On Hanukkah, India Lights Up Our Hearts

The glorious teak ark painted red and gold, and the chandeliers and colorful lamps in Cochin's Kadavambagum Synagogue remind me of the flames of the hanukkiah. It feels almost miraculous to have returned to India this past November with our first group since the pandemic.

For me, the highlights of our recent trip focused on moments of reunion, warmth and spirit, including:

• Standing on the beach where India's Bene Israel community says their ancestors landed. According to the community's tradition, Hanukkah and India are intimately linked. A small group of people is said to have fled the Hellenist persecution in the land of Israel, heading to India. They were shipwrecked off the coast of Bombay. Only seven couples survived. They buried their dead and settled in the villages along the coast. When we visit the villages and the Bene Israeli synagogues in Mumbai today, it's always a profound experience to acknowledge the miracle of the community's survival and revival.
• Sharing the joy of reunion with a mother in Mumbai who burst into tears and embraced me tightly when we surprised her family with a visit. During our visits in the past nine years, she has welcomed us graciously to her tiny two-room home that houses thirteen family members. We have watched her children grow up.
• Enjoying songs and laughter with the Jewish community in Mumbai after a sumptuous Baghdadi dinner at the Knesseth Eliyahoo Synagogue. We sang together, listened to slightly off-color jokes, and tried to learn the Baghdadi skill of rhythmic thumb-thwacking.
• Making chapatis (Indian flat bread) together with Indian women for the huge, free, daily community meals that are open to everyone at the Sikh Temple in Delhi. It was almost a meditative experience to silently roll out ball after ball of dough and participate in the mitzvah of feeding the hungry.
• Feeling the thrilling energy of our songs and prayers bringing alive the sacred spaces of mostly empty synagogues throughout the country.
• Sitting on a bench outside the Taj Mahal and being asked politely by one Indian after another to pose in pictures with them. Who was exotic to whom?
• Watching the faces of our group members as India entered their hearts and souls.

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Don't take my word for it. Here are the thoughts of some of our participants:

"This tour has been among the most affecting long-term experience of the many travel experiences I have had over the years, from Uzbekistan to the Trans-Siberia Railroad to Armenia, Israel (ten times), and so on...I found this trip to be life-altering."  -Paul P., Toronto, Canada

"Every day was a delight in every sense: What a spectacular and unique blend of Jewish India and India; what a wonderful introduction to so many beautiful aspects of Indian life; what a blessing you are to us, to the Jewish community in India and world-wide. I am so profoundly grateful for the totality of this experience  and for the kaleidoscope of memories and impressions that I will cherish."  -Janet M, Santa Monica, CA

"We had high expectations and you exceeded them. We have seen so many wonderful things, and sang and prayed in synagogues where we brought alive the spirits of past congregations. Fantastic organization, a full itinerary and great company. Thank you."  -Barbara S., London, England

Our Feb. 2023 tour is sold out! Give yourself a Hanukkah present and register now for our next available tour. Spaces are sure to go fast. Check out our itinerary: Nov. 2-15, 2023 and register.

Learn more about the culture and history of the Indian Jewish communities on this month's episode of Stories Between the Lines, a podcast hosted by Princeton-based Nandini Srinivasan. Nandini came across the story Mayim Bialik wrote on Grok Nation about her mom Beverly's tour with us in November 2018. Nandini decided to feature me in her podcast, shining a light on my "efforts to preserve Indian-Jewish traditions for the next generation." Listen here.

See you at the Taj Mahal!