Judaism
AI-drafted · awaiting admin review
India's small Jewish communities, the Cochin Jews of Kerala, the Bene Israel of the Konkan coast, the Baghdadi Jews of Mumbai and Kolkata and the Bnei Menashe of Manipur and Mizoram, are among the oldest and most distinctive Jewish communities in Asia.
| Origin | Arose in ancient Israel. Cochin Jews trace their presence in Kerala to ancient times; the Bene Israel, by community tradition, descend from Jews shipwrecked on the Konkan coast; Baghdadi Jews settled in Mumbai and Kolkata in the 18th and 19th centuries |
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Sacred texts
- Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), including the Torah
- Talmud
- Prayer books (siddur)
Main festivals
- Pesach (Passover)
- Rosh Hashanah
- Yom Kippur
- Sukkot
- Hanukkah
- Purim
- Shabbat every week
Places of worship and pilgrimage
- Paradesi Synagogue, Mattancherry, Kochi (built 1568)
- Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue, Mumbai
- Magen David Synagogue, Kolkata
- Shaare Rahamim Synagogue, Mumbai
- Synagogues of the Konkan coast, such as at Alibag and Revdanda
Underlined names open their own page.
Key beliefs and practices
- One God, who made a covenant with the people of Israel.
- The Torah, the teaching given through Moses, guides daily life.
- Keeping the Sabbath, the festivals and dietary laws (kashrut).
- Acts of justice and kindness (tzedakah) as religious duties.
- Indian Jews kept their faith while taking on local languages, dress and food, such as Malayalam songs among Cochin Jews and Marathi among the Bene Israel.