God’s Spell, in Warli

ldquoDev maaza govari Naahi mala kaay kami Maza govari to mazhya sangtila Tuzhi kathi dhir de maalardquoThese familiarsounding Marathi lyrics set to a catchy folksy tune and percussive music came to me as a WhatsApp message on the first Sunday of December Later I would receive three other audio clips on successive Sundays The sender was Father Andrew Rodrigues a Catholic priest associated with the Krupa Mata Church in Vasai The purpose behind Fr Rodriguesrsquo effort was twofoldmdashto promote the dying Warli dialect in popular discourse and to infuse positivity in peoplesrsquo lives Warlis or nonWarlis Christians or nonChristians in or out of the churchFr Rodrigues 81 wants to spread Christmas cheer To him the first four books of the New Testamentmdashknown as the Gospels of Matthew Mark Luke and Johnmdashare an encapsulation of Jesusrsquo life and teachings for all people These Gospels sung in many languages are a source of solace as they outline a messiahrsquos role and suffering and speak of belief and faith Fr Rodrigues wants to spread the meaning and charm of these Gospels beyond Marathi and Englishspeaking churchgoers In his eyes Godrsquos role as caretaker shepherd and provider of sustenance is relevant to any human being who seeks happiness in moments of reflection as the year draws to an end Father Andrew RodriguesHaving been engaged in developmental work in the Talasari talukamdashhome to Warli households which fall below the poverty linemdashof Palghar district for two decades Fr Rodrigues is conversant in the Warli dialect After months of deliberation and crosschecking the spoken idiom he will release the new Warli book of Gospels titled Shubh Vartaman Sahayog Prakashan on January 21 in the presence of Warli inhabitants in Talasarirsquos ParaspadaFr Rodrigues has been devoted to Warli translation since 2016 For the Gospels of Mark Luke and John he previously collaborated with Father Alivino Remedius who also had worked with adivasis of Dahanu and Palghar Interestingly he holds no copyright over the Warli Gospels and will freely circulate them on social media to ensure wide reachThe release of the book Shubh Vartaman will run parallel to a workshop where participants will collectively read the text especially since the Warlis are not necessarily used to reading the Devanagari script The workshop is open to public specifically seeking the attention of linguists as well as scholars and appreciators of indigenous heritage The date of the launch and workshopmdashJanuary 21mdashis celebrated as Sunday of the Word of God in Roman Catholic Churches dedicated to the Lordrsquos message to humans through prophetsThe audio clips of the Warli Gospels were aimed at building a buzz around the dialectrsquos use not just for the people who speak it but also for those who care about endangered languages and lifestyles ldquoI find there are many who espouse that cause but they are not united in actionrdquo says Fr Rodrigues who hopes to position the Gospels as an inspiring and reflective space He also feels Jesus of Nazareth as mentioned in the Bible could be any divine figure for a person belonging to another religion ldquoThe Govari Gopalshepherd could be Krishna or some other prophet who mingles with the commoners and gives them a sense of security After all the approachability of Jesus or other messiahs made them great and humanerdquo he underscoresThe fact that it is collegegoing Warli girls who sang the rendition of the Gospels in the audio clips adds another dimension to his outreach in the community Fr Rodrigues says ldquoThe spoken Warli idiom is known to those who speak the native tongue and I am glad we recorded the Warli students in a Vasai studio while making the audio clips Any other urban artist couldnrsquot have captured the soul of the Gospel in the correct cadencerdquo says Simon Martin the publisher of Shubh VartamanWarlis are spread all over India up north towards Pakistan and down south in Tamil Nadu But predominantly they are concentrated in the hilly and coastal parts of Maharashtra Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh Their dialect is classified under Marathi and a large majority of the community is known to adhere to Hindu beliefs However the seminomadic ethnic group is not monolithic it is composed of varied subcastes as per region and religious faiths especially in modern timesFor the urbane Mumbaikar Warlis are tribals living in the hamlets of Dahanu and Wada or even closer home in the Yeoor Hills and on the outskirts of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park or in the Goregaon Film City wilderness The celebrated Warli artist late Jivya Soma Mashe is a point of reference when it comes to artists from the community who are feted and invited to participate in prestigious exhibitions In popular culture famed Warli paintings and artefacts are known and recognised by the trademark chaukmdasha square frame in which geometric shapes are used to depict everyday lifemdashand the tarpa danceThe 1995 documentary Kahankar Ahankar Story Maker Story Teller by Anjali Monteiro and KP Jayasankar analyses the Warli worldview history and the narratives spun around them by lsquooutsidersrsquo Warlis are underrepresented in popular art particularly in the context of migration to cities and the loss of livelihood optionsIn Maharashtra the Warlis have assimilated into city rhythms mainly due to the passage of time and proximity to cities like Mumbai and Nashik ldquoThe second and thirdgeneration Warlis are enrolled in modernday educational institutions like the ones in which I have taughtrdquo says the priest who continues to remain active after retirement Fr Rodrigues laments that a large percentage of Warlis are impoverished farmers or manual labourers ldquoThe four translated Gospels suvarta or glad tidingsgood news are for these toiling men and women who can read the Devanagari script and absorb the positivity in the text they could be following any faith I wish to keep the Warli renderings in the public domain online so that anyone can avail of them in any season beyond Christmasrdquo he explains The author of 16odd books Fr Rodrigues was also the editor of the monthly magazine Suvarta known for engaging with faithrelated matters as well as literary ones He was born in Parsav village schooled in Nandakhal and then trained in the seminary at Goregaon in 1972 Ever since he has served as a parish priest twice as vicar general in the Vasai diocese in various churches He developed a love for languages in his itinerant pastoral appointments in Maharashtra Gujarat and Haryana as captured in his book Mission My Passion released last year on his 80th birthday One of his literary works titled Umbrache Phool even has a foreword by the acclaimed linguist Dr GN DevyThe best part of the Warli versions of the Gospels is their conversational rhythm Father Rodriguesrsquo preface acknowledges experts who contributed to the Warli text for the adivasi churchgoers who cannot grasp the Marathi or English teachings sikhvan The Warli text progresses as per the four evangelistsrsquo perspectives and chronological order For instance Matthewrsquos Gospel begins with yesuche kul family jalam birth yesu balache darshan the child who is declared the anointed one misar deshat pal the escape to Egypt Gaalilatchi pheri na kaam work in Galilee and Jerusalem dongravarcha pravachan sermon on the mount finally leading to Yesu maranatasi azoon jitala the Resurrection The text transports us to Israel and yet is anchored in the Warli ethosGood news is welcome in all cultures much like the widespread allencompassing cheer spelt out in Lukersquos Gospel Fear not for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people This columnist too wishes motti khusi to aakkhe lokaalSumedha RaikarMhatre is a culture columnist in search of the subtext You can reach her at sumedharaikarmiddaycom