UNDERSTANDING THE RESPONSE TO PORTUGUESE MISSIONARY METHODS IN IN THE 16TH – 17TH CENTURIES

Christianity has had a very long history in the sub-continent. Even if the traditional belief of the arrival of one of the apostles of Jesus, St. Thomas is discounted, there is evidence to prove that Christian merchants from west Asia had sailed and settled on the west coast of India in the early centuries of the present era. Catholic missionaries, mainly of the Franciscan order arrived as early as the 13th century, in the northern reaches of the Indian west coast. Some of them were, in medieval terminology, even “martyred” for the faith.1 The arrival of the Portuguese, with their padroado (patronage) privileges however marks the first large-scale appearance of Christian missionaries in India. Despite such a longstanding Christian tradition the focus of Church history writing in India, in the context of it being written as a form of ‘mission history’ has always been on the agency, the agents and their work. This has meant that the overarching emphasis has been on the mission bodies, their practices and when it has concentrated on the local bodies, the numbers they were able to convert. Conversion stories have also been narrated, yet it is done with the view to highlight the activities of the mission and their underlying role in bringing about that conversion. This overemphasis on the work of the converting agencies was no doubt the consequence of the need to legitimize their work as well as the need for further financial and other forms of aid, but it has had several implications.

1 A.M. Mundadan, History of Christianity, Vol. 1. From the Beginning up to the Middle of the 16th century, Bangalore, 1989, pp.78-107,126-137. One of them being the dichotomisation of the act of conversion as the function of two distinct role players the missioniser and the recipient; in other words, the conversion process has normally been seen as a passive reception, without the active agency of the recipient communities. The provision of royal patronage or padroado real which called for a close functioning between the Estado da Índia (State of India) and the has also reinforced the idea that Christianity was an Imperial tool for domination wherein those who imposed always imposed and those who received always received. Such discrete roles are extremely watertight, giving no agency or scope of change to those involved and predicating the activities of those involved in a static time warp. In such a hypothesis those who brought the religion always transported fixed “European’ Christian ideas and the recipients always accepted on those terms. It thus essentialises the mission bodies as well as the receivers into distinct role-players. The attempt in this essay is to look at the various ways in which the natives responded to the proliferation of Christianity by looking at various sections of society to show that just as there was a certain dynamism in proliferation methods, similarly the reception of the faith was not passive and that there were various forms that it could take. The criticism of the static-role players is not to deny the existence of these role players but rather to see the changing dynamics and the historical contingencies involved in the playing out of these roles. Thus if the spectrum were to start with missionising and active violent resistance the opposite end, then there were also intervening points that could range from adaptations on the part of mission bodies to active reinterpretation of the Christian message in what is popularly known as syncretism and acculturation of beliefs, and other forms of resistance. Two vital issues need to be taken into consideration when one is studying the response to Christianity as propagated by the Portuguese in India in the 16th-17th centuries. Firstly, from James Scott’s work on the Arts of Resistance, one is made aware of the various forms that resistance can take and I intend to examine the evidence that Portuguese India offers us in the light of their formulations. Scott highlights the interaction between the “powerful and the powerless” in the form of “transcripts”, a “public transcript,” which essentially is the outwardly performance or completion of the roles assigned as dominator and dominated. While the manifestation of roles may imply in the eyes of the public a smooth relationship, there are what Scott calls the “hidden transcripts,” the outcome of what the dominated really feel against those who dominate, taking various forms, short of direct rebellion and are articulated in “hidden spaces.” Scott’s work is important for our study because it highlights the forms that resistance can take to the ideological domination of a dominant group and this paper will try and locate the manner in which resistance to Christianity was articulated. Secondly, while resistance to Christianity can take different forms it cannot be denied that there was an overwhelming acceptance of the religion. In this context, there are two issues that need to be addressed. Firstly why do people convert and consequently what does conversion do to the people concerned in terms of belief. Conversion has often been linked to “an association to a hegemonic power,” or because “it embodies a cultural logic which is superior.” 2 In the preface to her book Outside the Fold , Gauri Vishwanathan has pointed out to the underlying assumption in conversion debates in recent times, which pre-supposes a lack of agency amongst the poor and the weaker sections in society in determining their choice and their

2 Gauri Vishwanathan, Outside the Fold, Conversion, Modernity, and Belief, New Delhi, 2001. p. xiii. vulnerability to conversions.3 In other words it is believed that conversions mainly privilege the poor because of their economic dependency. Pertinent to this study therefore are the questions, who were the people who were being exposed to Christian beliefs and who were those being converted and why did they do so? Upon conversion, it is evident that acceptance of a faith is not static and in fact forms of belief may vastly differ from that intended by the missionaries. 4 Consequently as Hefner has pointed out in the larger context of conversions to the macro religions, conversions can take many forms, because it is “ influenced by a larger interplay of identity, politics and morality.”5 Or in other words, the differences in the processes of conversions at various places may yield different results. Concluding from such a premise Hefner et al. point out that localisation and contextualisation of the received religion may not make it (in this case Christianity) as monolithic as one may assume it to be.6 Thus the receiving of religion may not be as rigid and static or even dominating as one may think or visualise it to be.

Hegemony and an “open” transcript Taking the lead from Scott on the need for an ideology in order to dominate, one must go back to the early years of the Portuguese presence and more specifically to a letter, which was sent by the D. Manuel to the ruler of

3 Ibid. 4 Robert W. Hefner, World Building and the Rationality of Conversion, in Robert W. Hefner (ed), Conversion to Christianity: Historical and Anthropological Perspectives on a Great Transformation, Berkeley, 1993, p. 19. 5 Ibid. p. 4. 6 Ibid.p. 5. Cochin through his viceroy Pedro Alvares Cabral.7 The letter is interesting on various counts. It is a communication seeking alliance with Cochin to further ’s trading interests in the region. At the same time it is also a statement for the legitimisation of Portuguese requests and demands, and its presence using religious idioms. The confusion over Portuguese aims in the region stems from this use of religion by the Portuguese to suit their needs. In an age when the church did not necessarily uphold economic pursuits, there was a need to convince themselves and Europe of the legitimacy of their endeavour. Coming back to the letter itself, D. Manuel called the king of Cochin his brother and cognizant of the presence of Christians there tried to build bridges, by resorting to the technique of a reminder of the common heritage that they shared. He reminded the king that just like themselves, the Christian message had come to them through the first Apostles of Christ. He also told the ruler of Cochin of the need to help each other. He went on to set common boundaries by pointing out that the Moors were their mutual enemy as they from the seventh century had prevented contact with one another. D. Manuel was thus fulfilling his duties as a Christian king by building links with them. However, there was a veiled threat as well. D. Manuel was sure to admit his willingness to the use of force if it was needed if the people of Malabar did not respond. Thus by using the ‘Christian brotherhood’ logic, D. Manuel was extracting from the ruler of Cochin his alliance. The drawing of religious links and commonalities was as the Portuguese came to realise rather tenuous and therefore there was a need to resort to other resources. With a firm, though not always dogmatic belief in their superiority due to their belief in a certain religious tradition, the

7 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História. das Missões do Padroado Português do Oriente, (12 Vols.) Lisbon, 1947-58. Vol. 1. pp. 15-22. Doc. 4. Letter of D. Manuel to the King of Calecut through Pedralvares Cabral. 1500. Portuguese sought to use it to dictate and rule in all spheres of life-be it religious, economic, political or cultural. The forms and degree of domination does not remain constant, but the basic belief in this superiority emanating from a conviction in a particular religious tradition does not dissipate. Moving on to Scott’s understanding of the arts of resistance, his arguments of a public and a hidden transcript underlying the relationship between the dominant and the dominated speaks of a relationship that exists between unequal/disproportionate categories as far as power and access to resources are concerned. The indigenous response to Portuguese claims to monopoly and religious hegemony on the west Coast of India were some times more in the nature of an “open transcript,” a direct appeal to authority for grievances against them with the absence of the need for “deception,” “disguise” or a “mask.” This could only stem from the recognition of a parity of status and the violation of one’s inherent rights from a position of being equal, despite Portuguese claims to dominance and ascendancy, political or spiritual. In strongly worded letters, though maintaining a modicum of submission, letters went back from Malabar to the Portuguese rulers about the unhappiness about the conversion of their subjects to Christianity. They wrote of their opposition to the spread of Christianity within their realms. Their discontent, at least in one instance stemmed from a realisation that conversion meant a break in social structure, which would lead to disorder in social relationships, which was freely articulated. …[The slaves of nayres] should not become Christians, nor of bramenes because if the slaves become Christians, it would result in a lack of good will among our vassals, because they [the slaves] are their people, because the nayres of my land have profit from them and they would not want to lose them…8

The king of Cananor was also distressed by the fact that upon conversion, most of his subjects refused to pay the dues that they were obliged and therefore a petition was sent to the king of Portugal to correct the wrong.9 On the other hand the resentment of the king of Cochin, voiced yet again to the king of Portugal was over the fact that his arel (pilot of the port) had converted in secrecy without informing him.10 The local rulers continued to take the initiative in expressing the opposition against conversion in the 17th century with native rulers ordering for churches to be destroyed.11 Shivaji’s rise to power in the Deccan had led to his expansion to Northern Konkan which led to conflicts with the Portuguese authorities both ecclesiastical and secular. In 1667 he detained and later killed four missionaries from , when they refused to embrace Hinduism.12 Later in 1675, he even took up the issue of forced conversions with the Portuguese viceroy.13 Similarly, the Council at met together in 1642 to discuss about the complaints that the Regedor Mor (chief justice) of the ruler of Cochin had ordered statues and crosses of the Christians to be destroyed, “saying moreover that the king (of Cochin) was the greatest enemy of the

8 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 1. pp. 61-62. Doc. 14. Letter of the king of Cananor to the king of Portugal, Cananor, 6 Dec. 1507. 9 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 1. p. 142. Doc. 59. Letter of the king of of Cananor to the king of Portugal. 10 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 1. p. 170. Doc. 75. Letter of the king of Cochin. 11 R. A. de Bulhão Pato (ed.), Livros das Monções. Documentos Remettidos da Índia, Lisboa, (5 Vols) MDCCCLXXX-MDCCCCXXXV, Tomo. I. p. 146. From the king to the Viceroy, 10 Dec, 1607. The complaint was against the king of Travancor. 12 A.R. Kulkarni, The Proselytisaion and Purification Movement in Goa and Konkan, in T.R. de Souza (ed.), Discoveries, Missionary Expansion and Asian Cultures, New Delhi, 1994, p. 93. 13 Ibid., p. 94. Portuguese name, and of the Christian religion that there was in Malabar…”14 Such acts of violence or confrontation was not only the prerogative of the native rulers, and even Brahmins participated in it directly or instigated villagers to take up violence to see to it that the missionaries were obstructed in their work. However, confrontation openly or in public, when matters took a violent turn or when villagers took matters into their own hands were few and far between on the west cost of India. According to a list prepared by A. Franco, the number of Jesuit martyrs in the years between 1541-1724 was a mere 63 out of a total of 1716 arrivals for the whole of the East from Europe (3.6% of all arrivals).15 Of these most of the deaths that were accounted for were in Japan and South East Asia. The five priests (Jesuits) who were put to death by the rebellious villagers of Cuncolim in Salcete in Goa in the year 1583 is one of the more well-known cases of catholic martyrdom in India. According to Padre Sebastião Gonçalves’ account of a few decades later, the district being in the outlying areas of the Portuguese southern boundaries had always dissented against the Portuguese by being irregular in the payment of taxes. The attack by the officials against the villagers followed by a destruction of temples made them revolt against a group of priests who had gone to tour the land to build churches.16 Similarly, in 1636 there were reports that some Franciscans

14 P.S.S. Pissurlencar (ed.), Assentos do Conselho do Estado da Índia, 8 Vols. Vol. 2. Bastora , 1953. p. 379. Doc. 136, 1642, Nov. 19. 15 H. Hosten S.J. Jesuit Missionaries from Lisbon to the East, 1541-1724 in The works of Fr. H. Hosten S.J. Vol. XX1. (unpublished papers), p. 155. (The numbers provided by Franco have been disputed and may not necessarily be correct, but they have been quoted merely to facilitate a broad understanding.) 16 J. Wicki, Documenta Indica, 14 Vols, Rome, 1948-79, Vol. 12 pp. 975-994. Doc. 150. Report of the Salsete Martyrs, Goa, Dec. 1609. Also see AN/TT, Cartório Jesuitas, Maço 89, nº 12. (Document of 1744.) were killed by angry villagers in their anger at the attempted destruction of temples in Bassein.17 Brahmins could also resort to violent means as in the case of an attack on a Jesuit with “bows and arrows” when the Jesuit converted a Brahmin on his deathbed. There seems to have been a minor rebellion of sorts as the Catholic priest had to flee to the nearby fort. A meirinho/overseer of the Christians who was passing through, unaware of what had happened was put to death by the villagers. There were also elements of deception involved even as the priests then claimed that the Hindus put their own temples to fire, in order to make it appear that the priests were forcibly enforcing their religion upon them.18 At another place the regedor/chief justice of Cochin himself took revenge by setting to flames a church and killing other Christians upon the “accidental” killing of a Brahmin.19 Priests also reported of the attempt by some to kill them through poisoning, a “means, which was more secure and secret,” than outright killing.20 On some occasions the Brahmins were forced to take action against their own relatives whom they thought were planning to convert and therefore we hear of a Brahmin who took away his nephew into the hinterland as his brother’s family was planning to change religious

17 Pissurlencar., Assentos do Conselho…Vol. 2. p. 71. Doc. 24. 1636, March, 7. There were at least 12 Franciscans who were killed by natives as acts of rebellion in the course of the 16th-17th centuries on the west Coast of India alone. Cf. Galeria dos Martyres Franciscanos in O Oriente Portuguez, Vol. VII, 1910. pp. 22-26. 18 Silva Rego, Documentação para as História…Vol. 9. p. 362. Doc. 53. General letter written by Jorge Caldeira, Goa, 11 Dec. 1564. 19 Silva Rego, Documentação para as História…Vol. 9. p. 268. Doc. 35. The Câmara of Cochin to the Prince Cardinal, Cochin, 29 Dec. 1563. 20 Luís Caçégas, Terçeira Parte da História de S. Domingos do reino e Conquistas de Portugal, Lisboa, Anno, MDCLXXVIII (1678), p. 321. affiliations.21 Thus through various means and actions there was a conscious opposition due to a perceived threat to their community. The other means through which the natives, and in this case the Brahmins responded to what they considered the atrocities of the priests was by directly writing to the viceroy or the king in Portugal and seeking their intervention. For instance, a certain Vittogi Naiq Sardessay of Ponda in Goa complained to the viceroy with regard to the conversion of the daughters of two of his slaves. His complaint was not so much to do with the conversion, but rather the manner in which the pai dos cristãos (father of the Christians) and the catechumens mistreated them.22 However, the most interesting letter of complaint and dissent that I have come across is that of the letter of Azu Naique, not only in his boldness in complaining against the practices of the priests but also in the arguments that he puts forward against their activities of vigorous persuasion. Through his letter he suggests the need for separation of politics and religion as he fully well recognised the potentialities of trade with the Portuguese. The letter was written from Bassein in 1549, an important caçabe (kasba) in the Portuguese Province of the North,23 which was another region where the Portuguese had a substantial amount of territory under their control, unlike other fort settlements. The Franciscans led by Frei Antonio Porto were the earliest missionaries to reach these lands and by 1548 they had claimed substantial successes. Azu Naique, of whom we know very little besides the fact that he had offered substantial help to the Portuguese to merit a special letter of thanks from D. João III and a personal invitation to convert to the Christian

21 Silva Rego, Documentação para as História…Vol. 9. p. 532. Doc. 72. Letter of Jorge Caldeira for the Padre. Doutor Mirão, Provincial. 22 Biblioteca da Ajuda, (B.A.) Lisbon, 51-V-49, f. 185. 23 The North south extent measured up to 80kms, while the east west extent was 40 kms. Mario César Leão, p. 17. faith, perhaps fearing the great strides that the priests were making wrote in protest using, very capably, ‘Christian’ arguments to prove his case. He wrote that only God ordained things to happen and only those whom he called could become Christian, therefore it was not in anybody’s hands to invite or even force them to become one.24 Showing great awareness of the conditions in Europe in order to prove his point against the conversion policies of the Portuguese, he mentions that even in Rome, the holy father did not prevent people of different nations and of various faiths from living in the city, and therefore there was no reason for the Portuguese not to permit the same.25 He consciously therefore took a decision to write against the priests saying that they were detrimental to the interests and profits of Portugal’s trading ambitions. While the viceroys were scared of writing against them (the priests), he wrote that he was taking upon himself the task of informing the king of the true nature of their activities, incurring the risk of their wrath.26 The missionaries of the Estado da Índia also constantly wrote back home about the more subtler forms of opposition (our hidden transcripts) that they faced especially from the Brahmins, noticing for instance “the intense affection with which the bramenes are united in their sect…”27 The missionaries were aware of the bonding among the upper castes which was if not intra-regional definitely regional. A Portuguese nobleman from Goa wrote to the king in 1541 saying, “many more would have been converted had it not been for some persons who support these Hindus like Krishna,

24 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 4. p. 451. Doc. 77. Azu Naique to the king. Baçaim, 18 Dec, 1549. 25 Ibid. p.453 26 Ibid. pp. 455-456. 27 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 8. p. 57. Doc. 19. General letter of Padre Luis Fróis to the Colleges of the in Portugal, 13 Nov. 1560. Luqu and Anu Sinai and some of their relatives who hold that all the Hindus should not be converted.”28 All three were important rentiers and Luqu’s acceptance of Christianity in later years, brought great celebrations and fanfare even as he was regarded as a “Saul, persecuting Christians” before his conversion. These transcripts are not hidden in the sense of being outside the view of the Portuguese ecclesiastical authorities-after all our sources for them are the priests themselves, but because there was nothing that the authorities could do about them in terms of directly taking action. The existence of such resistance is also demonstrated by the fact that despite all kinds of efforts to convert, the priests were never able to speak of a total conversion in any of the areas of Portuguese control. Right through the 17th century, the Jesuits still write of baptisms taking place annually in Goa in thousands, and this could not be accounted for due to a mere biological increase in population. It points to either an inflation of figures by the priests and/or the fact that there was a conscious and active resistance to proselytization. The hidden transcripts were veiled resistance or attitudes of rebellion against unjust impositions. According to Lach, the animosity of the natives to the provincial decrees and other policies of the church and the state were also manifested in the regions of Goa by a flight to the interior, “through cutting into Portuguese revenues by flooding their rice paddies with salt water and shutting down their silk and food stores, and through mass protest meetings, petitions and other means of passive resistance.”29 Resistance could also take two other forms; in the nature of reviving the locals by teaching them matters of the Hindu faith, through a resort to

28 A.K. Priolkar, The Goa , Bombay, 1961, p. 71; J. Wicki, Documenta Indica, Vol. 1. pp. 792- 793.) 29 Donald F. Lach, Asia in the Making of Europe, 2 vols. Chicago, 1971, Vol. II, Part II. p. 244. more nuanced and more suggestive means in public debates that were held from time to time between a Brahmin and a priest. It disconcerted the Estado priests for instance that jogues or yogis came from the hinterland to the islands of Goa with their “laws and relics” in order “to restore their religion (jemtilidade)” to the people.30 Thus the Brahmins were constantly being accused of impeding others from accepting the Christian law, since “they have the law and teach others.”31 (In fact punishments were imposed on those who tried to obstruct conversions in this fashion.32) The priests considered the Brahmins as the guardians of the religion (rightly or wrongly), who would canonically pre-empt the missionary methods and thus there is an interesting case of a yogi who wanted to convert. However despite all his attempts at proving the genuineness of his desire by even dining with the Portuguese, he was denied his wish, because the priest felt that if he later retracted it would prove detrimental to the Christian faith, as he would be aware of all the facets of Christianity. The fear perhaps was of a Hindu apologia against Christianity through learned men and the yogi’s apostasy could facilitate that. While the records of the Office of the Inquisition of the period under study are not available now, an Edict of the 18th century shows a list of people who could be condemned due to the continuance of “gentile” practices even after conversion.33 Various interpretations can be given to the need for such an Edict. Priolkar suggests that such a measure was resorted to as the Christians had been forced and therefore did not have a proper

30 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 1. p. 354. Doc. 148. Letter of Frei António to the King of Portugal, Goa, 4 Nov. 1518. 31 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 10. p. 250. Doc. 10. Extract of a letter of Padre Cosme Vaz. 32 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 8. p.8.Doc. 3. Punishments for those who impeded Conversion. Goa, 17 Feb, 1560. 33 Raul Rêgo (ed). O Último Regimento e of Regimento da Inquisição de Goa, Lisboa, 1983. understanding of Christian belief. Several writers have also proposed the continuance of pre-existing customs as syncretism and acculturation, vestiges of the old religion that persist or remain without the agency of the believer. Nevertheless, one could also suggest that conversion was an expedient means of making life less difficult on the surface, and the continuance of “gentile” practices in the safety of one’s homes, a way of actively resisting and desisting religious impositions. On other occasions Brahmin resistance could be more passive, more in the nature of the attitude with which they regarded the Portuguese, which nonetheless infuriated the Estado priests. These included from the Portuguese point of view the “attitude of malice and poison,” “the stubbornness with which they did not wish to accept any other opinion” 34 or even the occasions when they even ridiculed and mocked at the message that was presented to them. The priests were aware of the fact that the locals especially the Brahmins found them despicable and looked down upon them. A priest noticed that the word Prangui, which was used for all Europeans was a word used in contempt, “a name so infamous and low amongst them, that there are no words in our language, that could have such a vile and abusive significance…”35 The same writer went on to say that for the Brahmins the most contemptuous and derogatory condition would be to be called a Christian, or to listen to the catechism, or to even receive baptism from any Prangui, “because they [believe] amongst themselves that the disciple cannot exceed the Master, neither in nobility, neither in science, and being in

34 Silva Rego, Documentação para as História…Vol. 4.p. 36. Doc. 9. Noticías da India, Goa, e. 1548. Surprisingly however, the number of missionary “martyrs” on the west coast of India was relatively few in comparison say to Japan. In fact we know of only the five priests (Jesuits) who were put to death by the rebellious villagers of Cuncolim in Salcete 35 BA 51-VII-27, f.113 their false opinion the Master [Prangui] so vile and low, it will be good to see in what category in the matter of quality they would put the disciple…”36 The author rationalises the reason for such an anathema to conversion and comes to the conclusion that it was the Portuguese methods that had created this divide. Rather than asking them to follow the true God for the forgiveness of sins, they asked the natives to be like them, i.e. like the Pranguis, whom the Brahmins found abhorrent. Shaykh Zaynu’d-Din’s work the Tuh,fat-al-Mujahidin,37 an Arabic work of the 16th century, written for Sultan Ali Adil Shah of Bijapur (r. 1558-1580) can also be seen as a Muslim response to the arrival of the Portuguese. The author’s attempt, in the process of narrating to us the events of the 16th century was to get Muslims in the Malabar as well as on the west coast to unite in their fight against the Portuguese, who had usurped their trade. In his preface he wrote, I, therefore, compiled this narrative with a view to inspire in the Faithful the desire of fighting the worshippers of the Cross; for a holy war with them is an obligatory duty, because they invaded the territories inhabited by the Muslims… I named this book Tuh,fat-al-Mujahidin fi ba‘z,,i ah,wal-al-Purtukaliyyin. I have narrated in it, the evil acts done by the Portuguese against the faith of Islam in the land of Malibar…38

He begins his work by relating the importance of the Muslims to the local economy of Malabar, especially the Samuri of Kalikut, and how in time their position as the main traders in spices was being usurped by the Portuguese, “this [being] their main objective.”39 However, he also goes on

36 Ibid. 37 S. Muhammad Husayn Nainar (tr), Tuh,fat-al-Mujahidin, An Historical work in the Arabic language, University of Madras, 1942. For evidence of a call to unite and fight against the Portuguese for the damage they caused to trade and Islam see the invitation of the king of Cambay to the Zamorin (1546), in Elaine Sançeau (ed), Collecção de São Lorenço, Vol. III, Lisbon, 1983, pp. 122-123. 38 Ibid., p. 13. 39 Ibid., p. 55. to say “Their intention is to extinguish Allah’s light…” and therefore the need for Muslim forces to gear themselves against the Portuguese, their trade and their religion. Thus Zaynu’d-Din’s work was an attempt at mobilising the Muslim world using beliefs and ideology to fight the Portuguese who were a threat to the trade. And his attempt was to make their cause more appealing in the larger Islamic world of the Decccan. In conclusion one can say that the imposition of the Christian faith either through the backing of the State machinery or the priests did not get a dormant reception. There was a vigorous response and the opposition and dissent took various forms and came from various sections of society.

II Accepting and internalising the Christian faith The discussion in the previous section shows us that the propagation of Christianity did not evoke a passive compliance. Proselytisation provoked strong reactionary responses depending on where the actors were situated and their access to power and resources. Conversely, one cannot deny that there were many who consented to the call to convert. The numbers are difficult to ascertain, but this pledging of allegiance was also not restricted to particular sections of society. It would be interesting to see who were the people who converted and the exigencies of the day that led them to accept the new faith. In the context of the modern period of Indian history, Judith Brown suggests that conversions should be understood in the situation of socio- economic changes that were taking place and the attempt of individuals or groups “to find meaning in their lives…to be able to situate themselves in new locations in society.”40 The same hypothesis can and should be suggested for our period of study as well, as the changes in a sense were more dramatic and sudden considering that the Portuguese were the first to impose the alterations of a new emerging and evolving colonial world-order. Moreover, with such an understanding, conversions do not seem to privilege the poor alone. In fact, given a situation of an altered system, it is those who had access to resources in the earlier one, who, if displaced are the most hard-hit. And therefore various means are resorted to so that they are not displaced. No doubt the conversion of the lower and poorer section of society did take place and the facility with which they did so has often been reported, with appellations such as “rice Christians” therefore coming into usage. The priests in fact notice the poverty of the people especially in the Malabar and did use the tool of Christian charity in order to convert them. One of them wrote, “they are very poor and seeing that they are favoured and well treated, many more will become Christians.”41 In the Malabar, most of the converts were people who in some way were exposed to and connected with the Portuguese fort settlements. As early as 1514, the factory at Cananor had about 344 Christians.42 Those who converted included petty merchants who came and traded with them in food provisions who converted because they considered themselves better protected or well favoured. The panyquaes or the panikkars, “masters of the use of swords and daggers,” also became Christians because when they had converted they were given a cruzado and a piece of cloth and, as it was reported, when such gifts were

40 Judith M. Brown, Introduction, in J.M. Brown and R.E. Frykenberg (eds) Christians, Cultural Interactions and India’s Religious Traditions. Michigan, 2002. pp. 6-7. 41 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 1. p. 242. Doc. 111. Christianity of Cananor. 20 Dec. 1514. 42 Ibid., p. 240 discontinued they stopped converting. The complaint against the Nairs was also that once they went back to fight for their rulers, they forgot all about their conversion; and therefore to keep them in the faith, it was necessary to offer them grants, since they knew no other way of living and would naturally resort to the call of arms.43 There were also several conversions among the high castes, people who like the poor sought to resort to the ‘religious’ resource in order to re- define their own positions in the changing politico-economic complexities of the period. The incident quoted by Fróis bears witness to this. Brother Luís Fróis44 came to India in 1548 and his letters are most illuminating because of the minutest detail in his observations and also the range of topics he covers. He has written a very interesting letter on why a group of gaunkars 45 converted. The principal gentios [natives/gentiles], head of all the congregations and peoples, which they called gaunkars, seeing that Christianity was on the increase determined to call a meeting of gaunkars… One of them began to say, “what do we do since this Christianity continues to increase, it would incorporate us in good time, because whatever we had we have scattered and thrown [invested] in this land; even if we went into the interior, our wealth/estates (fazenda) remains here; if we remain they would make us all Christians, it thus behoves wise counsel to think about the future and prevent what can happen. We should all go to the interiors with our families and live according to our law because if you would take my vote, it appears better to me to lose the lands rather than our souls. Another replied, “This concourse and fervour they now have for Christianity cannot last long, neither does it appear that it would have as much vigour

43 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. I. p. 225-226. Doc. 108. Christianity in Cochin. Pedro de Mascarenhas to the king. 7 Dec, 1514. 44 He was later ordained as a priest after going through his scholasticate in Goa. He went on to Japan as a missionary. 45 Gaunkars were members of the village assembly in Goa. According to T.R. de Souza, the village community “was a sort of landed oligarchy organised into vangad or clans of the original settlers of the village.” They were the village gaunkars who functioned as the village leadership with the senior most functioning as the chief gaunkar without the system of a village head. They usually were Brahmins, though they could also be members of other castes. See T.R. de Souza, Rural Economy and Life in T.R. de Souza (ed) Goa through the Ages, Vol. II. An Economic History, Concept, New Delhi, 1990, p. 91-92. Also see. B.G. D’Souza, Goan society in Transition, A Study in Social Change, Bombay, 1975. T. R. de Souza, Medieval Goa, New Delhi, 1979. as while the governor is in India; it appears to me that we must hope that he returns to the kingdom, and meanwhile we sustain ourselves as best as we can in Goa” Another rose up…the wisest and most experienced to whom they gave great authority and credit and said… “It does not appear good to me that you take account of when the viceroy D. Constantino would leave for Portugal, but you must take care [to think of] when the padres of the Society [of Jesus] would leave. And since it is clear that they will never leave and never will stop making Christians and the same that they accomplish with this viceroy, they would do with others; therefore let us entrust ourselves to God and become Christians.46

The letter goes on to say that following the discussion fourteen gaunkars and their families of the gaunkaria, two hundred and fifty members in all converted in June 1560 at Carambolim in Goa.47 The letter is no doubt an attempt to highlight the influence of the Jesuits. Yet at the same time it is revealing in that conversion was not always altruistic even in the case of the upper castes (the gaunkars were usually Brahmins) as one is wont to think especially with the allegation that the lower castes converted for economic benefits. The conversion was purely a sense of helplessness at the given situation, with the desire not to give up their possessions. Conversion confirmed their status as village gaunkars as the Portuguese did not usurp official positions especially in land administration from the locals. While the above account was a narration of events that occurred after almost six decades of Portuguese presence, besides being a Jesuit narration, there are also letters of individuals in the very early days of Portuguese presence who wrote to the king of Portugal about their conversion and who belonged to the highest sections of society. An extraordinary example is that of the king of Tanor (in the Malabar), who in his letter to the king of Portugal claimed that he had wished to be a Christian ever since he was very

46 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol.8. pp. 68-69. Doc. 19. General letter of Luís Fróis for the College of the Society of Jesus in Portugal, Goa, 13 Nov. 1560. 47 Ibid., p. 70 young because the “law of the Portuguese seemed good to me.” However, his special request was that he would not make his affirmation known to others, as he would have to give up his kingdom if he converted. Considering that he had come to the throne because his brother had given it up he could also not disappoint him.48 The priests of the Estado wrote back excitedly to Portugal of this conversion saying “he became a Christian secretly, and wears his sacred thread as a Brahmin and other exterior symbols as before he was a Christian; but he wears a cross hidden in the body, of metal that Frey Vicente gave him. He says now that he did this until the principal nairs would convert …when he and they would make public that they were Christians, all the other people would then not dare to revolt, because the kingdom is not his by inheritance, it is of his older brother…the king in his words and in his letters shows that he is very firm in the faith…”49 However, the Portuguese were soon to realise that rather than their benefiting from such a conversion in terms of political contracts, the raja was seeking their aid in his wars against local enemies and neighbouring rulers. Similarly the conversion of the ambassador of Calicut to Portugal was one of the conversions from among the upper echelons of society that was made much of in Portuguese circles. In his letter to the king he wrote that he “rejoiced in becoming a Christian” and that even if he had been a chaty (chetty) with great wealth and honour, he would still have converted “not eyeing for these privileges and honours…but seeing that the faith of the Christians is the Truth.” He seemed to be well aware of the language with

48 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol.4. pp. 567-568. Doc. 103. The king of Tanor to the king of Portugal. n.d. 49 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol.4. pp. 349-350. Doc. 67. Letter of D. João de Albuquerque, Dishop of Goa to D. Catarina, Queenof Portugal, Goa, around 20 and 25 Oct. 1549. which he should state his affirmation, and in which the priests would be happy. While the expressions of his reasons to convert seemed sincere enough, his desire to be granted the honour of a knight of the Order of Christ for himself and his descendants in perpetuity raises doubts of his genuineness. Yet, one could possibly understand the reasons for such a request. Considering that he was leaving the protection of the nobility of the ruling elites in Calicut, he sought similar protection in a new environment that he was pledging alliance to. Another Brahmin convert Porcuiossi also called Annriques da Cunha, a person of note told the gathering at his baptism, “… the idols lie and are evil, and that only the Christians have the true God and the law of salvation and for this I do what I do and you would save your soul.”50 There seem to be no doubts over the conversion of Loquu, who was christened Luquas de Saa amidst great rejoicing in the Christian circles of Goa. The Bishop wrote of him being a “second Saul” in supporting and favouring the gentios, besides being extremely rich being the rentier (arrendador) of the customs house as well as other activities of the State.51 It was reported that after his conversion, he brought several others to the Christian faith. 52 It is interesting to note that among those who converted a large number of them were married women as opposed to single women.53 The reason given was that, “they have better organised lives and because they

50 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 9. p. 494. Doc. 71. Letter of Padre Belchior Dias to the Brothers of Portugal. Baçaim, 1 Dec, 1565. 51 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 4. pp. 131-132, Letter of D. João de Albuquerque, Bishop of Goa to D. João III, King of Portugal, Goa, 28 Nov. 1548. 52 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 4. p. 176. Ruí Barbudo (pai dos cristãos) to the king of Portugal, Goa, 18 Dec. 1548. 53 Ibid. earn much money amongst us.”54At another place we hear of some women leaving their husbands and accepting the Christian faith and upon conversion were married off to Christians. One of the probable incentives for such acts could be the provision that a woman was allowed to divorce and inherit the property of her ex-husband if he did not join her in converting. Secondly, coming to the question of the reception of the faith in terms of belief Gauri Vishwanathan has written of the need to look at conversion as a process and not as a static category. And this understanding is substantiated by her through the documentation of the experience of converts in the 19th century for whom the conversion experience meant among other things, an active participation in the interpretation of scripture distinct from what the missionaries acknowledged. This implies for one that the faith has to be explained in categories and terms, which are contextual. Thus the dissemination of the Christian message required per force a re- definition and a re-interpretation for the sake of relevance, considering the divergence in pre-Christian thought systems in Europe and in India. The changes in missionary methods and practices taking place through the 16th–17th century, moving away from an outright and sometimes aggressive invitation to accept the Christian faith to the more nuanced arguments of the 17th century was a recognition of this need. It also meant an active engagement on the part of the convert in order to make it significant to his framework. This has led Rowena Robinson to stress on the importance of studying conversions in a sociological context in order to understand what actually took place. Since the adoption of a religion cannot be context free,

54 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 1. p.225. Doc. 108. Christianity in Cochin, Pedro de Mascarenhas to the king, 7 Dec. 1514. the profession of the new is often circumscribed or even modified by the old.55 Similarly Susan Bayly argues that the notion of a break from the past or the obliteration of “pre-existing beliefs and ties” among the new affiliates is suspect. Conversion depends upon the capability of its agents to set up a viable relationship between their deity with that of the pre-existing one since the acceptance of a certain religious belief is also aided by the recognition of certain analogous features in the other with those of one’s own.56 Thus for instance miracles were often a tool for proving the efficacy and veracity of the new faith, an instrument easily recognizable to the native population as religion was essentially meant to provide succour in situations that were incomprehensible or beyond their control. Thus whether it was to bring down rain in times of drought,57 or whether it was healing that was sought, 58 or even exorcism, Christianity had to be able to respond. At the same time it appears that on many occasions the church and its priest was taking on the function of the temple and the Brahmin. As early as 1526, the elders of the village of Taleganv in Goa laid a sheaf of newly harvested rice at the altar of St. Catherine’s church and the vicar presented a pachodi, a strip of white cloth to the village elder confirming his social position, clearly appropriating the Brahmin’s task and portraying a certain

55 Cf. Robinson, Rowena, Some neglected aspects of the Conversion of Goa: A Socio-historical perspective, Sociological Bulletin, (42), 1993. Also see by the same author, Conversion, Continuity and Change, Lived Christianity in Southern Goa, New Delhi, 1998.

56 Cf. Susan Bayly, Saints, Goddesses and Kings. Muslims and Christians in South Indian Society, Cambridge, 1989. 57H. Hosten, Annual Letters of 1619, Goa and Cochin, in The Examiner, Feb. 10, 1912, p. 58. 58 H. Hosten, Annual Letter of 1597, in The Works of Fr. Hosten, Vol. XXI, p. 134. level of their existence in society.59 While it may be too simplistic to say that the church took the place of the temple in a deterministic sense, it surely served similar purposes in the minds of the people. In the practice of Christianity too we have seen that the celebration of the feasts of titular saints gained importance and at such times crowds thronged the churches. Devotions manifested at such times cannot but be compared to the concept of puja or worship an essential aspect of the Hindu belief system, which is an expression of honouring, entertaining as well as showing allegiance to a deity in the context especially of village festivals. Homage for instance was also paid to Mary, the mother of Jesus by passing on Saturday nights on the porches of her shrines similar to the concept of darshana, which is gazing at the image of the deity for a ‘sight,’ or ‘vision,’ which is supposed to bring good fortune, well-being and spiritual merit.60 There was also a great attachment to crosses, sacred pictures, images and beads. In 1560 the priests issued printed pictures of Jesus for the first time and it was not long before they had to order for re-prints.61 All Christians venerated the Cross and reports went back that soon after baptism several would ask for permission for crucifixes to be erected, (very often as a means to ward off evil) for which there was a feast in its honour or for its construction.62 Thus Christian symbols, icons, relics, and saints were being appropriated and taking the place and the role of power deities with which they had been familiar. As Bayly has suggested, the alternatives had to perform on par, if not better, to induce affiliation.

59 José Wicki, Documenta Indica, Vol. IV. p. 9, 559; P. Sebastiam Gonçalves, História dos Religiosos da Companhia de Jesus…nos reynos e provincias da India Oriental, 3 vols. Ed. J. Wicki, Coimbra, 1957- 1962. Vol. 3, p. 17 60 C.J. Fuller, The Camphor Flame, Popular Hinduism and Society in India, Viking, Penguin, India, 1992. 61 J. Wicki, Documenta Indica, 18. Vols. Rome, 1948-88. Vol. IV. p. 796-798. Vol.V. p. 359. 62 Silva Rego, Documentação para a História…Vol. 9. p. 495. Doc. 71. Letter of Padre Belchior Dias to the Brothers of Portugal. Baçaim, 1 Dec, 1565. What is being argued here is that the locals were not always helpless spectators in the transfer of religious ideas from Europe. While they expressed their agency in various forms of protest and dissent, they also actively re-defined Christian beliefs in matters of appropriation. No wonder the padroado priests were none too happy with the progress of the converts as far as knowledge and understanding of beliefs were concerned. Christianity was not being adopted in the way in which they understood it. Admittedly, the Portuguese methods themselves saw to it that former religious practices prevailed. Xavier for instance argued that it was too early to explain the mysteries of the faith and it was enough for the converts to learn their prayers and summary beliefs.63 In such a situation the subtler differences in faith would definitely have not been propagated. Medieval Christianity’s expectations of its convert populations were vastly different from say the 19th century evangelical Protestant missionaries. The priests in the medieval Portuguese context understood conversion from what the individual or group left behind rather than what he/she/they converted to or accepted. Thus we hear of a yogi who wanted to convince the priests of his genuine desire to convert, not say through his knowledge of the Christian Scripture, but in his desire to forego certain of his caste habits. Therefore a priest reported “…he ate what we ate…he broke the thread with his own hands…he dresses as the Portuguese and lived like a Christian, in dress and food habits…”64 At another place, the same Brother wrote that in order to prove if a Brahmin had been totally persuaded to the Christian faith, he would be given bread and a glass of water, which had been already touched

63 Costelloe, Letters and Instructions, p. 71. 64 Silva Rego, Documentação…Vol. 8. p. 226. Doc. 35. General Letter of Irmão Luis Fróis, Goa, 8 Dec. 1560. by a Christian, to eat and drink from.65 Such an approach necessarily would impress on the convert that the adoption of a new lifestyle was what was most important in the change of religious affiliation. Besides, other methods employed by them such as the insistence on only Brahmins being incorporated into the Christian priesthood, in a sense reified the social status of Brahmins vis-à-vis the other castes, which served their interests. There were separate confrarias (confraternities or lay church organisations) for the various castes, with dissensions for instance among the Brahmin and Chardo66 confrarias for pre-eminence. 67 No doubt, the lower castes who converted were being exposed to some sort of education, which gave them access to other resources in their induction to the officialdom of the Estado, but in no way did their economic position improve substantially vis-à-vis the upper caste converts. The upper castes, mainly gaunkars continued to hold proprietary rights over their lands and thereby access to greater resources. Thus as Susan Harper has argued, conversions were “ less a means of rejecting Hinduism and the previous caste system than a means by which subordinate groups tried to elevate their rank in the social hierarchy by accommodating and sometimes transforming the values of dominant non-Christian groups.”68

65 Silva Rego, Documentação…Vol. 8. p. 58. Doc. 19. General Letter of Irmão Luis Fróis, Goa, 13 Nov. 1560. 66 Although there is a controversy as to which jati the Chardos belonged to, they are now popularly considered belonging to the Kshatriya caste group. 67 Anthony da Silva, The Discoverers versus the Discovered: Psychological Perspectives on Portuguese- Goan Prejudices in the 16th-18th centuries in T.R. de Souza (ed.), Discoveries, Missionary Expansion and Asian Cultures, New Delhi, 1994, p. 51. “ Senhor, in three aldeas of Salcete, … there was a dispute amongst the Brahmins and the Charodos [Christians] about their pre-eminence, and they waited for a decision on a feast day, in which was exposed the Blessed Sacrament. Having very little respect and veneration, armed lascars were called by both sides to give battle, so that there were several wounded, and the blood stained the Custode in which the Holy Sacrament was exposed.” In Cunha Rivara, Arquivo Portuguez Oriental, Vol. 6 Supplement, Doc. 7. p. 12. 68 Susan Billington Harper, The Dornakal Church on the Cultural Frontier, in J. Brown and R. Frykenberg (eds.). Christians, Cultural Interactions and India’s Religious Traditions,. p. 210 In the context of adoption and appropriation of Christianity by the indigenous community, the case of two priests from Goa, shed light on the extent of integration that some recognised for themselves. By the end of the 17th century, there were several Indian priests who had been permitted to join the minor orders.69 Their contribution, following the reason behind their acceptance, was the part they could play in ministering to the Christians as well as the non-Christians, because of their natural knowledge of the native languages. The involvement of D. Mateus de Castro deserves special mention. A native of Divar, Goa Mateus had been ordained priest in Rome, after having completed his education at the Collegium Urbanum. In 1635, he was ordained the Bishop of Chrysopolis and in 1637 was sent as Vicar Apostle to Bijapur by Rome.70 The circumstances behind his election deserve special mention. The Congregation de Propagation Fide formed in 1622, a papal initiative at missionisation was essentially established to thwart the excessive control that Spain and Portugal had acquired for themselves. Moreover the attempt also was at streamlining the missionary efforts considering the differences in methodology followed. The basic flaw that the Congregation found in padorado and patronato (Spanish patronage) efforts was the lack of native priests following the unwillingness of authorities to develop an indigenous clergy. The establishment of the Collegium Urbanum in Rome was to overcome this defect allowing people from all nations to train for secular priesthood.71 And D. Mateus had obtained his religious training from the

69 In 1656, there were 85 parishes in Goa, with 900 religious and 180 Indian diocesan priests. The religious were in charge of 53 parishes, 21 were in the charge of the Indian priests and the rest (11) were taken care by Portuguese diocesan priests with Indian assistants. Thekkedath, History of Christianity, Vol. II, 1988, p. 401. 70 Carlos Mercês De Melo, The Recruitment and Formation of the Native Clergy, 1955, pp. 36-37. 71 New Catholic Encyclopaedia, Vol. XI, New York, 1967, pp. 840-841. same college. While his arrival as Vicar-Apostolic72 was the cause of much hostility with the Portuguese authorities, (he was even ordered to face the Inquisition) as they considered it the infringement of their rights, yet his contribution can be seen in the manner in which he worked for the rights of native priests besides the active part he played in conversions. He worked towards obtaining for the Christians in Bijapur the right to practice their religion from the Sultan in which he succeeded. He built churches at Bicholim and Banda near Goa and before he left for Rome in 1658, there were 30 to 35 priests in his vicariate Apostolic.73 Mateus’ example is a classic case of the indigenous converting yet not succumbing to the powers that be in their interpretation of Christian norms. He also took advantage of the cracks within the church hierarchy to stake his claims as one who propounded equal rights for native Christians. Very similar to Mateus de Castro’s contribution was that of Padre José Vaz born into a Brahmin Christian family (1651) in Salsete, Goa. An important source for the re-construction of Vaz’s life is the Vida do Venerável Padre José Vaz, a more or less hagiographical account of the 18th century.74 He was, according to the author, “judged with more than necessary competence in all subjects of theology.” Besides, “in the silence in which he lived, the retreat in which he remained, the prayers that he undertook continuously and the abstinence, which he imposed on himself, he was held in great admiration, for which he was imitated.”75 Cognisant of the problems of hagiographies as source material, yet it seems hard to deny the

72 This office was created by Rome, so as not to clash with Padorado privileges. The vicar apostolic was a titular bishop, acting outside of Portuguese/Padroado territories not subject to the Padroado archbishop and directly dependent on Rome. However a clash between the two authorities could not be avoided. 73 Thekkedath, History of Christianity, Vol. II, 1988, p. 298. 74 P. Sebastião do Rego, Vida do Venerável Padre José Vaz. Da Congregação do Oratório de S. Filipe Neri na Cidade de Goa, Goa, Imprensa Nacional, 1962 (1st edn.. 1745) 75 Ibid., pp. 18, 20. exemplary life of the benign Padre, who was admired by all including the Portuguese. The deep level of commitment to the Christian cause and the identification with it is inescapable. His contribution largely lay in his mission work in the Kanara region and Ceylon, as well as his role in the formation of a religious Order for indigenous priests. The second half of the 16th century had seen the Dutch threat become a reality in the Malabar and the Kanara region. Dutch Calvinism and rivalry with the Estado meant that in regions of Dutch conquest, priests of the padroado were forbidden to continue in their missions. The situation was especially harsh in the Kanara, where Catholicism was reduced to three churches at Honawar, Barcelor and Mangalore and that too without any priests.76 Vaz arrived in Kanara in 1681 and was there for around four years, years in which he worked towards the upliftment of the spiritual life of the Christians, besides the re-conversion of apostates.77 His work in Ceylon was even more commendable, even as the Portuguese faced greater competition from the Dutch there. While in the Kanara, he faced the rivalry of the priests of the Congregation, which had declared the region their area of operation because of the decline of Portuguese power in that region. The overlapping of authority and the failure to recognise Congregation priests by the Padroado caused great confusion, leading many to say, “the beliefs of the missionaries of Goa were different from that of Rome.”78 Unlike Mateus, Vaz worked diligently within the Padroado hierarchy and did not do anything to harm its interests. His belief in the church, as manifested through the Padroado was total. More importantly he recognised the responsibility of maintaining the unity of the followers of Catholicism, lest it caused a scandal among the

76 Severine Silva, History of Christianity in Canara, Vol.I. Belgaum, 1957, p. 58. 77 P. Sebastião do Rego, Vida do Venerável Padre José Vaz, 1962, p. 33. 78 Ibid., p. 44. non-believers and sought a compromise with the vicar apostolic of Canara, D. Tomás de Castro (of Indian origin and nephew of Mateus de Castro).79 Padre Vaz’ contribution was also in providing the legitimacy to the foundation of an Indian religious Order. Sometime around 1682, a few Indian priests under the leadership of Fr. Pascal da Costa Jeremias had congregated themselves with the idea of forming a religious order for native priests. In 1685, Padre Vaz sought admission and was soon named the Superior of the Order. His contribution was to adopt the rules of an existing religious Order and thus they bound themselves to the exercises of the Oratorians of S. Filip Neri of Lisbon. However, the Archbishop of Goa was opposed to the idea of the formation of an indigenous Order. The work of the Oratorians under Vaz especially in Ceylon eventually led to their full recognition in 1706.80 Thus the life and work of the two priests are reflective of two features of any conversion process. The internalisation of the faith to a degree, which makes one an active propagator and secondly, the refusal to accept the faith and its structures of hierarchy on the terms and conditions set out by the propagator. Very often studies attempt at understanding to what extent conversion had taken place in the life of an individual, as if the Christian faith in itself was a static category, devoid of any scope of contextual interpretations. Such works essentially reflect the need (evident especially in early modern Protestant Christian writers) to find in the individual a total break from the past. The changes that have overcome an individual are more important than the continuities that persist; they are vital because such changes reflect, to a

79 Thekkedath, History of Christianity, Vol. II, 1988, p. 288. 80 Ibid., p. 403; P. Sebastião do Rego, Vida do Venerável Padre José Vaz, 1962, p. 56. certain extent the success of the missionary. Changes do occur when a person adopts a new religion. It could be in access to resources, be it material, human, to political authority, or even in a world-view, which all religions purport to have. However, recent works have moved away from a focus on these changes and with evidence shown that conversions are not context free; adoption in fact takes various forms. These forms reflect the continuities that occur in each particular context, as the convert constantly negotiates with the new religion in order to make his experience more meaningful. The negotiation occurs with one’s own background as a starting point, through which categories one consciously or unconsciously renders meaning to the new belief.

III

Finally, one may attempt to characterize the encounter between the eastern and western religious systems. Can one agree with some, that it was a period of domination, or as others have thought of it, as a period of suppression of indigenous ideas and beliefs. Here I would like to take recourse to the work of Gauvin Alexander Bailey, a work that basically attempts to understand Jesuit art in Latin America and Asia. Bailey is dissatisfied with terms given to the cultural meeting such as “acculturation,” “transculturation,” or the more recent “hybridity” of Sahlins and Homi Bhaba that seek to understand the encounter of the colonial period. His dissatisfaction stems from his understanding that in such definitions there is an element of an imposition, whereby the agency of the “recipient” is not accounted for. In art too, such a perception continues with appellations such as “mestizo,” “Creole,” or even “indocristiano” (all of these are essentially theorisations of Latin American art of the period). The names in themselves reflect a certain hybridisation of art though the extent to which this takes place cannot be determined. Some have dismissed such art forms in colonial societies as “merely a provincial art form born from a poor knowledge of European canons…” but this does not escape the fact that it is distinctive and unique from the “mainstream” art form and cannot be described merely from the point of view of a particular “centre.” Bailey contributes to the debate by applying linguistic terminology to explain this art form. He prefers to use the phrase “dialect of the same basic language” (as opposed to a vernacular), whereby stylistic differences are placed “in a more equal, less hierarchical, relation to each other.” Closely associated with the dialect of course is dialogue. Thus, in his words, In the early modern period, thanks to colonial powers and missionaries, certain styles and motifs became widespread around the globe…. But whereas the different cultures that produced them can be considered to be speaking a dialect of the same international language, they are also carrying on conversations [dialogue] in different and unrelated tongues….

To further elucidate this understanding one may make further resort to an example provided by him. He compares two contemporary treatments of the same image, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, by sculptors from south India or Sri Lanka and Guaraní sculptors from Paraguay. Both images differ from their European model by making it more rigid and symmetrical. Several explanations could be given to these differences. They could be said to have happened due to a misunderstanding of European canons of representation. However according to Bailey, “We can also suggest… that both cultures did so because their own stylistic traditions favoured a more symmetrical, linear treatment of representation - in the case of Indians, it was the strongly iconic tradition of Hindu and Buddhist sculpture, and among the Guaraní, it was non-figural geometric patterns which flourished in ceramics, basketry and body painting.” Thus while speaking the dialect of a common language, in this case late Renaissance art, they were also in dialogue with their own cultures. Bailey has also characterised the intercultural exchange that occurs at the level of individual motifs and images, and says that three kinds of phenomenon may occur, namely, “juxtaposition,” “convergence” and “syncretism.” In the first instance, a native motif may occur along with a European one, without any symbolic meaning attached to it. It may appear in the nature of a decoration, without any change in its originally intended meaning. “Convergence and syncretism,” on the other hand “can involve a blending of both form and meaning.” Convergence may occur when the cultures that interact have a similar meaning attached to a single image, though it may not be wholly the same. One of the examples given by Bailey is the Islamic and Christian understanding of Jesus, wherein both religious systems see him as an important religious figure, though at different levels. Syncretism involves a total fusion of forms and meaning. The same form can have different meanings for two different cultures, or different forms can fuse to create new ones. Thus what Bailey proposes is an art form that develops in the nature of a dialect, which is interacting with its own context. Thus while studying the growth of art in the Jesuit missions, and the various forms that they take “We should spend less time trying to categorise motifs as European and non- European, and devote our energies instead to exploring their very hybridity.”81 The necessity to explain and understand Baileys conceptualisation of art forms in the land of the mission stems from the similar conclusion one can draw from it in the religious interactions. understanding of the missions and the way they interact with local cultures. Rather than categories, such as imposition and suppression, there is a need to see local cultures actively participating, negotiating and giving regional interpretations that lead to an outworking, which has its own uniqueness, “a dialect in dialogue with its own culture.” His theory, which actively supports native agency in the formation of an art form, be it “juxtaposition,” “convergence” or “syncretism,” has parallels in the field of religious conversion. The acceptance of Christianity must be understood in similar terms.

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