by Ambrosio D’Sa in ‘Anglo Lusitano’ that an institution called St. Michael’s School was being directed by Cosmos Damiao da Cruz at Anjuna. The latter resided at Kumbhar Vaddo and had started as a teacher in St. Xavier’s High School, Bombay; and had also been headmaster of a school in Igatpuri. St. Michael’s School comprised of six classes manned by experienced teachers and it continued till 1900, if not later. Both da Cruz and D’Sa taught in the school and very probably ‘Ghirzoo’ assisted them.

From 1910 to 1914 da Cruz taught in an English-teaching school set up by Jacob D’Souza, a retired Postmaster of Belgaum. The classes were conducted in his house at Ganv vaddi.”

Although the school existed in Jacob’s house for over 25 years, sadly this fact is not recorded anywhere except in Dr. Teresa Albuquerque’s book.

But if we go by the year 1910 as the inception year of the school, it completes one hundred years this year, which is good enough cause to celebrate the first centenary of the school.

The school taught only four classes, from the 1st to the 4th Standard. No wonder in those days, whenever one talked about educational qualifications, they would say: “Chear classi xikop aslear puro!” (Should have studied at least four classes!)

The concept of Sacred Heart of Jesus High School was conceived at Jacob’s house at Pedro Bhatt in Gaumvaddi.

“JACOB-HANGÊR” (At Jacob’s)

In the past as well as during our childhood, Jacob’s house was known as ‘Jacob-hangêr’ (at Jacob’s). Later, it came to be known as ‘Edwin-hangêr’ (at Edwin’s) because he and his family were the last members to live in that house before it was converted into a hotel.

Jacob’s house was one of the larger houses in Gaumvaddi. It comprised of the following:

Spacious verandah in front and on its left side
One large entrada or entrance hall
One large sal or sitting room hall (now used as a snooker room)
Four (4) bedrooms, all in a row
One prayer room
One dining room
One kitchen
One storeroom
One passage from the sitting room to the kitchen (now converted into an office)

One staircase from the sitting room corner leads to a loft upstairs. It was used as a study place by Edwin’s son, Bernard, during examination days; it has a wooden floor.

The malli or storey had a window by the roadside, which Lucindo closed because of the age-old belief e.g., ‘Anjunant malliechem ghor togonam’ (a storied house does not last in Anjuna.) It’s alright though to have a door or window on the side; hence, the right side window of the malli has been retained.

As in many old Portuguese houses in Goa, the house has a roz-angnnem (open space in the middle of the house), which exists till today but it is now turned into a mini garden with flower pots.

There are two L-shaped spacious corridors on the outside of four bedrooms, adjoining the roz-angnnem.

There was a servants’ quarter behind the house, a firewood store and a chicken coop, which were demolished and five new rooms or studio apartments, matching the old house, have been built in their place.

On the north side, in line with the compound wall, there were two old-style toilets – one for gents and the other for ladies; these were demolished.

There were three iron gates to the compound wall – one front main gate and one each on the left and right compound walls. The left compound wall was demolished to expand the hotel area.

Now there are only two gates left – the main front gate and the one on the right side. These are original gates and they are still in good condition. Their existence enhances the beauty of the house/hotel and gives antique authenticity to the environment.

The hotel is named ‘Bougainvillea Hotel’ because the compound wall was fully covered with bougainvillea.

The logo of the hotel is a ‘volter’ (armchair), which belongs to late Jacob de Souza; it’s still there in its original condition.

Photo
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/iHi1pFq3FWjYtm400kXNFQ?feat=directlink


The hotel now has a swimming pool and a Yoga Center in one corner of the plot close to the main road. Three new rooms or studio apartments have recently been built close to the swimming pool, thus bringing the total number of rooms available with the hotel to 12.

If anyone is looking for a comfortable Portuguese-type house to live in while in Anjuna/North Goa, ‘Bougainvillea Hotel - Grandpa’s Inn’ is an ideal place!

Classes were taught in the four bedrooms – now they are hotel room No. 1, 2, 3 and 4. During the summer, classes were sometimes shifted in the verandah so they could enjoy the freshening breeze, as there were no fans in those days.

I did not see Jacob personally but I have seen his photographs at his home (now Grandpa’s Inn) and at his granddaughter’s, Phyllis’ residence in Mapusa. Here is one of them:

Photo

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/DdkWMfmYQFOz6_N_9kY8Ig?feat=directlink

From left to right (Front row): Sylvia (Walter’s daughter,) Cynthia (Ligouri’s daughter,) Elsie (Ligouri’s wife,) Albertina (Jacob’s wife,) Jacob, Olive (Jacob’s daughter,) Sybil (Edwin’s daughter,) Ivy (Olive’s daughter)
Children sitting on the ground from left to right: Olga (Ligouri’s daughter,) Phyllis (Ligouri’s daughter,) Hazel (Olive’s daughter)
From left to right (Back row): Archibald (Walter’s son,) Ligouri, Myrtle (Olive’s daughter,) Edwin, Dr Joseph

The elderly from Gaumvaddi and my paternal grandmother, Isabela Fernandes, who worked at Jacob’s from the Thirties until she passed away on July 16, 1957, told us that Jacob was a gentleman and had a great personality.

Just like my grandfather (died July 23, 1943), who sported white beard and was nicknamed “Khaddieo Abreu’ (Bearded Abreu,) by the Abreu family at Sorantto, Jacob, too, sported a fully white, flowing beard. They said it was so shaggy that one of the little girls from his family sometimes sat in his lap and tied it up into bows and plaits!

It has also been related that on one solemn occasion when the Patriarch visited the parish, he stopped to marvel at the fine, shining beard that Jacob sported.

Jacob belonged to a bhattkar or landlord family. Bhattkars did not mix up with common people. They spent their free time with close relatives and friends who were not always there. So, sometimes they felt lonely, and we know loneliness is boring.

Whenever Jacob felt bored, he hired one of the persons from the ward to talk to him and pass his time. Jacob relaxed in an armchair and made the person sit on a stool in the verandah. The person then talked to him and gave him all the news from the village and beyond!

On Sundays, Jacob went to Church in a “boilanchi gaddi” (oxen-ridden carriage). The priest would start Sunday mass service only after Jacob’s carriage arrived in the Church compound. He knew Jacob was on his way to Church or nearing it from the jingling sound created by jingles in the neck of oxen. In the absence of clocks/watches, some Gaumvaddi people depended on the jingling sound of Jacob’s carriage to help them get to Church in time.

……………..To be continued


Moi-mogan,

Domnic Fernandes
Anjuna, Goa
Mob: 9420979201


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