Thursday 7 May 2020

Kozhikode – Vasco has Landed

The Great Konkan Run – Day 18: Beypore, Kappad Beach, Guruvayur, Palayoor, Edappally

You still cannot believe how you managed to see so much yesterday in Kannur. It was truly epic. But then no two days are same. You are in Beypore, south of Kozhikode, on the banks of the Chaliyar river. Beypore reportedly makes the same kind of timber boats, locally called Uru, that you saw in Veraval and Mandvi in Gujarat. The shipbuilders have been making these handcrafted Malabar Teak boats probably since the Mesopotamia times with no designs or blueprints; knowledge being handed down through the generations. But after an hour of just going around the country roads there is no sign of the boats. Nobody seems to have ever heard of them or seen them. Unless they want to keep them a secret from pesky tourists.


Kappad Beach in Kozhikode where Vasco da Gama landed in 1498

Trekker, the utility vehicle from Hindustan Motors

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The Inscrutable Kerala Folks!


A row of still surviving traditional houses in Kozhikode

In Kerala, the folks are definitely nice but there is this real communication problem in the state. And unless you know Malayalam, there is no way to make yourself understood. And this is surprising since Keralaites are the most educated and you would think they would know some English and also the fact that most of Kerala is urban. Nope, nada, zilch. Again, Keralaites are the most mobile of people, with most of them working overseas and across the country, so they should know some smattering of Hindi. Sorry, wrong assumption again. Nope, nada, zilch. No luck there either.
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Vasco da Gama probably came in that boat


Malayali movie industry seem to be alive and kicking

Hit & Flop

Is Mofussil an adjective or noun here?

Kozhikode: Tali Shiv Temple - you did not go inside here

Tali Shiv Temple in Kozhikode

Before going to Beypore, you are going around Kozhikode to look at some spots. Historically called Calicut, the city ruled by Zamorins, was the hub of spice trade. You are in Thekkepuram, a culturally rich place with centuries old settlements and the Kuttichira (chira means pond). Kozhikode has three main mosques, out of which the Miskal Palli is the grandest. Just like the temples and the churches, the mosque too is built in the traditional architectural style and Vasthuvidhya. The mosque is a tall, 4-tiered structure erected over 24 wooden pillars; each level is sloping and topped with the terracotta tiles. Except the ground floor all the upper floors look built out of wood. In Kerala, at the first glance, it is difficult to say if it is a temple, church, mosque or in this case a pagoda!

The four-tiered Miskal Palli Mosque in Kozhikode



Did Ibn Battuta visit this mosque when he was in Calicut waiting to board a ship to China and on his way back from China on his way to Mecca (1342-47)



The Miskal Palli Mosque was built by a renowned Yemeni trader and shipowner Nakhuda Mishkal, who lived here in the 14th Century (circa 1340s). In 1510, the mosque was partly burnt down by the Portuguese folks. The Zamorin gave wood to restore the mosque. Today, the mosque is closed and you cannot see the mimbar which has an inscription detailing its history.

Mishkal Mosque in Kozhikode


Kuttichira Tank in Kozhikode



The sign says that the mosque is popular with students and scholars who come here to study the architecture and history. As if on cue, a group of students appear. Outside, the 400 years old Kuttichira tank has been taken over by kids swimming on a Sunday morning.







Route 66

Love these roads with the sea on the side

Glory Lily - totally toxic; even touch can cause irritation
Guaranteed to bring a smell in any language



This torn poster is the closest you came to Urus in Beypore




You are sure, you will be able to find Kappad Beach, some 20 kms north of Kozhikode. If Vasco da Gama could make it here from Portugal, the Beypore fiasco notwithstanding, you should be able to find your way overland. Now you are wondering why Vasco gets so much interest and written about and gets a city and railway station named after him. Sea farers and traders have been coming to Malabar and Coromandel on their boats like 1500 years before Vasco did. The traders came riding the monsoon winds, bought black pepper and muslin, paid in gold, met their girlfriends and went away. You are now wondering if the Romans came around the Cape of Good Hope or they would break their journey into two - first sailing over Mediterranean Sea, then overland to the ports in Egypt and finally sailing through Red Sea and Arabian Sea to Muziris. 



Kappad Beach in Kozhikode



But Vasco changed this narrative. His arrival would unleash the repressive colonialism that would reduce the richest country to a poor, malnourished country down on its knees in a matter of few centuries. The last belligerent European was Alexander and he came by land. Until now, the invaders had come from the north, settled down and called India their home and largely kept away from the coastal areas. The landing of Vasco would change the political landscape as European factories and forts will ring the country from Gujarat to Bengal slowly leaching away all the wealth to Europe.


Stone Commemorating Vasco Da Gama's Landing here


Vasco would be proud. You are at the Kappad Beach taking in the golden sands. Yes, he did choose quite a picturesque spot to land on. A notice indicates that post tsunami work has been carried out on the beach that includes making this tiled stretch of waterfront. You are not a big fan of construction on beaches and rivers. Waves come in, breeze picks up, the sand is cool and Kerala continues to delight.


Picture Post Card Perfect Kadalundi River - View from Thayyilakadavu Bridge

You are again moving south, bypassing Kozhikode on NH 66. Oh yes, we got our own Route 66 too. One day, you plan to drive on it to Kanyakumari. Today, the plan is to reach the Guruvayoor Temple.

Kozhikode Halwa

But first, you will stop by at this mithai shop that sells the famous Kozhikoden Halwa. This is like a candy shop with these colourful candies lining up the shelves. Ok, it is a candy shop for giants. The candies are huge blocks of translucent, nut encrusted blobs that seem to move slightly when touched. You are sure they turn into Gremlins at night and raid the town.




The Sinful Kozhikoden Halwa

The Halwa became so famous that the Britishers named the city street selling the Halwa as SM (Sweet Meat) Street. You try a little piece of the brightly coloured mithai with ghee oozing out of it, though it is probably coconut oil too. The texture is rubbery and the taste is very sweet. The halwa made of fermented wheat was probably conjured up by Gujarati cooks working for the Calicut rulers, the Zamorins. The halwa then was taken aboard the wooden dhows, Urus, across the seas where the delicacy wowed the Arab world.

So there is a Halwa Bazar too in Kozhikode

Now that you are looking at the sign on the shop and wondering what is Laksh Deep Halwa all about. You will go check it out soon!






The painted buses continue to delight

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Hindustan Motors Trekker – Blast from the Past

Long ago you were trying to sell these in Jabalpur Belt of MP which was a stronghold of Mahindra’s Major or one of those ‘jeeps’ with no name really. The roads were horrendous and the jeeps would carry about 30 people. Some people would sit on the reinforced roof and some would balance themselves on the hood. It was always a fun game to guess who the driver was. There was a passenger on the driver’s seat while the driver, mostly skinny, would still manage to drive the vehicle. His body would be hanging out even as his hands and feet invisibly drove the vehicle through the tangle of limbs. It was an uphill battle to make anyone buy our Trekker. 

Hindustan Motors Trekker




The Man and his Ride - HM Trekker

Personally, you liked the Trekker. It had no-nonsense bareknuckle design. Ok it had no design; just some panels hammered together. Ambassador’s 1.5 Litre Diesel engine powered it. While the jeep was skinny, Trekker was WIIIDE. The seats could take enough passengers and the driver could still reclaim his seat. Also, while the jeep bounced even when full, the Trekker’s drive was much smoother and the chassis would not crack; a chronic problem with the Mahindra jeeps.  





It is a real surprise to see this bunch of pimped-up Trekkers; some with even metallic paint. Just like the Maruti 800 cabs of Shillong, the owners here love their Trekkers and have them dressed and embellished to kill. Yesterday you saw the iconic Ambassadors in Payyanur and today these Trekkers. So, while the company is no more, some pockets in the country still love their Hindustan Motors vehicles; a company that introduced mobility in the country. In a landscape with the latest cars and technology, the anachronistic Ambassadors and Trekkers hark back to more innocent times; when the nice people valued their possessions, and made memories. 

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Guruvayur Temple
Guruvayoor Temple sits in a huge complex. There are big queues to have darshan of the deity Guruvayurappan, the four armed Vishnu today. It is said that as Dwarka lay submerging into the sea, Krishna asked Vayu and Guru Brahaspati to bring the idol here; and hence the name Guruvayur.




The temple went through the usual travails – was burnt by the Dutch, tribute was paid to Hyder Ali, the idol was hidden when Tipu Sultan came around; yes he did set the temple alight. Since then the temple went through several renovations. In 1970, another fire razed through the temple. Wood temples have this propensity to catch fire especially during festivals when thousands of diyas are lit. Not surprisingly, this epidsode happened during Ekadasi lighting. You did think about this eventuality when you saw the niches on the walls of Sri Rajareshwara Temple in Kannur.


Walking the streets of Guruvayoor


Do you feel lucky today, Punk


You are not known to be the most patient man especially when it comes to standing in queues. You have still not been able to figure out which way the queues are heading to. Whatever little motivation you had has evaporated in Kerala owing to the strict dress code in the temples here. You walk the streets of the temple town before heading south.

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Independence Day Eve
The year before you were in Udupi on Independence Day. This year you will be celebrating Independence Day in Fort Kochi. And if you can recall, the next year you were in an equally beautiful place in the mountains, Mukteswar in Uttarakhand.







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St. Thomas Syro Malabar Catholic Church in Palayoor



St. Thomas Syro Malabar Catholic Church in Palayoor is the oldest church in India built by St. Thomas, one of the apostles of Jesus Christ, who arrived in Kodangallur in 52 AD, and established the St. George Orthodox Syrian Church.




India's Oldest Church in Palayur

You reach the church in the evening as a full moon rises over the church. People are leaving after the Sunday Mass. In all the excitement of seeing a Velha Goa like Cathedral, you miss seeing the remains of the original shrine and the cross that was raised by St Thomas here.

Palayur Church - the old wooden Church that has remains of the original church







Now as you flick through the photos, the church is made of two parts. The front except the façade is probably the old part; it is a traditional wooden building with a sloping roof and terracotta tiles while the rear one is recently built. So, like you always do, you move around the perimeter of the complex clicking and then finally enter the new part of the Church not realising you have missed seeing the interiors of the front wooden one. Of course, the Church has seen several constructions over the centuries since it was burnt to the ground by Tipu Sultan.




Palayur Church - stone sculptures depicting scenes from the life of St. Thomas


One intriguing feature is the tall steel flag mast that almost looks like the dhwajhstambh of a temple. Now that you recall, there is a deepstambh too at the gate of the complex. A huge square bell tower rises. Ropes lie on the floor that are pulled to sound the bells to call the believers. In the back, there is a cemetery with inscribed flat marble gravestones. Was there a temple and a synagogue here at this spot? It is quite likely.

Boatkulam in Palayoor - depicts St Thomas coming here to teach gospel

St. Thomas statue in Boatkulam - he doesn't look too pleased though coming to Palayur

Opposite the Church, there is Boatkulam / Buttakulam or the Boat Jetty. St. Thomas’s statue stands here along with replica of a boat with him in the boat. In 52AD, St. Thomas arrived in Palayur from Kondangallur or Muziris. He came to preach Christianity to the locals and Jew merchants.

At that time Palayur was one of the strongest Brahmin centres in Kerala, with a large community of prosperous Brahmins living here since ancient times. Palayoor, also had ancient presence of Malabari Jews. It is said St Thomas came to Judankunnu, Hill of Jews, to preach Gospel to the Jew Merchants. It is believed Jews first landed in India here before moving to Muziris. Over time, the water dried, turning the backwaters of Palayoor into this dryland. Boatkulam depicts the Saint’s coming to Payanur.

Indian Christians Historical Museum at Palayur

The complex also has the Indian Christians Historical Museum (closed today) which contains stones from the foundation of the church built by St Thomas and some articles used by him during his stay here. There is a pond here called Thaliakalam where St. Thomas baptized people. Looking at the map, the lake appears to be a minute walk on the north-east side.

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Kerala Architecture
In Kerala, at first glance it is difficult to figure out if it is a temple, mosque, church, synagogue or in this case, a pagoda. From what you can ascertain, the worship places in the beginning were probably all built by the same set of ‘Thachhans – Skilled Craftsmen’ employing same principles of traditional architecture and Vasthuvidhya. Also, the structures were initially all built of wood. The sign at the Miskal Palli mosque confirms that Vaastu was followed in its construction. Though it was partly destroyed by the Portuguese, it has managed to retain its original flavour of multi-tiered wooden storeys.


While construction followed a common thread, so did the destruction. While elsewhere in India, the destruction was largely unidimensional, here in Kerala there was literally a hustle among the Portuguese, Dutch & British who will take turns to destroy and burn down temples, mosques and churches. Ok, the synagogues too got the European treatment. There were supposed to be six synagogues in this general area, now only two survive – in Fort Kochi and Ernakulam. The Paradesi Synagogue was destroyed by the Portuguese but was reconstructed two years later when Dutch came. Strange are the ways of the Europeans. With successive reconstruction, the structures took shape in stone and plaster. Later, Tipu Sultan will keep up the tradition of demolishing temples and churches. The soaring gopurams of Sri Rajarajeshwara Temple in Kannur were brought down though the temple survived by some divine miracle.
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Middle East landscape in Kerala

It is time to hit the pedal to the metal. Time to get to the place you always wanted to – Kochi, place where tomorrow you will see those Chinese fishing nets!



In Edappally, few kms before you cross the bridge into Kochi, you see this grand Church complex on the right. It is lit up and as you walk inside, you realise that you have the whole sprawling campus to yourself. It is apparent that some old church has undergone several renovations to create this big marble shrine.





St. George’s Syro Malabar Forane Church, was first built in 593AD. St. George, the apostle, had built seven churches; the oldest one you had just seen in Palayoor. This church came up after these oldest seven churches. The second church here was built in 1080. The current building was completed in 2015. The older church buildings have been retained.

St. George’s Syro Malabar Forane Church in Edappally





St. George's Forane Church in Edappally

You climb the ramp to the main building with two bell towers flanking the portico. Immense marble floors, tall pillars, cusped arches makes this a modern wonder. Though it does seem a little 5-Starish! You spend some time here in the tranquility of the night under the moon that has just emerged out to the clouds.

It is midnight when you reach Fort Kochi.


The journey continues.


Day's Progress



Districts Covered Today: Kozhikode, Malappuram, Thrissur, Ernakulam




Route Taken: Kozhikode to Beypore, then north to Kappad Beach, south again to Guruvayur, then to Palayur, to Edappally and night stay in Fort Kochi


References

Architecture of Kerala

Uru Boat Building




Kuttichira / Mishkal Mosque





Kozhikode Halwa



Guruvayur


Palayur

Detailed and informative

One Awesome Blog

Jews of Palayur – a detailed and well researched blog with references and interviews

Blog Related Facebook Page – Jews of Malabar



Indian Christian Historical Museum, Palayur

The Legends of St. Thomas in Kerala by SUSAN VISVANATHAN, India International Centre Quarterly, Vol. 22, No. 2/3 (SUMMER-MONSOON 1995), pp. 27-44 – available on jstor - https://www.jstor.org/stable/23003931?seq=1

Brown, L. W., The Indian Christians of St. Thomas – an Account of the Ancient Syrian Church of Malabar, Cambridge, 1956, p.54, 62-63.)

The Indian Christians of St. Thomas, otherwise called The Syrian Christians of Malabar, by The Rev. W. J. Richards (1908) - https://archive.org/details/indianchristian00richgoog/page/n12/mode/2up




The Rough Guide to Kerala



The Great Konkan Run

Day 15 - Shravanabelagola 

Day 16 - Kasaragod

Day 17 - Kannur

Day 18 - Kozhikode

Day 19 - Kochi

Day 20 - Part I - Spice Wonderland

Day 20 - Part II - Kodungallur

Day 21 - Thrissur


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