When I was told about this seminary and the fact that it is the oldest seminary in Asia, I had no clue what a seminary is. Thanks to Google I learned that it is the place where priests in the Christian tradition are trained. So to tick off another first, I made my first visit to Rachol Seminary in South Goa.
Rachol Seminary
From Curtorim, we drove towards the village of Raia and Rachol. A colorful arch built as part of a laterite stone wall welcomes visitors. And also acts as a signboard for the seminary and the village. A small hillock on the left has a white church-like structure with a long wall on the side. The beautiful garden appears suddenly out of nowhere in the middle of rice fields. There were hardly any vehicles or people. So we peacefully parked the car and entered the only open door.
We roamed around this 400-year-old seminary which is a rectangular structure around a central courtyard with some curious pillars standing in it. There are long corridors with windows looking into the corridors on one side and rooms on another side. The church part was under renovation when I visited. But the tall hall is impressive with some colorful stucco work on the walls – a part of which I could capture from the upper window of the seminary.
Wall Murals at the Seminary
The wall murals all over the walls of the seminary were the high point of this visit. There are so many wall murals – that is paintings that are directly painted on the walls. You can spend the whole day appreciating and understanding them. I do not understand Christian themes too much, but I could appreciate the detailing in the paintings in subtle colors. To see scenes from Christ’s life with women in saris is something that makes the paintings unique – for seamlessly blending the local sensibilities with the themes of another land. I wish there was a way to guide visitors through these paintings.
I spoke to Noel, a teacher at this seminary and he explained to me how the seminary works. How the students are selected and then trained for 7 years before they can become priests. Candidates need to be a graduate and if they are not – they are provided support here to complete their graduation. I was surprised to hear that besides philosophy and theology, they are taught science as well. In fact, the physicist in me came out and we ended up discussing a few theories of the philosophy of physics.
Rachol Village
The Rachol village was originally called Raitur and probably the Portuguese rendition of it is what it is called now. What is not common knowledge but well documented on the Goa Tourism website is that this was originally a Shiva temple. Excavations in the central courtyard have led to the discovery of a statue of Nandi – the vehicle of Shiva and other Hindu sculptures. I did not see any sign of them in the seminary or even the acknowledgment of the same – a case of selective documentation of the history.
Stop by if you are in the vicinity i.e. a few km south of Madgaon.
I have visited Rachol Seminary. And the colorful arch is ruins of Rachol Fort if I am correct.
Yeah…spoiled the original laterite look… Oh ya Thts India !
Oh, was it in laterite originally, I did not know that. Thanks for adding that info Bee.
You are right Tushar.
nice informative post…….
Your post increased my knowledge too. I also had no idea about a Seminary.
This is so beautiful. I wonder why, in the 21st century, we are unable to create so ucartas we were 300/400 years ago.
Happy Abhinavgupta
Paramvir, I often ask that question every time I visit these masterpieces – our ancestors definitely had a longer vision than we have.
Nice to know about this seminary.
I love the mural featured in the third last picture! On another note, it is interesting to know what it takes to become a priest. I never knew graduation is a must.