Citizendia
Your Ad Here

The island of Divar (Divar-derived from the word Dipavati or 'small Island' in Konkani) lies in the state of Goa,India. An island (ˈaɪlənd or isle (/ˈaɪl/ is any piece of land that is completely surrounded by water in two dimensions above high tide and isolated from other significant Konkani ( Devanāgarī: कोंकणी Roman: Konknni Kannada: ಕೊಂಕಣಿ Malayalam: കൊങ്കണി IAST Goa ( Konkani: गोंय /ɡɔ̃j/ is India 's smallest state in terms of area and the fourth smallest in terms of population. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country

Contents

Location

It is located approximately 10 km from Panaji(Panjim), and is approachable by ferry. Panaji ( Konkani: पणजी /pɵɳɟĩ/) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa. The Island is connected to Old Goa on the south-east side ,Ribandar,on the south-west side and Narve on the north side, all by ferry . WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> Goa Velha or Adlem Gõi or Pornne Gõi is a Census town in North Goa district WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> Ribandar is an unincorporated town in Goa, India in the district (conselho of Ilhas or Narfi in Norse mythology may refer to the son of Loki or the father of Nótt, the personified Night. A launch also connects Divar to the city of Panaji from further north-west, in the village of Vanxim. The Konkan Railway passes through the village and the nearest stop to the village is the train station at Karmali. The Konkan Railway (Railway SymbolKR is a company of the Indian Railways which operates along the Konkan coast of India.

The drive to the village is scenic, with paddy fields and wooded hills lacing the roadway, very typical of the Goan countryside. Though in a manner equally typical of modern Goa, of late the paddy fields lie fallow and overrun with weeds. A paddy field is a flooded parcel of Arable land used for growing Rice and other semiaquatic crops.

History

The Island of Divar was a famous site of Hindu pilgrimage and hosted the the ancient temples of Shree Saptakoteshwar,Shree Ganesh and Shree Dwarkeshwar besides others. A Hindu ( Devanagari: हिन्दू is an adherent of the philosophies and scriptures of Hinduism, a set of religious, Philosophical The Saptakoteshwar temple at Narve India is considered to be one of the six great sites of temples of Lord Shiva in the Konkan area Ganesha ( Sanskrit: sa गणेश Gaṇeśa) also spelled Ganesa or Ganesh and also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar These were irreversibly destroyed by Portuguese zealots in the 16th century in their drive for Christianisation of Goa. The ancient site of Hindu pilgrimage is called Porne Tirth (Old pilgrim spot-in Konkani) even today. Rui Gomez Pereira in his book Goan temples and deities writes, " The original temple (Of Shree Saptakoteshwar) was constructed in the 12th century by the kings of Kadamba dynasty. The Kadamba Dynasty ( Kannada:ಕದಂಬರು (345 - 525 CE was an ancient royal family of Karnataka that ruled from Banavasi in present Shree Saptakoteshwar was the patron Deity of the Kadambas. It was destroyed by the sultan of the Deccan in the middle of the 14th century and reconstructed at the same locality by Madhav Mantri of Vijaynagar at the close of the same century. Madhav Krishnaji Mantri (born September 1, 1921, Nasik, Maharashtra) is a former Indian Cricketer who played in four Vijayanagara (ವಿಜಯನಗರ is in Bellary District, northern Karnataka. It was again destroyed by the Portuguese in 1540. " The Saptakoteshwar idol was shifted to Narve in Bicholim after the destruction of the temple by the Portuguese. WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> Bicholim ( Konkani - Bicholim) is a city and a Municipal council in North Goa The present temple in Narve, Bicholim was rebuilt by ShivajiRaje Bhonsale the Great Maratha leader. Shivaji Bhosle, also known as Chhatrapati Shivaji Raje Bhosle ( Marathi: छत्रपती शिवाजीराजे भोसले (Born February A Jesuit priest Fr Francisco Sousa documented the religious importance of "Divar" in his book Oriente Conquistado (Conquest of the orient) around the latter quarter of the 16th or early 17th century. Fr. Sousa testifies that "Divar was as much venerated by the Hindu Brahmins as the Holy land by us, on account of a temple of many indulgences and pilgrimages. . . " Rui Gomez Pereira details further stating, "The linga of the temple, made of five metals - gold, silver, copper, iron and bronze" was later relocated in Bicholim. And on the foundations of the same temple a prayer and catechism house was constructed in 1563, which was later transformed into the chapel of Our Lady of Cande laria. "

The original inhabitants of this island were people who once lived in Old Goa but had to desert during a disastrous pest that greatly reduced the population of Old Goa.

Piedade, a small village is spread at the bottom of a small forested hillock on which there is the Church of Our Lady of Compassion. Piedade may refer to the following places Piedade, a parish in the district of Lajes do Pico, Azores islands The island is dotted with well maintained, elegant Portuguese villas. An island (ˈaɪlənd or isle (/ˈaɪl/ is any piece of land that is completely surrounded by water in two dimensions above high tide and isolated from other significant The Portuguese people (os Portugueses literally the Portuguese) are the Ethnic group or Nation native to the country of Portugal, in the west From the top of the hill, superb panoramic views of the surrounding countryside, including Old Goa, the capital of Goa, Panaji, the meandering Mandovi river, and the bridges across it can be seen.

Festivities

The famous Bonderam festival is celebrated in Divar on the fourth Saturday of August during the monsoon with great fanfare and attended by thousands of tourists and locals. Bonderam Festival: The festival is a memoir to the dispute and the fury of the Villagers over the Portuguese system of resolving the disputes. The villagers on the Divar Island often indulged in some kind of fight over the matter of ownership of their lands. To stop the disputes the Portuguese, put up flags at the boundaries. The villagers did not like this system. So they protested against the Portuguese by throwing stones at the flags. On this day a carnival ambience is created. Each section of the village has a float at the parade. Melodious music could be heard throughout the village. The gaily colored floats accompanied by colorfully dressed youngsters make a pretty picture.

Church bell

The huge bell which today adorns the Se Cathedral in Old Goa was originally donated by the master of a sinking ship who'd made a vow that, were he to survive his fate, he would donate the ship's bell to the first church village, town, or city his vessel touched. Se Cathedral ( Sé Cathedral of Santa Catarina) is a Cathedral dedicated to Catherine of Alexandria, located in Old Goa, India It so happened that that island was Divar. In keeping with his promise, he donated the bell to the church of Divar, which is located on a high hillock. Unfortunately though, every time the bell was struck, it shattered the windows of the church and the houses in the vicinity, so a deal was struck and the bell was exchanged with that of the Se Cathedral.

References

© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
 Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic