The First Jews in India
The first recorded arrival of Jews in India is believed to have occurred in the southern state of Kerala, along with one of the most well-documented Jewish communities in India can be traced to the coastal city of Kochi (formerly Cochin). It was in this vibrant port city that Jews found a welcoming environment, allowing them to establish thriving communities. The city's bustling spice trade and its strategic location made it a hub for merchants and traders, including Jewish spice traders. Kochi became home to the Paradesi Jews, who maintained a distinct identity and contributed significantly to the local culture.
Malabar Coast, around 2000 years ago. These early settlers are believed to be a mix of Jewish traders and migrants from the Middle East, particularly from regions like Judea and Yemen. Their migration to India was facilitated by the established trade routes of the time, connecting the Arabian Peninsula with the Indian subcontinent.
History of Hindu-Jewish relations
Hinduism and Judaism, are two of the world's most ancient religions and share many similarities and experiences across the ages. Both faiths trace their origins back to the Iron Age, emerging in the Asian subcontinent around the 10th century BCE. Interestingly, some scholars have categorized them as ethnic religions with a historical emphasis on maintaining their respective communities rather than actively seeking conversions of people from other religions like Islam and Christianity. Despite their ancient roots, adherents of both religions are now found worldwide, and they exhibit common elements such as intricate systems of laws, purity codes, and dietary restrictions that delineate their communities.
Brahmins, akin to Jews considering themselves "God's chosen people," are often viewed as a "community of priests," while Jews characterize their identity as a "Kingdom of Priests." Although Hindu sects vary in their beliefs about the nature and identity of God, ranging from monotheism to pantheism, Judaism adheres to a staunch monotheistic belief in an absolute one God. Moreover, both traditions have intricate legal regulations, customs, and ordinances, exemplified by Halakha in Judaism and Dharmaśāstra in Hinduism, which guide the lives of their respective societies.
Notably, neither Hindus nor Jews have historically persecuted one another. In fact, Jews have peacefully coexisted in India for over two millennia without facing discrimination. Intriguingly, some Hindu nationalists supported the creation of Israel as a Jewish state, aspiring to make undivided India a Hindu nation.
The striking similarities between these ancient religions, including lunar calendar observance, the belief in a creator or father figure, and the division within their caste and tribal hierarchies, are thought-provoking, albeit likely coincidental. Both religions have played foundational roles in the development of other belief systems; for instance, Judaism has given rise to Christianity, Islam, and Mormonism, while Hinduism has spawned Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism.
Despite their shared historical and theological features, both Jewish and Hindu communities have experienced instances of hatred and prejudice on social media platforms and their survival has been threatened by the likes of Adolf Hitler and Aurangzeb. Hindus fought countless battles against the Mughal army for its very survival for centuries and successfully saved their culture and religion from the jaws of Islamic oppression. Similarly the Jewish people survived the Third Reich and its obsession with exterminating all Jews from the face of the planet.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, there are numerous examples of Indians going out of their way to give aid and shelter to the fleeing Jews. Furthermore, their rich literary traditions and ritualistic practices have significantly contributed to the world of literature and religious expression, shaping their unique cultural identities.
The Attack
On Saturday, 7th October, numerous terrorists from Hamas entered Israel through paragliders, bulldozing the border fence. These terrorists overran the border outposts killing many Israeli soldiers in the process. There were numerous incidents of Israeli soldiers being beheaded and their gear stolen coming from these areas. Then as Hamas entered deeper into the populated areas they showed their true intent.
Old people who were bedridden were riddled with bullets and killed in their sleep. Children were burnt alive along with their mothers. Women were raped and if they were pregnant their bellies were cut open and their fetuses smashed on the ground. Videos also showed couples being separated with the men being executed in front of the wives and then being transported back into Gaza to be raped and enslaved.
As the IDF recaptures its lands, every room in each house is unlocking new horrors. Humans are creatures of violence. We will always end up using violence to resolve disagreements. But the way Hamas treated all Israeli citizens recently showcases how they don’t even consider them as humans in the first place. They treated them as animals meant to be wiped off from the face of the planet and now that the Israelis are out for blood they are floating the idea of diplomacy and peace talks?
Reaction in India
The Prime Minister expressed shock and sympathized with the killing of innocent civilians in the recent attacks. He further stated India’s support for Israel and this has been seen as a huge shift from India’s largely neutral stance in the Israel-Palestine conflict. What is wrong will be wrong. The Israel Palestine conflict will hopefully be resolved some day but the world leaders from around the world have shown that illegal massacre of civilians won’t be tolerated under any circumstance.
The Indian oppositions’ reaction to this crisis is one that scares me the most. It took 24 hours for any statement to come from Congress and even that was very ambiguous in nature. Less than 24 hours later Congress backtracked and completely excluded Israel from its statement on an attack that was taking place in Israel! It is no secret that Rahul Gandhi and the Congress are attempting to appease the hard line Muslim vote bank using these statements but, even the most hardline supporters of his highness were surprised by this statement in today’s day and age.
Congress is even today plagued with the view that Israelis are the oppressive outsiders and that the Palestinians are the indigenous oppressed. This is evident from the fact that during the decades long initial congress rule, India didn’t establish ties with Israel. It was only in 1992 under the leadership of PV Narsimha Rao that diplomatic ties were established with Israel. Whenever there’s a UPA government, we see an increase in Indian condemnation of Israeli military action in Gaza. Even now we’re witnessing that same. The Congress and Rahul Gandhi value Muslim votes more than the lives of thousands of civilians who were cut down and burnt to death in Israel by Hamas.
Why should India stand with Israel here?
The recent attacks have shown how religions like Islam will always persecute followers of peaceful religions like Hindus and Jews. Hamas has cleared one thing this time and that it is their utter hatred for not Israel, but the average Jew. they killed innocent senior citizens and burned the bodies of young children. Even now efforts are being made by many to justify these crimes or shamelessly deny them but, the age of Internet has ensured that these crimes are there for everyone to see. Just because something has happened in the Middle East doesn’t mean that it doesn’t affect us Indians.
We saw it in each case: Farmers protest, CAA protests, Khalistan and Kashmir issue and now even Israel faces the same problems. The same people are using everything at their disposal to discredit us and start a campaign of hate against every move by India and Israel. In order to fight off against these forces of evil, we must unite in our response.
The least we can do as humans is to support Israel in the fight for its very survival.
Comments