A Jewish Refuge Amid The Tumult

The Judah Hyam Synagogue helps locals and travelers “feel a little connected to being Jewish.” Photos by Caroline Lagnado

by Carolyn Lagnado
Special To The Jewish Week

New Delhi can be a hectic place. A casual jaunt may be alongside cows, trucks, cars and rickshaws. Everything from clothing to food can be bought on the street and must be bargained for. The roads may or may not have signs, and locals might or might not give tourists accurate directions. But for Jews visiting India’s sprawling capital, the Judah Hyam Synagogue is a welcome refuge in this bustling city.

Located near the posh Kahn Market, the congregation of about seven families and 35 people is not quite the mega-synagogue many tourists from the tristate area might be used to. But the small space with its glass walls and wooden benches facing toward a central ammud (stand) is both unimposing and inviting

in its basic offerings. Unique in India for the fact that it includes women when counting a minyan, the synagogue attracts professionals working in fields such as government, law, defense services and education who come together each Friday night to welcome the Sabbath by lighting oil lamps and participating in casual lay-led Kabbalat Shabbat services.

A true blending of cultures (when there is a sponsor), the Kiddush after services might include traditional Indian sweets like jalebis, which are pieces of fried dough dipped in syrup, along with the requisite yet familiar sweet Kiddush wine. Each newcomer to the shul — visitor or new resident — is blessed with a misheberah (prayer for healing), and is welcomed by the congregation. Founded in 1956 and built at a cost of about $600, Judah Hyam has never employed any religious clergy; Eziekiel Malekar, a human rights lawyer by trade, has been acting as its rabbi and cantor for the past 28 years, leading services, performing weddings and memorial services, and keeping the community together.

One of the most welcoming aspects of the synagogue community is its Passover seder, which features an annual potluck dinner, and draws about 60 people each year. Travelers, locals, and international transplants living and working in Delhi — some staying for a few days, others a few months — gather around the table on the first night.
For Hannah Chalew, an art student from New Orleans who spent four months studying at the School for International Training, an American exchange program based in Delhi, the seder in April was a reminder of home and of her faith. Chalew, who grew up Conservative, said “it was nice to be around Jewish people during Passover while in India. It made me feel a little connected to being Jewish, which wasn’t something I felt very often while in India.”

Daniel Terris, who works for Brandeis University, was also at the seder while on a business trip in India to scout potential connections for the college, which hopes to send more exchange students there. While it meant missing Passover with his family, Terris found his connections with the Jewish community of Delhi to be special. “It was a moving experience being there with local families and ex-pats,” said Brandeis’ director of the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life. To Terris, the service and the seder were “resonant with meaning, especially for those of us a long way from home.”

In a country of over 1.13 billion, Jews make up a tiny sliver with just 5,500 people. India has been good to its small Jewish community though, and “we therefore always say that we are Indians first and Jews second. For me, Israel is in my heart but India is in my blood,” notes Malekar. Several members of Delhi’s Judah Hayam, including Malekar, are Bene Israel, a denomination of Judaism exclusive to India. Their historical folktale states that seven Bene Israel couples arrived 2,000 years ago in Southern India via a shipwreck; the location of their point of departure is still debated.

Within India’s intricate caste system they formed their own caste, the Shanwar Telis (meaning Saturday Oil Pressers because they were oil pressers by profession who would not work on Shabbat).Jewish eminence in India increased greatly when the British arrived and the Jews were allowed to join the army, climb its ranks, and earn money. Mahatma Gandhi’s personal doctor was Jewish, and Ezra Kolet worked under Indira Gandhi, expanding India’s shipping presence.

The majority of Indian Jews currently lives in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), but some still live in rural villages. There is a weeklong Jewish summer camp program in the southern resort town of Goa for Jewish youth, and Mumbai has nine Sephardic synagogues and two Jewish day schools.

Delhi’s Jewish population is smaller and newer; most of its Jews moved up north for work after England declared Delhi to be India’s capital. Though his nominal title is Honorary Secretary, Malekar also teaches in the Delhi congregation’s Hebrew school and offers preparation to teenagers for their bar and bat mitzvahs. It is he who leads worshippers in typical Bene Israel Jewish melodies during holidays as well as during Friday evening’s Sabbath service. Judah Hyam also offers a library and an interfaith study center.

While India is not an ideal travel spot for those keeping strictly kosher, “pure veg” restaurants are in abundance, adhering to the traditional Hindu ban on meat, meaning that vegetarian eaters have many options to choose from. Orthodox visitors may prefer visiting Chabad centers which are located mainly in areas known to be visited by post-army Israeli travelers and offer kosher food.

Perhaps most telling is Kanika Pruthi’s reaction to the small synagogue. A Sikh native of Delhi, she began attending Judah Hyam five years ago, as part of a spiritual quest. Pruthi has now developed deep affiliations with its members and with the synagogue. While the young museum archivist still hasn’t chosen to convert to Judaism, she regularly attends services there because of her “feelings of affiliations with ‘Israel,’ the nation.” Pruthi, along with its other regulars and visitors, feels connected to the warmth of the people, and the simplicity of the shul’s offerings.
Resources:
Judah Hyan Hall Synagogue, 2 Humayun Road,
(near Taj Mahal Hotel) New Delhi,
www.jewishdelhi.org
Chabad of Delhi, 298 Main Bazaar, Pahar Ganj,
www.chabadofindia.com
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Additional reporting by Evelyn Lagnado

Westchester Jewish Conference

Westchester’s Jewish Community Relations Organization