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History of Donvaddo---III We shall now shift our focus on the life in the ward during the Portuguese regime. The chapel of St. Anne was built in 1843 and ‘ Donvaddkars fulfilled their religious obligation there by attending Mass on Sundays. There was, however, a difficulty getting to the Chapel. The road or way through the fields ended near the present culvert across the nullah. One had to cross the nullah a little to the right of the culvert and wind one’s way through private property. It was then that Mr. Pedro Damiao Carneiro came to the rescue of Donvaddkars. He was instrumental in constructing the culvert and the road beyond till the door of the chapel( Incidentally Mr. Carneiro served as the treasurer of St. Anne’s chapel for 16 years from 1879 to 1895). To commemorate this golden moment in the annals of Donvaddo a soul stirring song was composed on the occasion in the local language. We reproduce below the song, courtesy the late Mr. Jose Carneiro and his sister-in-law Mrs. Regina Carneiro: "Ek chefe mukhar soron Kamer-xetant reuniao kelo. Modlean marog dakhoun dilo Sogllenche motint gelo. Khottlantle haddun re renderu Salak marli re bunheadu Donvaddcheo bailo re vochunu Khorem-kuddvi ghetleo re zhomunu Dulpod: Salganvantu zoddim zattai vatte pasun Donvaddkar vencer zale sankov bhandun." CROSSES: There are two majestic crosses in Donvaddo which deserves mention. " Vazancho Khuris" is situated next to the "Vazanchi Baim".During Lent both the young and the old used to gather around the Cross and sing the ‘ Stabat Mater’. The feast of the Cross was celebrated in the second week of May, with recitation of the rosary, the singing of the litany and ended with distribution of boiled grams( chonne) and feni. The feast of the ‘Carneirancho Khuris’however was not celebrated. It is not clear whether the cross is a clan cross like the ‘Vazancho Khuris’ or a cross put up by an individual or family. We also have the Holy Cross Chapel, situated in the north in front of a stream. It is a familiar sight to see even today the people of the ward gather around it in May to celebrate the feast, the celebrations ending with the usual ‘Chonne’ and drink. In 1992 the statue of Our Lady of Valankanni was donated by Mr. Aleixo Fernandes and was installed here and blessed by the Fr. Nazario Godinho, the Parish Priest of Saligao. People from the neighbourhood including hindus, gather there every Saturday to recite the rosary and the novena of Our Lady. There is another cross on the top of the hill. The purpose of building this cross is unknown, but it was/is a sign of penance because with stones on their heads, the villagers of Saligao proceeded from cross to cross, this one included, to ask God Almighty to shower His blessings in the form of rain whenever there was an unusually long dry summer spell…..to be continued. By Mr. Orland Vaz, Mrs. Emmie Sequeira, Mr. Franklin D’ Souza and Fr. Nascimento Mascarenhas. |
