Dear Friends (this includes Gilbert and Philomena), I am asked to apologize and that I *will* unreservedly, but to what purpose or just as appeasement. In the latter case, I would not be honest and in the former I am ignorant.
About the former, whether FN as administrator of the list chose to comment on the book in question and accepting Lawrence's statement is simply not at issue. It is *the comments* which FN has politely conveyed in public and in good faith. They are moot. Asking FN to produce the evidence when the onus is on the writer, not the critic, betrays professional standards and humble acceptance. As an example, refer to any issue of *The New York Review of Books* and see, for yourself, how writers hold their valid and professional grounds as do critics, any exchange in "Letter to the Editor" in this vein. Writers *never ever* abuse or are churlish with critics about being enslaved to "Anglo-American whites" or Brownies like myself, who have "Black (in my case Brown - a rung lower or more) Skin, White Mask" by Frantz Fanon (Le Seuil 1952). O tempora, o mores. Sincerely, Vivek Pinto P.S. The book in question was published and there are other ways to bring sense and reason to this exchange. On Tue, Dec 2, 2025 at 11:18 AM 'Gilbert Lawrence' via The Goa Book Club < [email protected]> wrote: > Vivek Pinto, > > Since you publicly claim to have your facts before writing or speaking, > please correct yourself. > We did not present the book to the book club. > We presented an understanding of why Western Europe colonized the World. > It is a different understanding from the search for Spices and Souls theory > I hope you guys and gals are equally critical when an Anglo-American > (White) writes. > > Regards, > GL > > On Monday, December 1, 2025 at 03:01:30 PM EST, Vivek Pinto < > [email protected]> wrote: > > > Dear Friends, > > I understand that the book was published in a Kindle edition in 2020 and > now this book presented to the Goa book club is its 4th edition (Paperback). > > What puzzles me is: whether the writers themselves were oblivious of the > basic responsibilities so politely put across by FN did not cross their > academic and professional minds, or the publisher did not subject the book > to rigorous fact-checking as is mandatory in the publishing field? > > "Being gentle" is patently misleading and uncalled for as far as I am > concerned, being an academic (who has a published thesis by Sage and taught > in different universities in varied countries) a journalist and a public > speaker. > > In each of these fields, I owe it to the prospective audience to be > absolutely ruthless in pursuit of fact and non-facts before I apply pen to > paper or even open my mouth; else I am doing a calculated disservice and > abusing my profession and whatever talent I may possess or aspire to pursue. > > Sincerely, > > Vivek Pinto > > On Mon, Dec 1, 2025 at 10:54 PM Jeanne Hromnik <[email protected]> > wrote: > > Please don't be gentle Dr Frederick. > This kind of fact checking is invaluable in reaching for the truth. > Chapeau, as they used to say in ancient times! > Xxj > > > On Mon, 01 Dec 2025, 12:40 Roland Francis, <[email protected]> > wrote: > > Holy Canolli FN. You have done a Kator Re Bhaji on Gilbert and Philomena. > Next time be gentle. > > Roland Francis > 416-453-3371 > > > On Sun, Nov 30, 2025 at 4:41 PM Frederick Noronha < > [email protected]> wrote: > > This raises a lot of interesting issues, but some clarifications are > called for: > > *1. "Portugal, like the rest of Europe, was poor... emerging from the > Dark Ages."* > > By the 15th century, Europe was not emerging from the “Dark Ages”. The > term is outdated. The Renaissance and late medieval period saw growth, > urbanisation, banking, universities and significant prosperity in many > regions. > > *2. "Expansion was Europe’s MO to solve its triple problems: Economic > decline, population growth, and knights with nothing to do."* > > Highly reductive; the motives for Iberian expansion included: access to > African gold, maritime competition with Muslim powers, search for direct > Asian trade routes, and dynastic politics. It was not a generalized > European demographic crisis. > > *3. "The super-sized revenues from the Asian spice-textile trade and gold > were Iberia’s goal."* > > Oversimplifies: Portugal’s primary Asian objective was spices. Portugal > did not control the textile trade, which was dominated by Indian > producers. Spanish colonial wealth came largely from American silver, not > Asian trade. > > *4. "Starving Turkey–Egypt of spice revenues would reduce its resources > to attack Europe."* > > Portugal did attempt to bypass the Red Sea trade, but the “attack Europe” > framing is exaggerated. It is incorrect to suggest that the Ottomans were > planning invasions of Europe from spice revenue. > > *5. "By 1515…the Portuguese maritime empire… was fait accompli."* > > Incorrect. In 1515 major centres like Hormuz and Goa were taken, but > Malacca (1511) was only recently conquered, and Diu (1535/1546), Bassein > (1534), Ceylon (mid-16th c.), Mombasa (1593) and others came decades later. > > The empire was not “complete”. > > *6. "Don Manuel forgot about spreading the Word; the Pope sent Francis > Xavier in frustration."* > > Misleading: Dom Manuel I actively promoted missionary activity via the > Padroado Real. > > Xavier was sent by Ignatius Loyola at the request of the Portuguese crown, > not because the Pope was frustrated. > > *7. “Francis Xavier stayed only four months in Goa.”* > > Xavier spent multiple periods in Goa, totalling nearly two years, > including extended stays between missions. > > *8. “At most feitorias, the Portuguese were invited… as a counterweight.”* > > Partly true for some places. But in many places Portuguese presence was > imposed (Calicut, Malacca, East Africa, Gujarat). > > *9. “By 1515, Pax Lusitania… replaced Pax Ismailia.”* > > Anachronistic. 200 years of Pax Romana gave internal stability, brought > large territories under a unified administration, allowed long-distance > trade to flourish, and major wars within the empire were relatively few. > At least that's what we believe. > > In “Pax Lusitana” of this period, there was no stable ‘peace’ regime. > “Pax Ismailia” is not a recognised historical concept. > > *10. “The Portuguese Xerafins (gold coin) were legal tender with the > colonial mint in Bassein.”* > > Xerafins circulated, but Portuguese mints in India did not produce gold > coins; most Xerafims were silver currency. > > *11. “England sent Scots and Irish to colonies to deprive their homeland > of manpower to fight for freedom.”* > > Historically false. Scots and Irish migrations were shaped by plantation > policies, penal transportation, famine, land dispossession and economic > pressures. Not a deliberate plan to “deprive homeland of fighters”. > > *12. “Rulers, priests and populace were universally illiterate.”* > > Completely inaccurate. Literacy among clergy, bureaucrats, merchants, and > elites was substantial. “Universal illiteracy” is untenable. More so > among these dominant classes of the time. > > *13. “Fr. Thomas Stephens put Konkani to script (likely Devanagari and > Kannadi).”* > > Incorrect. Konkani existed in Modi, Hala-Kannada, Nagari and Perso-Arabic > scripts in use before the arrival of the Europeans. Stephens wrote in > Roman script; he did not invent any script for Konkani. Books were being > printed in Romi/Roman before him. Likewise, the time at which different > Konkani scripts made it to print seems jumbled or misleading here. > > *14. “Konkani works in five scripts including Arabic and Malayali > appeared soon.”* > > Perso-Arabic script Konkani existed earlier in coastal writing traditions; > Malayalam-script Konkani emerged much later. The statement conflates > timelines. > > *15. “Majority of Goa’s population in the early period were recent > European settlers or mestizos.”* > > Factually wrong. European and mestiço populations were always a tiny > minority compared to the indigenous Goan population. > > *16. “In Bardez, most conversion was during 1600–1625.”* > > Not accurate; the main wave occurred in the 1550s–1580s, after Bardez > (1543) and Salcete were incorporated. By 1600, most villages had already > built churches. > > FN > > On Friday, 28 November 2025 at 15:37:55 UTC+5:30 gilbert2114 wrote: > > *Why did Western Europe colonize the World?* > Philomena Lawrence > Gilbert Lawrence > Co-authors: *Insights into Colonial Goa* > Published by Amazon/ Kindle > > The Portuguese came to the East with the ostensible goal of seeking wealth > by finding spices, converting, and saving souls. This is repeated by > historians and other recent writers who repeat the clichés. Now, likely the > AI-enthused scripts are likely to echo the same message, while writers > draw obvious conclusions and slip into generalities. > > The 15th century was the Renaissance. Portugal, like the rest of Europe, > was poor, having emerged from the Dark Ages, with regional conflicts such > as the Reconquista, the Crusades, epidemics, and a growing population. Some > claim that the expanding population, poverty, and deprivation of the serfs > in the medieval period turbocharged the sudden onset of greed at any cost, > to take unreasonable risks to expand. Exploration was Europe’s MO to solve > its triple problems: Economic decline, population growth, and an outlet for > its knights to display their prowess abroad rather than at home (now that > the Crusades and Reconquista ended). > > The super-sized revenues from the Asian spice-textile trade and gold were > Iberia’s goal. Eastern & Central Europe, caught in internal & external > military, religious (Reformation & counter-Reformation), & economic > conflicts, were concerned about Islamic Turkey at their eastern gates. The > Iberian countries elected to expand west across the Atlantic & into the > unknown world. Portugal and Spain used the geographical advantage, > technical superiority in sailing, and military use of gunpowder in muskets > and cannons, plus their political (government-backed) success and social > superiority of working together to expel the Moors. Intra-Iberian > competition accelerated the process. Their brutality & overkill in victory > compounded and rapidly consolidated their success. The revenues from the > Asian spice-textile trade and gold were Iberia’s goal. Starving > Turkey-Egypt of spice revenues would reduce its financial resources and > ability to carry out incessant attacks on Europe. Egypt’s interests lay in > the Red Sea; Ottoman Turks focused on the Levant, Mediterranean, & Gulf. By > outflanking the M-E, the Islamic wealth & expansion would be stemmed; their > threat to Europe reduced despite the fall of Byzantium in 1453. The stated > goal in Europe was to contain the power of Islamic countries to spare > Europe. > > While the colony in Goa was established in 1510, the first reported > conversion occurred in 1535. That refutes Lisbon’s oft-quoted aim of coming > to the East for “Spices and Souls.” There was a lot more spices sent to > Lisbon’s king from 1498 (when da Gama landed in India) before any Asian > Christian soul was offered to the King of Heaven. To expand and consolidate > the spice trade, Don Manuel (DM) embarked on Conquest and Control. By 1515, > under the conquering zeal of Pedro Alvares Cabral (1500-02), Vasco da > Gama (second 1502-03 armada), Tristão da Cunha (1504), Francisco de Almeida > (1505-09), and Afonso de Albuquerque (1509-1515), the Portuguese maritime > empire of multiple toeholds across Africa and Asia was fait accompli. The > foothold established in Asia at Goa became the capital of the Estado da > India-Portuguesa. Lisbon had established the largest maritime empire in > history across the Indian Ocean and enforced the hegemony of Pax Lusitania. > > Satisfied with his lucrative trade and extensive empire, DM forgot about > spreading the ‘Word of Christ.’ The frustrated Pope dispatched Francis > Xavier (Feast Day- December 3), a co-founder of the Jesuits, to Goa to > start the job. He arrived in May 1542. Bardez and Salcete were ceded to > the Portuguese in 1543. Likely, the Muslim population of the two talukas > evacuated to neighboring Muslim-ruled areas like Ponda. Francis Xavier had > little success in Goa; he stayed there for only four months. His letters to > the king recount his frustrations with the colonial brutality, for which he > bluntly wrote the king that he would be responsible on judgment day. Despite > arriving 25 years AFTER the maritime empire was fully established, the > Indian (including Goan) and European pundits and some historians, in a > broad brush, fault the Spanish priest with the violence of establishing the > Portuguese empire, and displacing the natives to make room for the > colonizers. At most feitorias, the Lusitano was invited to set up a post > and be a trading partner, to help local farmers and traders, and act as a > counterweight to protect the vassal ruler from the traditional regional > hegemon – Kilwa in East Africa; Calicut and Moghul in South and North > India, respectively. By 1515, Pax Lusitania, with its choke points, > cartazes, and tolls, replaced Pax Ismailia. The Portuguese Xerafins (gold > coin) were legal tender with the colonial mint in Bassein. > > Like the Vikings, the Iberians, and England on the fringes of Europe, > looked west to expand and for its riches, while Central & Eastern Europe, > including Russia & Turkey, devoured each other & their own people to hold > on to power, expand their territories, and preserve their status. The > rabid imperial activities across Europe saw almost no limit to the cost of > lives and treasure to realize the goals of the individual king and the > collective obsession. The urgency for Europe to have colonies was as an > outlet for its slumped wool industry, and the lucrative trade & profit in > spices. France invaded Italy. For Spain, Portugal, England, and Dutch it > was looking across the Atlantic. Colonies were a dumping ground for an > unwanted population of poor, prisoners, a burgeoning population recovering > from the medieval period, and restless knights, who, after the Reconquista > and Crusades, had no one to fight at home except the aristocratic > powerholders. For London, the colonies (including Canada, Australia, and > New Zealand) were a place to unload the restless Scots and Irish, thus > depriving their homeland of the manpower to fight for freedom. For the king > and his country, the colonies were a counterweight to the bigger and richer > rivals in Europe. > > > > In the medieval era, the greed to make money took the façade of promoting > religion (giving indulgences to save souls). In the Era of Exploration, > Discovery, and Expansion, it had pretensions to promote religion. This was > a period where rulers, priests, and the populace were universally > illiterate. While professing a goal and desire to convert the natives, > who were soon forgotten on landing, they were overtaken by greed and lust > for gold, spices, slaves, and riches. This was seen along the west coast of > Africa and in Asia. For whatever reason, current politicians & academics > sugarcoat the colonists’ goals with higher motivation as doing a favor, and > serving as justification to exploit and suppress the colonized natives. It > is time we are informed of the events that actually occurred. In Goa, the > frequent Bijapur-Hampi clashes of the 15th century were replaced by a > series of Lusitano-Bijapur clashes in the 16th century, and frequent > Lusitano-Maratha clashes in the 17th and 18th centuries. Defending the > far-flung empire from native competitors on land and European rivals at sea > eroded the colonial wealth that Europe had accumulated. In Europe, colonial > powers incessantly fought among themselves from the 16th century, ending > in World Wars I and II in the 20th century. > > > > Native conversion was very slow going, mainly because the arriving priests > were mainly to serve the early settlers, the army, and sailors. > Additionally, they did not know the native language and thus could not > communicate with the denizens. They also had to learn the philosophy and > dogmas of the natives to make the new religion familiar and relatable to > their thinking, values, and beliefs. Konkani, the spoken language, had to > be learnt by linguists like the Englishman Fr. Thomas Stephens/ Estevao SJ, > then put it to script (likely Devanagari and Kannadi) after developing a > grammar. The oral dialect then had to be adapted to a Latin script to teach > the new language to the European priests coming to Goa. Asia’s first > printing press at Goa was undoubtedly working overtime. Fr. Estevao’s > Krista-Purana > in Marathi (Devanagri script) was required reading, becoming popular in > Kanada lands. Soon, Konkani works in five scripts (including Arabic and > Malayali) appeared in print along with many translations of the bible and > works of Indian and European writers. The European priests were profoundly > confused and muddled with the natives’ fusion of local culture, attire, > diet, loyalties, and everyday practices with European ritual. Undoubtedly, > some priests and European settlers were rigid in their thinking, and the > ruling bureaucrats felt the need for a homogenous population, be it Indian > or European, which would make it easier to govern. > > > > Fr. Cosme Jose Costa SFX (Society of Pilar), in *Christianity and > Nationalism in Aldona *(the largest village in Bardez), reports that in > 1555, the Viceroy Pedro Mascarenhas split the tasks in the three talukas > among the religious Orders to avoid them intruding on each other's > jurisdiction. In India (Hindu and Muslim rule) and in Europe, the > principle followed by the kings was *Cujust regio ejus religio,* the > religion of the king is the religion of the subjects. These types of > principles cannot be accepted in secular democracies of today. The > Franciscans were tasked with Bardez and its fifteen major villages, and the > Jesuits the 66 villages of Salcete. The villages of Tiswadi were parceled > out among the Dominicans (15 villages in the north-western sector) and the > Jesuits (remaining 15 villages in the south-east, including Chorao & > Divar). After this assignment, there were increased activities in > conversion and building churches in the various villages in the latter half > of the 16th century. However, one should not overlook that the likely > majority of the burgeoning population were the recent European settlers, > the 2nd and 3rd generation of whites and mestizos born in Goa. > > > > Alphie Monteiro in *The Bardeskars: The Mystery of Migration* reports the > early converts in Aldona around 1569. Anant Kamotim/ Kamath was one of > twelve *gaunkars* / original settlers present at the meeting held in > 1595, and donated 125 gold coins for the construction of St. Thomas Church, > reflecting the growing membership. The donation on behalf of all the Bamon > Vangods-Gaunkars to upgrade the chapel does not sound like the community > was persecuted and converted. It reflects the generosity of the Hindus and > their stewardship of village-wide institutions (temples, churches, public > lands), even if they are foreign. The village churches, on their part, had > a reputation for starting western-style village schools, with books, > pencils, and teaching the 4Rs of education. This likely was not lost on the > Saraswat Brahmins, who valued learning. Church history suggests much of the > early conversion in Bardez was during 1600-25, long after Hindu persecution > to displace them and make room for White settlers. The Vangod of the > Gaunkars, original settlers, became the communidad and was a forerunner of > the current village panchayat system. > > As Shashi Tharoor wisely stated, “If you do not know where you have been, > how do you know where you seek to go? History belongs in the past, but > understanding it is the duty of the present.” > > *Extracted from “Insights into Colonial Goa”* > > *Published by Amazon in paperback and other formats.* > > *For details about the book and authors, click **Insights into Colonial > Goa.* <https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GJSBCQJ?ref_=pe_3052080_397514860> > > The e-book is available in India and can be purchased with Rupees. > > In the West, the book is also available in paperback. > > *The Fourth Edition, with an emphasis on the Diaspora, is now available * > > Insights into Colonial Goa: Lawrence, Philomena, Lawrence, Gilbert A: > Amazon.es: Libros > <https://www.amazon.es/Insights-into-Colonial-Philomena-Lawrence/dp/B0C5GP1SHP> > > Insights into Colonial Goa : Lawrence, Philomena, Lawrence, Gilbert A: A... > > Insights into Colonial Goa : Lawrence, Philomena, Lawrence, Gilbert A: > Amazon.es: Libros > > <https://www.amazon.es/Insights-into-Colonial-Philomena-Lawrence/dp/B0C5GP1SHP> > > We hope you enjoyed reading this aspect of history, which includes plenty > of “food for thought.” Please forward these articles to your relatives, > friends, and peers, as well as include the essays on Indian and Iberian > chat sites. Sharing history is sharing our cultural heritage. 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