A Memorable Time in Eleangany on last Saturday and Sunday

LAST friday afternoon, Fr. Joe and myself arrived in the rural village of ELEANGANY.I was particularly interested in returning to this village because the late Micheal Gately had given outstanding support to the establishment of a local Community College there which is now offering 28 students the opportunity to study computer applications and fashion designing at third level. Micheal single-handedly fund raised a very significant proportion of the money needed to run the college since July 2009. As a result he had a very strong personal connection with Eleanganny. The Child Aid Ireland team had visited the college on the afternoon following which Micheal had his stroke. Micheal's death was very grievously felt by the college and by the village, so Iwished to return there for some of my last days in Tamil Nadu.

On Friday we met the students and teachers of the Community College and had some conversation with them. These students are mostly from Eleanganny or nearby villages. For them to attend a third level college elsewhere would mean long travel to strange surroundings. So the vision of the Community College here was that local students and students from a certain radius around would be able to get their education much more locally.

On the Saturday morning, Joe and I concelebrated mass at 7.30 a.m., at a mouuntain shrine. I estimated there about 300 people present of all ages, and it was a lovely quiet and spiritual celebration of the eucharist. The presence of the people to the celebration was quite remarkable. They all sat on the mountainy ground in front of the very small chapel/shrine.

Then on Sunday morning at the parish second mass, at 8 a.m., we celebrated a Memorial Mass for Michael. The front of the altar was decorated by a big banner of appreciation for Michael's work for this village. There was also a beautifully framed photograph of Michael near the altar, and very large pictures of himself and his dog at the entrance to the church.

The big parish church was packed with people of all ages, from the very old to the very young. Every age was present. The mass was concelebrated by the parish priest, Fr. John Bosco, Fr. Joe, Ft. Stan (a great personal friend of Michael), and myself. The signging was wonderful, lifting the roof! The participation in the prayers was enthusiastic. And, of course, the Indians took their usual position for attending mass: they sat on the floor.

At the end of the mass, there were speeches from Fr. John Bosco, Fr. Stan, Mr. Peria (college principal) and myself - all us us expressing the great sadness of this good man's death, and our appreciation of what he had given to the Community College coming into being. There was vast applause throughout - for Michael and his work. Afterwards loads of people came to look at the banner in front of the altar, and I noticed many of the women particularly coming forward to kiss a beautifully framed recent picture of Micheal.

All in all, it was a wonderful faith-filled celebration of the eucharist, and I was so glad to be with all the people of Eleanganny and the Community College at a time of great loss for them.

Ritual of Welcome and Blessing

In many of the villages we visited during our travels in Tamil Nadu, we were greeted by three women. One held a bowl of water containing flowers and other things; the others held small trays with spices.

The ritual of welcome and blessing then took place for each of us. Firstly there was the mangala aarathi: the women made a circular action with the bowel containing water, flowers, mixed with turmeric, a spice that kills any germs, and other herbs that are antisceptic and antibiotic. The circular action meant you, as the receiver, were being enveloped by the blessing.

This ritual also means that you are most welcome into "our community" - you become part of us; you are one with us.

The next part of the ritual was the Anointing on the forehead with orange sandal powder: this keeps you cool.

Finally, your forehead is anointed with a red powder - kunkumum - a sign of joy, a sign that something good is happening in this place to-day.

There usually follows a Ritual of Honouring the Guest. A ponnadai is placed around your shoulders, enveloping you. This word means a golden dress. It's a way of welcoming and honouring a guest.

I found these rituals very interesting. They also felt very spiritual. I kind of think that we in the western world have lost sight of the importance of rituals like this that are carried out with great respect and dignity.

Kanyakumari: Land's End of Southern India

We arrived in Kanyakumari mid-afternoon yesterday. This is the most southerly tip of India, facing Sri Lanka, so a rather special place to be. The weather is a good deal fresher here with a very welcome sea breeze.

It's a typically seaside place. Most people congregate around a myriad of stalls close to the beach.

Kanyakumari is dominated by a huge statue of Saint Thiruvalluvar, a Tamil poet, still very much quoted, who lived more than 2000 years ago.

This is a very calming place, extremely relaxed. People just wandering around or sitting at the seashore.

The main event of yesterday afternoon was around 5.45 p.m., when everybody in Kanyakumari seemed to head for vantage points along the seashore to watch the sunset. Strangely sunrise can be seen all the year through, but sunset is only visible from October 15 to March 15, so we were lucky!

We stayed last night at the Daughters of Mary Retreat House; beautifully kept in lovely surroundings. They also have a lot of community-style projects based here, and an Institute of Development Studies.

At this stage we have stayed in many religious houses, and I still appreciate the warmth of the welcome and hospitality. You are well looked after.

This morning (Wednesday) Joe and I celebrated mass with the three resident sisters. We celebrated the Latin Rite (in English); they would be more used to the Syrian Rite.

Kanyakumari was a lovely place to stay for an evening and a night. I would have liked to put down here for another day, but our schedule doesen't allow us.

The interesting man in the photo is putting sugar cane through a grinder, powered by a transportable generator underneath his barrow. He puts the sugar cane through about three or four times until all the white sweet liquid comes out; then it's for sale, of course! This is a very typical Indian scene which you never get tired of.

A Special Place

On Monday, we travelled a very long distance (8 hours!) along the coast to a place called Anaikarai. There we stayed overnight until Tuesday afternoon at the Mercy Home, run by the Sacred Heart Sisters, an Indian congregation.

The Mercy Home is a residence for eighty physically and mentally challenged girls and women, aged 15 to 70. Most have a quite severe mental handicap.

These women and girls have, at some time, literally been abandoned. Each of them was brought here by the police, by ordinary people, or by sisters and priests, having been found abandoned and destitute on the streets of some village or town.

In the Mercy Home they at least find safety, security, companionship, food and a bed. The sisters and staff here do their best to give the women and girls some vocational training, counselling, and they help them to care of themselves as regards health and hygiene.

The Mercy Home gets no Government aid whatsoever. They are totally dependent on donations for the work here.

Notwithstanding that, the sisters embarked on a fantastic new building for the girls and women four years ago. It's circular in shape and there will be a big open area inside. This will be home for the women, along with many other facilities.

The amazing thing is that the sisters embarked on this project knowing that they could only build the new Home stage by stage, as donations became available to them. Their faith and hope paid off for them, because the Home will be completed in June 2010.

It was a joy for Joseph and myself to celebrate mass, very simply, with the sisters and some of the women in a small chapel. The rest of the morning we spent just spending time with the residents here. They have all the attributes of a child: trust, smiles, affection, warmth.

Tuesday has been a very special day of my travels through Tamil Nadu having met with very special people.

Some of the Sisters, Brothers and Priests we have met in our travels