SEEN IN THE PICTURE ABOVE IS: MANDDAILO KHURIS.
An apparition of Jesus Christ on a Cross at Candolim drew in throngs of devotees at the site on Tuesday, 20th of this month, highlighted the news in the Goan daily Herald on the next day. Immediately this news spread all around like wild fire and people started flooding this area, some out of curiosity to know what is what while many came with religious fervour and to ask favours as per the tradition of this place and Cross. Many people felt seeing the image of Jesus Christ on top of the wooden Cross placed in vertical direction on top of the piece of coconut tree known in Konkani as ‘Korvo’. The height of the Korvo is around 2 meters while that of the wooden Cross is quarter of a metre.
This place is called MANDDAILO KHURIS and NOT Maddacho Khuris as wrongly indicated in Herald. The word Manddailo came from the Konkani word “MANDD” which means group of people gathering there for prayer every week, they pray to the Cross as indicated above and for this reason this place is called MANDDAILO Khuris (Cross). This area falls in Pintos Vaddo Candolim opposite to and 200 metres away from the ancestral home and birth place of world renowned Hypnotist Abade Faria where he was born. About 10 metres away from this Manddailo Khuris, there is once famous Asilo which was the only such Old Age House in and around Candolim and neighbouring areas during the Portuguese rule in Goa. Attached to this Asilo is the Chapel dedicated to ‘Condoi Saibinn’ whose feast is celebrated with great devotion on 2nd February every year.
Simultaneously on this day to mark the festive occasion members of the Manddailo Khuris, organize with great pomp and traditional rituals Konkani Tiatro. Before the start of the Tiatro the locals with their traditional musical instruments such as Gumot, Madyem and Kansaem play traditional music for about 30 minutes. Playing of this traditional music on that day starts from Araddy Vaddo about 1000 metres away from the Mandd at night time around 10 pm, then these traditional musicians from Araddy march thru the fields to the Mandd area and directly enter the Tiatro Stage to play with great pleasure. After finishing playing for about 30 minutes on the Stage watched by the huge audience with rapt attention, they pray for good of all, Heavenly peace for the dead members, for peace on earth and then they hand over the stage for Tiatro.
As per the tradition people coming to watch the tiatro cannot go home in between unless they invite some disaster for them as per the belief. The tiatro is organized in an open place without any Mattou or Fence and Stage is set in front of the Manddailo Khuris.
This Manddailo Khuris was established about a century back. During those days the elders from that Vaddo with full of wisdom and devotion on every Sunday at about 11.00 AM started gathering in front of the Cross to pray and ask favours from Manddailo Khuris and immediately thru the intercession of this Cross many favours were granted by God. While gathering there they were distributing country liquors in Coconut Shell for those gathered there.
Then they started a system of creating funds for the registered members of the Mandd, these members are only from Pintos and Araddy and for this purpose every member was charged 4 Annas a year, later on it was increased. As a special previllege every member was paid after his death a “Prem” a sort of reward equivalent to the cost price of the Coffin for his funeral. During those days many people in Goa because of poverty could not afford a Coffin for their burial and precisely because of this they were given ‘Baddeachi Kas’ or as it was known as Fabrikachi Kas which means hired Coffin from the Church. This coffin was the Church property which Church rented for a very negligiable rent for the poor dead to carry his body from his home to the Cemetry. In order to give decent burial and avoid humiliating burial in Fabrikachi Kas, the Mandd elders created this system a century back and still carried forward by the present management of this Mandd though the value of the “Prem” has been enhanced tremendously. Added to this previllege, one more previllege was created for the members to get loan from the Mandd fund by mortgaging gold ornaments. Thru this loan many members managed to fulfill their financial needs.
My father till his death played a very leading role of running the affairs of this Mandd as a De Facto leader and his leadership was accepted by all the members of this Mandd. Now its leadership is entrusted with a small committee headed by its president.
Because of this apparition at Manddailo Khuris, the name and fame of Manddailo Khuris increased tremendously. As it is this Manddailo Khuris from the beginning is known to create unthinkable miracles and devotees of this Cross not only Christians but also from other religions declared these miracles openly and humbly. The miraculous power of this Manddailo Khuris is well known in many parts of Goa and for this reason people from different parts of Goa belonging to different communities throng there every Sunday in the mornings though one can also see flow of devotees everyday.
But now the point in question: Is this apparition a real or a piece of imagination on the part of the person who first saw this apparition? The local Church leaders had no proper answer nor anybody in the Church circle. In view of this, can we accept this apparition as reality? CHURCH LEADERS CANNOT KEEP SILENCE OVER SUCH EPISODES because it touches every heart of every Christian. In the absence of proper explanation by the local Church leaders faithfuls should not be allowed to swallow aything wrongly.
While concluding let me quote scriptures as follows:
Right after Jesus’ death, several men arose who claimed to be the Messiah. Josephus, the Jewish historian, said many were led astray by them. Scripture also mentions two who apparently claimed to be the Messiah or at least the deliverer of the Jews: Theudas and Judas of Galilee (Acts 5:36-37). Simon Magus claimed to "the great power of God" (Acts 8:9-10). Every generation has its false messiahs, each one claiming to be the special messenger of God, the deliverer of the human race. Every false religion and sect of every generation has its false messiahs, but there shall be many as the last days approach.
Jesus said that these were just the "beginning of sorrows" (Matthew 24:8 all these are the beginning of sorrows. So a clearer rendering of what Jesus meant in verses 4-5 would be: "Take heed that no one deceives you. For many shall come claiming to represent Me, saying that I Jesus am the Christ, yet shall deceive many." That is, they would proclaim Jesus as the biblical Messiah and would claim to be His representatives—but they actually would be part of a massive religious deception.
If we see the exact in a biblical way when someone see’s Jesus, we can also see their life as a testimony for Christ.1) Paul who saw Jesus we can read it in Acts 9:3-16. And when we see his previous life in Acts Chapter 8.we can see two different life of one person before he saw the vision of Jesus Christ and after he saw Christ.Jesus appeared to Paul for a reason which was clearly told to paul by Jesus Himself cause he is not a dumb God,and so also if Jesus appears even in this century He will do the same for He is the same God yesterday, Today and Forever (Hebrews 13:8).
A. Veronica Fernandes,
Kuwait.
