Kochi (formerly Cochin) is a city on the South Indian coast, in the State of Kerala boarding the Arabian Sea. There in fact two Kochis, the fabled spice city of the Malabar Coast on Fort Cochin Island, and a newer modern city across the channel. These two cities lie at the mouth of a natural…
Tag: Jews of India
Article: A Chanukah Treat for India’s “Lost Tribe” Bnei Menashe
A new book written in the native languages of the Bnei Menashe will enable many members of the lost tribe to celebrate Chanukah for the first time. The Bnei Menashe of northeastern India will have an added reason to celebrate this week with the release of a new book on the laws and customs of…
Article: 1,000 Jews cannot be wrong
Descendants of centuries-old Jewish community in China’s Kaifeng rediscover Jewish heritage after near complete assimilation in local community In Chinese terms, the city of Kaifeng, about 500 miles southwest of Beijing, is reminiscent of the Israeli city of Hadera: The number of its residents is 700,000 – as opposed to Beijing’s 15 million or Shanghai’s…
Article: Jewish graves vandalized in India freely
Headstones of old Jewish graves smashed, remains disinterred, thrown into river in town of Panvel, where few dozen Jews still live. Majority of community moved to Israel. Yonatan Kandalar, whose grandparents are buried there, shocked to see destruction, disrespect during visit Yonatan Kandalar’s private heritage trip to the city in which he was born in…
Article: India’s ‘Lost’ Jews Seek A Place In Israel
Every year, Jews from around the world migrate to Israel, a process known as aliyah, a Hebrew word meaning “ascent.” But for the Bnei Menashe community of India, who believe they are descendents of one of the 10 lost tribes of ancient Israel, the road has been long and fraught with difficulty. While almost 2,000…
Article: India’s Jews
There’s no question that India’s secularism is under strain. Militant Hinduism remains as much a potent force as extremist Islam. The ongoing bloodletting in Kashmir is an open sore, and the periodic spasms of communal violence in Gujarat, combined with memories of the Mumbai bombings of 2006, have led to undeniable tensions. Just have a…
Article: White Jews of India?!?
I just got back from India two weeks ago. INDIA! For those of you who have not been following the blog, I just finished staffing a gap-year program called Kivunim: New Directions. Kivunim seeks to explore Jewish history, and to that end travels to over 10 different countries to learn about different communities in the…
Article: Rare Jewish-Indian Haggadah found in Salford
Dr Wise said the Haggadah gives an insight into the community’s life A rare Jewish text, published for the “Black Jews of India” in the 19th Century, has been discovered in a garage sale in Salford. The 137-year-old Poona Haggadah, used by the Bene Israel community at Passover, was found by University of Manchester historian,…
Article: Jews of India
INDIA IS PERHAPS the only country in the world where Jews haven’t suffered anti-Semitism from the natives. Judaism was one of the first religions to arrive in India. The first wave came to Kerala following the capture of Jerusalem and the destruction of their first temple there by the Babylonians under Nebuchednezzar in 597 BC….
Documentary: Salaam Shalom: The Jews of India
Title: Salaam Shalom: The Jews of India Director: Vanessa C. Laufer Date released: 2001 Country Published: USA Studio: Filmakers Library Description: It is hard to imagine a subject more exotic than the Jews of India. On the Indian subcontinent where Hindus and Muslims dominate, Jews are a much tinier minority than in the West. While it…