Shavuot in India

Here in North America, Shavuoth, the Festival of Weeks, brings us to the Torah portion about G-d giving the ten commandments to Moses and the children of Israel. At home, we enjoy dairy dishes and sweets throughout the holiday.

But step into a synagogue in the far-off Jewish communities of India – the world’s oldest diaspora Jewish community, and you will experience a different kind of Shavuoth.

While the same Torah portion is read, India’s Bene Yisrael (or ‘Children of Israel’, as they are called) pray with the melodious Indian liturgical music that harkens to the ancient Jewish community of Iraq. This stems from the 18th century introduction of normative rabbinical Judaism by the Iraqi Sassoon and Kadoori families. Prior to that connection, the Jews of India had remained cut-off from the rest of the Jewish world for centuries.

While many of the same prayers can be found in the Indian siddur, a look at the colorful sari’s in the women’s section of the synagogue will confirm where you are praying. Additionally, following a long night of study, Shavuoth prayers commence at four or five in the morning.

During the holiday, many of the community’s special groups (e.g.: Women’s Rosh Hodesh club, the kindergarten children and their parents) meet at gatherings supported by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC). These various clubs and community groups each explore the meaning and celebrate the beauty of the holiday in ways that teach and strengthen the community.

The festive meals served on Shavuoth are sure to include an Indian halvah made especially for this holiday by stirring a mushy mixture of coconut milk, dried fruit and seeds over a fire for an entire day. As there are no kosher wineries in India, kiddush is said over homemade Manukha raisin wine. The wine is produced by soaking the large, black Indian Manukha raisins in warm water overnight and then pressing the softened fruit to yield a dark, sweet wine.

As in much of the world, the absence of meat dishes during Shavuoth is the rule in India. However, as the Indian Jews consider fish in the same dietary category as meat, no fish is served during the holiday. (Consequently, Indian Jews observing kashrut never mix fish and milk!) Coconut is the food most Indian Jews associate with Shavuoth. And you will often find coconut used in a wide variety of Shavuoth dishes from a tasty coconut curry, to rice that been boiled in coconut milk.

JDC is proud to partner with the Jews of India as they continue to build and strengthen their deeply-rooted Jewish community.