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The little-known face of Goa

Get away from the bustle of Panaji, and you’ll stumble upon several truths

Forgotten by time The temple is a slice of history

After reading about a Shantadurga temple located near Mapusa (Mapuca-old spelling, Mhapsa-current pronunciation) in Goa, I decided to visit the place.

So, I started from Alto Betim and reached Mapusa bus stand. There, I asked a bus conductor: “Where is Dargalim on the Bernem road?” he looked blank, but after I mentioned Shantadurga, he replied: “Oh! That is Daargal. You have to take the Pednya bus.”

Soon, I reached the temple. I passed through a wicket-gate to the temple, and I just forgot time as I drank in the sight. Quite a big temple with a deepastambha in front and a gopuram atop the sanctum, housed in a vast compound. The whole precinct was being spruced up for an ensuing jatra.

“How old is the temple?” “About 250 years,” was the first reply I got at the office. “But this tourism booklet says 1550 A.D.?” I confronted the administrator. After reading that, he said “It should be true. The idol was brought from Mapusa.”

I became a little inquisitive and ferreted out these facts. Santeri (Shantadurga) is worshipped as a gramadevi in many villages.

There was a temple dedicated to her in Mapusa village as well, before the arrival of the Portuguese. Due to religious persecution, the idol was transferred to Dargalim in Pernem.

The book “Goa — Hindu Temples and Deities” by Rui Gomes Pereira which throws light on the Portuguese period (1510-1961) in India, not only gives the sequence of events in Goa, but also some details about this temple.

“There are three other storeys here: Mahadeva and Ganapati in one, Dadd in the second and Ravalnatha in the third. Niches with deities Purmar, Santeri, Dadd and Ravalnatha are found in different spots.”

A. K. Priolkar, who has authored and published “The Goa Inquisition”, feels “The campaign of destruction of Hindu temples in Portuguese territories did not entirely succeed in its object.”

Considering the fact that the Portuguese persecution was at its peak between 1543 and 1571, the movement of the Shantadurga idol to Dargalim (a part of Sawantwadi principality) was a bold and defiant step.

Shantadurga, the goddess of peace, is believed to have stopped the quarrel between Shiva and Vishnu. Shantadurga is a manifestation of Durga adopted by Goans. There are several Shantadurga temples, with the one at Kavale near Ponda being the most popular. For me it was a memorable escape from the bustle of Panaji.

How to get there:

From Panaji, Dargal is 27 km; via Mapusa it is 13 km. Friday is the day of the Mapusa market.

H.S. MANJUNATHA

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