Constanzo G Beschi: From Jesuit missionary to fraudster
வாதகாலன் தமக்கு மைத்துனருக்கு நீரிழிவாம்
போதப் பெருவயிராம் புத்திரருக்கு மாத்திரையில்
வந்தவினை தீர்க்க மருந்தறியான் வேளூரான்
எந்த வினை தீர்த்தான் இவன்?
vātakkālān tamakku maittuṉaṟku nīriḻivām
pōtapperuvayiṟām puttiraṟku—mātaraiyil
vantaviṉai tīrkka marunt’ aṟiyāṉ vēḷūrāṉ
entaviṉai tīrttāṉ ivaṉ?
The above quatrain (four-line poem) means:
His leg is afflicted with elephantiasis,
His brother-in-law suffers from diabetes,
His son has obesity – a pot-bellied person,
One who cannot cure his own family members,
Whose disease has he remedied to be called a doctor?
This is an audacious sinister attack on Lord Vaitheeswara also known as Vinaitheerthaan of Vaiteeswaran Kovil in the Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu. As Parali Vaij Nath in Maharashtra (one of the twelve Jyothirlinga temples), Lord Vaitheeswara (one more name for Lord Shiva) is revered by the devotees as the Master Healer or the ultimate doctor. Is that the case, who will venture to indulge in ridiculing Lord Vaitheeswara?
Before revealing the answer, I wish to explain the above poem in some detail. Lord Shiva in Chidambaram is called Nataraja. In a dancing pose, he lifts his left leg named Kunchitapadam is said to be made of herbal roots. Kunchitam also means an elephant which this poet has cunningly used to call Lord Shiva has elephantiasis. His brother-in-law, that is Lord Vishnu is also known as Chakkarapani, one who has Sudarshana Chakra in His right hand. The word Chakkarai in Tamil means ‘sugar’ which has come in handy for this fraudster. Why I call him so, I will explain a little later.
The next line talks about Vinayaka, aka Lambodhara portrayed as pot belly, a term that even present-day journalists use very loosely in their writings. A devotee however knows Vinayaka’s large belly connotes that Lord keeps his devotees in the belly and protects them as a pregnant mother protects the baby in the womb. Also, the bulging belly symbolizes a rich treasure of wealth – prosperity He maintains to bless the devotees with.
Finally, shloka on Lord Vaitheeswara goes like this, Balaamebike cha Vaitheesaa, bishaje bhava roginaam, meaning Ye lord, accompanied by Mother Parvati (Baalaambika), redeemer of humans from the chronic disease of birth- death vicious cycle. The Tamil name Vinaitheerthaan is the verbatim translation that conveys the same concept as the Lord who makes the devotees exhaust the sins and blessings cycle earned due to the karma over the very many previous births. Thus Shiva is worshipped as the Doctor of doctors, who can cure us not only of our physical ailments when He can provide us permanent relief or Moksha.[1]
A charitable assumption of the intention of the author of the above lines could be that he was ignorant of the symbolism employed in the Hindu mantras or names. However, history has enough evidences to show that this author had a good footing in Tamil and he is credited with many works both of poetry and prose. Thus knowingly with an ulterior motive, this author ridiculed, nay poured venom upon Vaitheeswara who is a Kula Devata for lakhs of people like yours faithfully in Tamil Nadu in general and in the Cauvery delta in particular.
Let me not delay further to introduce the author of the quatrain, Constanzo Joseph Beschi (8 November 1680 – 4 February 1747) who was an evangelist from Italy sent to continue the Madurai Mission originally propounded by Roberto de Nobili (1577 – 16 January 1656), once again from Italy. Similar to Nobili, Beschi donned the saffron robe and masqueraded like a Hindu Saint, learning Sanskrit and Tamil. C J Beschi was a faithful follower of the tricks of Nobili and in fact went very steps ahead to learn Tamil, Sanskrit, and Telugu. He could convince gullible Hindus and could succeed in converting people mainly from influential so-called upper castes, Naidu or Saiva Pillaimar community along the Coromandel coast from Tirunelveli to Eluru. Just to mention two of his works in Tamil.[2]
Paramartha Guru Katha was a scathing attack on Hindu Guru Parampara where both the teachers and the students are shown as silly idiots. Next, Beschi is attributed as the one who simplified the Tamil dictionary whereas in the ancient Nigandu had established the forward and backward linkages of Tamil and Sanskrit. Look at his chicanery, by playing with the dictionary he could pollute the water in the reservoir or Gangotri.
It is quite unfortunate that a conman is called Veeramamunivar, a brave sage touted by Dravidian politicians – Christian missionary nexus.
Note:
1. Text in Blue points to additional data on the topic.
2. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.
Reference:
[1] Writing Tamil Catholicism: Literature, Persuasion and Devotion in the Eighteenth Century – Jun 30, 2022, Hal Open Science
[2] The Historiography of the Jesuit Missions in India (1500–1800) – Brill Online
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