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Email 'sneezings' all these! I click the Send button once and ... out comes a triple dispatch of the same document on the same day! Looked as if I was bent on having Isabel Vas' article on the great Abbe read by all. That was the story of the posting of the not-so-brief text "Abade Faria -- A Forgotten Goan Pioneer?" on the 10th instant. Today, it's a slightly different story. The readers may remember my earlier posting -- "Abbe Faria remembered" -- sent in the small hours of the 10th. It was about a meeting that took place in Panjim, to celebrate the 248th birth anniversary of our hero. Well, I received some three days back, a report on the same meeting, prepared by Matanhy Saldanha, with a request that I send it to the Goanet. Now that he has become a Cabinet Minister, I hasten to send it across ... lest I be brought to book! J. Loiola Pereira. Read on ... CITIZENS FORUM FOR CULTURE AND MUSEUMS P.O. Box 242, Panjim - Goa For favour of Publication on the Goanet The 248th birthday of the great Goan, Abade Faria, was celebrated by a group of citizens at Club Vasco da Gama on the 31st of May, 2004. The chief guest for this celebration, the honourable Minister for Art and Culture, Mr. Ramrao Desai said that it is unfortunate that we Goans are not aware of our own greatness in the form of individuals like Abade Faria and others and thus he said is the reason we forget our own identity. Heritage has to be protected, but everything cannot be classified as heritage. He was very enthusiastic about publishing books on Abade Faria and said that the Government and his Department would definitely help. Mr. Matanhy Saldanha who has spearheaded this movement for the recognition of Great Goans, welcomed the chief guest and said Abade Faria is a son of the soil that is still unknown to many in Goa, and it is imperative that we project our own great men so that the younger generation has role models that can inspire them to great heights and give them a sense of identity they can be proud of. Goa has produced great men but the Goan tendency to remain closeted within the walls of the family has kept this pride of Goa hidden. Mr. Saldanha said that legend has it, that Parashurama created Goa in its natural splendour and we take pride in this, but it is now time to also revel in the greatness of the people of Goa and the great men of Goa belonging to all communities of the Goan society. In this context he requested the Minister to aid the group in publishing books on the lives and works of great Goans. He also said that it is being planned to convert the house of Abade Faria in Candolim into a Museum depicting his life. Prof. Prajal Sakardande also spoke on Abade Faria and his beautiful statue that is almost unnoticed next to the Secretariat, Panjim. He said that the great sculptor responsible for this statue is another great Goan Ramchandra Pandurang Kamat from Madkai. Further he said that Mr Kamat has many sculptures based on themes from the Bible like the Garden of Eden etc. Prof. Sakardande explained, what heritage means and how important it is to one's identity and therefore needs to be protected and preserved. Prof. Isabela Santa Rita Vaz enlightened the gathering on the inspiring life of Abade Faria from his birth to death. She narrated the well known legend which every family in Goa has heard that on his arrival in Portugal, Abade Faria was asked by the Queen D. Maria I to preach to the court. The young priest was struck dumb with stage fright but his father who was sitting nearby noticing his son's nervousness whispered to him in Konkani " Cator re baji, hi soglli baji". These words had the desired effect and Abade Faria spoke eloquently and perhaps these same works are responsible for Abade Faria's interest in hypnosis which earned him the title of " Father of Hypnotism". Mr. Albano Couto said that Abade Faria was also involved in the first war for Independence namely the "Pinto Revolution". His contribution towards hypnotism is immense. Similarly there are other great Goans he said Mr. Alban Couto, and remembered in particular Dr. Dharmanand Kossambe from Sancoale. Others who spoke on the occasion are Prof. Sergio Carvalho, Dr. Celsa Pinto, Alina Saldanha and Sabina Martins. At the end Mr. Saldanha gave the vote of thanks and expressed his gratitude in particular to Mr. Francisco Martins due to whose effort, zeal and enthusiasm the function became a reality. He thanked the Minister for his precious time and support. He also thanked the core group for their contribution and all the dignitaries present. The programme was compered by the well-known comperer Mr. Carlos Fernandes. (Matanhy Saldanha) Chairman
