fall 2012

19

A

h, the “glamour of the mysterious East.”

I travel the world. So when someone mentions

Asia, I conjure up mystical India, the “jewel in the

crown.”

Falling in love with “Incredible India,” is not difficult,

even though the country often bewilders the visitor.

Hard to believe that India stretches from the tropics

right up to the temperate regions, from near the

equator to the base of the Himalayas; a vast continent,

indeed.

“India is history,” wrote the late Jawaharlal Nehru,

leader for Indian independence from Britain and the

country’s first prime minister, adding she “has a long

memory.”

Indeed, the Jewish people have remained part of that

memory. For more than 2,000 years, pluralist India

has been a peaceful home to Jews and has played a

significant role in Jewish consciousness. Throughout

the ages and on into in the 21

st century, the largest

number of Jews of any country east of Iran resided

in India. The Talmud contains several references to

India. Saadia Gaon himself mentions great profit to

be had in the India trade. During the 12

th century,

Jewish travelers visited India. Benjamin of Tudela left

extensive descriptions of the Jews of southwest India.

Maimonides wrote that his

mishne torah was studied

there.

Still, the early history of the Jews in India remains

shrouded in legend. The traditional belief is that

refugees left Israel by boat and ultimately reached the

Konkan coast, even before the time of King Solomon,

whose ships plied the waters between the Gulf of

Aqaba and the west coast of India.

Like all tourists, American Jewish visitors usually begin

their sojourn in Delhi, the capital. They, too, embrace

the “golden triangle” of India tourism: Delhi; Agra,

site of the world marvel, the Taj Mahal, as well as the

deserted city of Fatehpur Sikri with its evanescent red

sandstone city that has been cited as among “the most

evocative ruins in India.” Then, they head to Jaipur,

home to the Amber Fort, which is best reached by

riding an elephant up the steep road.

As I toured India---the birthplace of three great faiths:

Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism --- I could not help

but see and sense the tumult, the hustle, the poverty

and inequality that exists in wide segments of the

population. Yet, progress moves forward today even

in the face of the ancient Hindu caste system. Now

at least, discrimination on the basis of caste remains

illegal.

Arriving in Delhi, one of the world’s most historic

cities, I quickly sought out my people and learned

that there are three distinct groups: The Bene Israel

trace their roots in India back to the destruction of the

First Temple in 586 BC; today they are the largest

group of Indian Jews and most reside in Mumbai.

The Cochin Jews, another ancient community, living

in Kochi is another group, followed by the Baghdadi

Jews who descended from 19

th century emigrants from

Iraq and other Arab lands.

“Incredible India” &

Its Jewish Community

By Ben G. Frank

Author, Ben Frank, and

his wife, in front of the

Taj Mahal.

Inside the historic

Paradesi synagogue,

Kochi, India.

20

J Magazine

“Israel is in my heart; India in my blood”

says Attorney Ezekiel Isaac Malekar, of the

Judah Hyam Synagogue, opposite the Taj

Mahal Hotel in New Delhi. Single-handedly,

he keeps the ten-family Jewish community

alive and is often joined by approximately

100 Jewish diplomats in this capital.

“There is no rabbi, no

chazzan, no

shoichet

, and usually no minyan,” he

declares, but always services at 6:30 pm.

Friday, in winter; 7 pm. in summer, and

Saturday mornings at 9 a.m.—if there is a

minyan.

Chabad House is located in the General

Market in Paharanj. The sign says,

“Welcome to The Chabad of India—We

are your Jewish Home away from Home.”

An old adage states that “as long as

Bombay exists, there will be Jews in town.

“In enormous, diverse, mystic Mumbai, the

nation’s transportation hub, the business

capital, the economic powerhouse, stands

the heart of an active Jewish community.

Most Indian Jews reside in Greater

Mumbai with its 20.5 million people. Nine

Sephardic, Orthodox synagogues function,

with only two rabbis.

The Evelyn Peters JCC is located at

D.G. Ruparel College, in Matunga. The

JCC, with its meeting rooms, computer

facility, library, a large hall and offices,

is sponsored and aided by the American

Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. A

Reform Movement of Judaism congregation

meets here.

The Jewish population has remained stable

at about 5,000 persons. Because India,

with its 1.3 billion persons, has become

one of the world’s largest economies,

now 6.9 percent growth, Jews are staying

put, despite the Mumbai terrorist attack at

Chabad House.

As a business mogul on Delhi television

declared, “never has there been a better

time to have been born in India.” Many

young Jews work in call centers; that

activity hurts Jewish communal life. “It’s

hard to get the young people to activities

if they sleep during the day and work at

night,” said a synagogue leader.

As I flew to Kochi, (Cochin) in Kerala, I

recalled that India is seen as a country

without anti-Semitism. As Professor Nathan

Katz wrote: “The Indian chapter [in Jewish

history] remains one of the happiest of the

Jewish diaspora.” Cochin Jews are best

known to the outside world, though only

about a dozen reside here. The outstanding

Jewish site remains the whitewashed,

rectangular Paradesi Synagogue, part of

the “Living Legend of India.” Well-worth a

visit.

In Kochi, “the Queen of the Arabian Sea,”

and the epitome of long-ago India, small,

kiosk-type shops dot Synagogue Lane in

“Jew Town, “ located in the Mattancherry

district. Tourists can spot the Jewish star on

the lattice of many homes, and some even

have Jewish names inscribed on them.

Tourists can obtain postage stamps with the

Star of David at the post office.

India—with all of its infinite charm, long

history, mixed culture, vast plains, huge

mountains, mighty rivers and great forests—

awaits you. As has been said, “whatever

happens, India will go on,” and so likely

will its Jewish community.

Ben G. Frank, journalist, travel writer,

is the author of the just-published,

“The Scattered Tribe: Traveling the

Diaspora from Cuba to India to Tahiti

& Beyond,” Globe Pequot Press; as

well as “A Travel Guide to Jewish

Europe, 3

rd edition”;”A Travel Guide

to Jewish Russia and Ukraine,” and “A

Travel Guide to the Jewish Caribbean

and South America, Pelican Publishing

Company. Blog: bengfrank.blogspot.

com, twitter:@BenGFrank

Magen Hassidim synagogue in Mumbai, India.

In the Sunday School of the JCC, Mumbai,

India.