A T

The Bene Israel
Of Bombay, India

TION OF

SARA WINKELMAN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

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T

he Jewish community of In-
dia today consists primari-
ly of Jews who call
themselves Bene Israel,
"Children of Israel." The Bene Is-
rael community, which now num-
bers less than 5,000, dates its
Indian origins back 2,000 years.
The legend is told that seven cou-
ples survived a shipwreck off the
western coast of India.
Throughout the years, they
maintained their Jewish identi-
ties in the Konkan villages south
of Bombay. Although many of
their books were destroyed and
they were not in contact with oth-
er Jews, the Bene Israel contin-
ued many Jewish traditions such
as kashrut and circumcision.
These Jews were called "the
Saturday oil-pressers"; they did
not do the work of their profession,
oil pressing, on the Sabbath. Some
say the Bene Israel are descend-
ed from one of the lost tribes of Is-
rael.

For them, the belief that their
prayers are heard directly by God
is paramount. They have found it
is less necessary to know, while
indispensable to do.
My husband and I experienced
another testimony of the Indian
Jews' religious connection and per-
spective when we spent Yom Kip-
pur with a small community
outside of Bombay called Pune.
The synagogue in Pune was built
over 100 years ago with red brick,
daunting Gothic architecture and
an obvious British influence.
Inside the synagogue, a bare-
foot, 80-year-old man lead almost
the entire service (in India a tra-
dition kept in most synagogues
and especially in the small village
synagogues is to remove one's
shoes upon entry). Though the
synagogue barely had a minyan,
his vigor in leading the congrega-
tion filled its spaces. Resources
were few, but conviction was high.
Beautiful antique oil lamps dec-

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THE DETROIT J EWISH NEWS

Date: December 15-26,1996

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Sara Winkelman with three adults she helped move into an ORT hostel.

Their dedication and commit-
ment to their religion, many times
without even a basic knowledge
of the inner workings of Judaism,
have left a deep impression on me.
One example of Indian Jewish
devotion is the Selichot service.
This service, held prior to Rosh
Hashanah, is said every morning
for one month at 5 a.m., in addi-
tion to which, many of the Jews
fast every day during this period.
Most Jews chant the Hebrew for
over two hours without prayer
books or with Hebrew prayer
books that few Indian Jews un-
derstand.

Sara Winkelman, formerly of
Birmingham, is working with
her husband, Rabbi Hyim
Shafner, for one year for the
American Jewish Distribution
Committee in Bombay, India.

orated the sanctuary; a new car-
pet was laid for the occasion, and
the silver Torah scrolls came in all
different sizes. Everyone arrived
dressed in white; men wore white
kortas, a pajama-type pant and
long white shirt, while women
wore saris, a tradition throughout
the Bene Israel synagogues.
When I asked about the ab-
sence of children in attending Yom
Kippur services, I was told that it
was examination time. The
younger generation is different
from their parents. Westerniza-
tion is happening and the changes
bring about questions of what the
future holds.
Today's exams are critical.
Schooling is focused on testing and
the results determine what school-
ing one will receive and, in turn,
which careers and financial op-
portunities one will have. It seems

