The Madras Synagogue is the only

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

and it was built by

Jacques (Jaime) de Paiva (Pavia) Jacques (Jaime) de Paiva (Pavia, Paivia), a Paradesi Jew of Madras, was a Portuguese Jewish diamond and coral merchant from Amsterdam belonging to the Amsterdam Sephardic community. He was married to Hieronima de Paiva. After de Paiva's de ...

a Paradesi Jew of

. Madras Synagogue was also known as the Esnoga, or Snoge, ''Esnoga'' is synagogue in

Ladino Ladino, derived from Latin, may refer to: * The register of Judaeo-Spanish used in the translation of religious texts, such as the Ferrara Bible *Ladino people, a socio-ethnic category of Mestizo or Hispanicized people in Central America especi ...

, the traditional Judaeo-Spanish language of

Sephardic Jews Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefar ...

. The Amsterdam Sephardic community was among the richest Jewish communities in Europe during the

Dutch Golden Age The Dutch Golden Age ( nl, Gouden Eeuw ) was a period in the history of the Netherlands, roughly spanning the era from 1588 (the birth of the Dutch Republic) to 1672 (the Rampjaar, "Disaster Year"), in which Dutch trade, science, and Dutch art, ...

. They came to

for trading in Golconda diamonds, precious stones and corals, they developed very good relations with the rulers of

Golkonda Fort (Telugu: గోల్కొండ, romanized: ''Gōlkōnḍa'') is a historic fortress and ruined city located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It was originally called Mankal. The fort was originally built by Kakatiya ruler Pratāparud ...

and maintained trade connections to Europe. Stone inscription of the oldest synagogue in Tamil Nadu has been discovered near Valantharai near Ramanathapuram This inscription dates back to the 13th century AD.

History

Plan of Fort St George and the City of Madras 1726

Rabbi Salomon Halevi and Rebecca Cohen, Paradesi Jews of Madras

1600s The first Madras Synagogues and Cemeteries was built by Amsterdam Sephardic community in Coral Merchant Street, George Town,

, which had a large presence of Portuguese Jews in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Neither the synagogue nor the Jewish population remains today. 1644 The Second Madras Synagogue and

Jewish Cemetery Chennai The Jewish Cemetery is a cemetery for the Paradesi Jews of Chennai, India. It is located off Lloyd's Road. The cemetery remains the only memoir of the once significant Jewish population of Chennai, which has now almost become extinct. Burials ...

was built by

also from Amsterdam Sephardic community, in Peddanaickenpet, which later became the South end of Mint Street, 1934 The Second Madras Synagogue and

was partly demolished by the local government and the tombstones were moved to the Central Park of Madras along with the gate of the cemetery on which ''Beit ha-Haim'' (the usual designation for a Jewish cemetery, literally "House of Life") were written in Hebrew. 5 June 1968 Local government fully demolished the remaining Madras Synagogue and

and took over the land for building a government school, hence Rabbi Levi Salomon (Last rabbi of madras synagogue) died of Heart attack. The remaining tombstones were moved opposite Kasimedu cemetery. 1983, The tombstones from Central Park of Madras and opposite Kasimedu cemetery were moved to Lloyds Road, when the Chennai Harbour expansion project was approved. In this whole process 17 tombstones went missing, including that of

Present

After ISIS planned attack, Madras Synagogue is at undisclosed location under custody of Isaac and Rosa Charitable Trust, Henriques De Castro family. Henriques De Castro family has decided to handover everything to

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexande ...

Objects of antiquity

Madras Synagogue has eight Scrolls of the Law, several gold, silver and brass Antique Judaica Items. Henriques De Castro family has decided to handover everything to

Image gallery

File:2 out of 8 Sefer Torah in 2nd Torah ark (or Aron Kodesh).jpg, 2 out of 8

Sefer Torah A ( he, סֵפֶר תּוֹרָה; "Book of Torah"; plural: ) or Torah scroll is a handwritten copy of the Torah, meaning the five books of Moses (the first books of the Hebrew Bible). The Torah scroll is mainly used in the ritual of Tora ...

in 2nd

Torah ark A Torah ark (also known as the ''Heikhal'', or the ''Aron Kodesh'') refers to an ornamental chamber in the synagogue that houses the Torah scrolls. History The ark, also known as the ''ark of law'', or in Hebrew the ''Aron Kodesh'' or ''aron ha- ...

(or Aron Kodesh). File:Silver Yad.jpg, Silver

Yad A yad (, literally "hand"; ''hant'', "hand") is a Jewish ritual pointer, popularly known as a Torah pointer, used by the reader to follow the text during the Torah reading from the parchment Torah scrolls. It is often shaped like a long rod, cap ...

File:Menorah.jpg, Menorah File:Prayer book of Rabbi Salomon Halevi (Last Rabbi of Madras Synagogue)-8.jpg, Prayer book of Rabbi Salomon Halevi (Last Rabbi of Madras Synagogue)-8 File:Prayer book of Rabbi Salomon Halevi (Last Rabbi of Madras Synagogue)-10.jpg, Prayer book of Rabbi Salomon Halevi (Last Rabbi of Madras Synagogue)-10 File:Prayer book of Rabbi Salomon Halevi (Last Rabbi of Madras Synagogue)-11.jpg, Prayer book of Rabbi Salomon Halevi (Last Rabbi of Madras Synagogue)-11 File:Prayer book of Rabbi Salomon Halevi (Last Rabbi of Madras Synagogue)-12.jpg, Prayer book of Rabbi Salomon Halevi (Last Rabbi of Madras Synagogue)-12 File:Books from Madras Synagogue (1).jpg, Books from Madras Synagogue (1) File:Books from Madras Synagogue (2).jpg, Books from Madras Synagogue (2) File:Books from Madras Synagogue (2a).jpg, Books from Madras Synagogue (2a) File:Books from Madras Synagogue (3).jpg, Books from Madras Synagogue (3) File:Candlesticks.jpg,

Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical storie ...

Candlesticks File:Handwashing cup and Wine Cups.jpg, Handwashing cup for

Handwashing in Judaism Jewish law and custom prescribe ritual hand washing in a number of situations. This practice is generally known by the Hebrew term (), which literally means ''taking up of the hands''. The Talmud used the requirement of washing the hands in ...

and Wine Cups for

Kiddush Kiddush (; he, קידוש ), literally, "sanctification", is a blessing recited over wine or grape juice to sanctify the Shabbat and Jewish holidays. Additionally, the word refers to a small repast held on Shabbat or festival mornings after t ...

File:Hanukkah Menorah.jpg, Hanukkah Menorah File:Madras Synagogue Mezuzah.jpg, Madras Synagogue

Mezuzah A ''mezuzah'' ( he, מְזוּזָה "doorpost"; plural: ''mezuzot'') is a piece of parchment, known as a ''klaf'', contained in a decorative case and inscribed with specific Hebrew verses from the Torah ( and ). These verses consist of the J ...

File:Madras Synagogue Office.jpg, Madras Synagogue Office File:Sefer Torah decoration jewels.jpg,

decoration jewels File:Shabbat Secretary Desk.jpg,

Secretary Desk File:Silver and copper plates.jpg, Silver and copper plates File:Silver cover.jpg, Silver lining

Challah cover A challah cover is a special cloth used to cover the two braided loaves (challah) set out on the table at the beginning of an Ashkenazi Shabbat or Yom Tov meal. While its appearance lends a decorative and ceremonial aspect to the set table, its p ...

File:Silver Finials or Rimmonim.jpg, Silver

Finials (Rimmonim, from the Hebrew for "Pomegranate") File:Silver Iteams and Shofar.jpg, Silver Iteams and

Shofar A shofar ( ; from he, שׁוֹפָר, ) is an ancient musical horn typically made of a ram's horn, used for Jewish religious purposes. Like the modern bugle, the shofar lacks pitch-altering devices, with all pitch control done by varying the ...

File:Spice Besamim Box from madras synagogue.jpg, Spice Besamim Box from madras synagogue File:1873 Filigree Spice Besamim Box from madras synagogue.jpg, 1873 Filigree Spice Besamim Box from madras synagogue File:Jewish Maim Mayim Achronim for Netilat Yadayim , Hand Washing After Meal.jpg, Jewish Maim Mayim Achronim for Netilat Yadayim , Hand Washing After Meal File:Madras Synagogue Tefillin.jpg, Madras Synagogue

Tefillin Tefillin (; Modern Hebrew language, Israeli Hebrew: / ; Ashkenazim, Ashkenazic pronunciation: ), or phylacteries, are a set of small black leather boxes with leather straps containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with verses from the Torah. Te ...

References

Notes

Citations

External links

The Jews of Chennai
{{coord missing, Kerala 1568 establishments in India 16th-century synagogues Orthodox Judaism in India Orthodox synagogues Paradesi Jews Sephardi Jewish culture in India Sephardi synagogues Synagogues in Kerala