The Portuguese Arrival in Goa (1510) The Portuguese first conquered Goa in 1510. Their control was initially limited to five islands: Goa (also known as Tiswadi), Chorão, Divar, Vamsim, and Jua. Tiswadi alone consisted of thirty villages. These areas later became known as the Old Conquests (Velhas Conquistas). Expansion of the Old Conquests In 1543, … Read more
Along the quiet coastline of South Goa lies Varca (Varkā) — a small, peaceful town that carries a deep spiritual legacy.At its heart stands a humble temple dedicated to Śrī Dāmodar (Dambab) worshipped by generations of locals. How It All Started The story of this temple began on 19 September 1932, when a group of … Read more
The year was 1899. India was in the grip of terror — the Bubonic Plague had arrived, leaving no corner untouched. It was part of the Third Plague Pandemic, a deadly wave that had spread from China across the seas, reaching even the shores of Portugal. And in the small coastal town of Vasco in … Read more
||ॐ श्री दामोदराय नम: || Shri Damodar is the Kuldevata (family deity) on my paternal side — we belong to the Prabhu community of the Kamśa कम्श (Kaushika) gotra. (I have always heard this gotra mispronounced as kamsā which often made me wonder how did that demon king end up being our ancestor. Ofcourse we are better than … Read more
My Early Impressions As a child, the name betāla(बेताळ) conjured up one very specific image: the ghostly figure perched on King Vikramaditya’s back from the show Vikram and betāla. Pale, eerie, and whispering riddles, he was the stuff of bedtime chills and blanket-clutching nights. betāla also regularly appeared in the stories and conversations I heard … Read more