Saligao Serenade

by Fr Nascimento Mascarenhas

The people of Goa have always had a fascination for names, and take the naming of their children very seriously. In days gone by it was not unusual for an infant to be given three, four or even more names – after patron saints, forefathers, famous figures from history, and miscellaneous tongue-twisters. In addition to all these given names, later on in life many were lovingly bestowed with one more – a nickname. Read the rest of this entry »

by Fr. Nascimento Mascarenhas

As my friend Salvador Mascarenhas and I continued to walk through the vaddo (ward) of Cotula in Saligao, we found ourselves at the house of the late Sebastian Pinto. He was an Africander, a social worker, and always smiling. Opposite is Amanda Lopes e Souza’s residence—she is now in Portugal. She was a good pianist and a very amiable character. She was senior to us at Mater Dei, and we were also acquainted with her brother Jerry, and Gloria. Read the rest of this entry »

[Editor's Note: This essay has been compiled by Fr Nascimento Mascarenhas from old documents, magazine cuttings, jubilee souvenirs, and myriad other sources. If you recognize an unacknowledged source, do let us know and we will rectify the lapse.] 

 Engagements and marriages are also tied down by the traditions in Goa and surrounded by a cluster of quaint rites and observances. A week before any wedding there is bustle all around in preparation for the Buim Jevon or Bikareanchem Jevon (Beggars’ Lunch) and so called, because all the poor as well as the rich who are invited for it are made to sit on the floor on a mat (souém) and eat.  The menu consists of rice, jaggery, sweet (onn) a mixture of gram and plantain vegetable, puris made of rice or wheat flour and an aromatic curry of all types of spices washed down by a glass of feni (the local brew).  Dessert is bananas, mangoes or jack-fruits. Read the rest of this entry »

[Editor's Note: This essay has been compiled by Fr Nascimento Mascarenhas from old documents, magazine cuttings, jubilee souvenirs, and myriad other sources. If you recognize an unacknowledged source, do let us know and we will rectify the lapse.] 

A tradition, superstition or a custom is at home in a place, like a plant. It draws vitality and life from a certain fertile environment and will not grow or flourish anywhere else. And in Goa, including Saligao, with her brooding beauty and peaceful atmosphere, has been the responsive soil and setting for some very picturesque folklore. Probably the hard and lonely but contented life some of the peasants lead, worked on their imaginations and endowed the little-known and the remote with grand importance. The village folk were in every respect sons of the soil, with pliant and impressionable minds. With their hopes sown in the fields; their fears fanned by every passing wind, superstitions and legends formed an essential part of  their everyday life. At least, this was the prevalent scene while I was a young lad growing up in Saligao in the early 1950s, before I decided to become a priest and joined the Seminary of Saligao towards the end of that decade, at the age of 17. Read the rest of this entry »

by Mel D’Souza

The first Sunday in May is when the village of Saligao and its sons and daughters living in other parts of the world celebrate the feast of the Church of Mae de Deus (Mother of God).

Celebrations abroad usually start with Holy Mass followed by a social gathering where Saligaokars partake of good food, dancing and fellowship. Read the rest of this entry »

by Fr. Nascimento Mascarenhas

In the repertoire of many brass bands from Goa, the Saligao Anthem, O Brilhante e a Estrela, figures prominently. No feast procession is complete without the tune being played, and the composer and his village being remembered by musicians past and present. Of course not everyone would know who the composer was-especially those from other villages; perhaps even the current generation of Saligaokars would be ignorant on this count.

But Joaquim Antonio Mascarenhas of Arrarim must not be forgotten. He composed the musical score of the Saligao Anthem, on the occasion of the celebration of the fifty-first anniversary of the consecration of the Church of Mae de Deus in Saligao, on 26 November 1924. Read the rest of this entry »