Despite diktat, the Saint of the East remained in the East

NEW DELHI: Less than three weeks ago, thousands of devotees thronged to Old Goa for the novena and feast of

St Francis Xavier

, a high point in Goa's religious calendar. Throughout the year, thousands of pilgrims visit the 16th century Basilica of Bom Jesus, which houses the relics of the Spanish Jesuit missionary.

But if former Portuguese prime minister Antonio de Oliveira

Salazar

had had his way in 1961, the relics wouldn't even have been in Goa. It was the then Portuguese governor general, Manuel Antonio Vassalo e Silva, who put his foot down and refused to transfer the relics to Portugal - as he had been ordered to by Salazar - despite knowing he would face court martial.

"The relics of St Francis Xavier are a moral patrimony of the Portuguese Estado da India, around which they (the people) will gather in the moments of danger that are certainly approaching," Vassalo e Silva replied to Salazar, according to history writer Vasco Pinho. "St Francis Xavier is

Saint

of the East, and his place is here. It is not possible for me to obey the order." In his book, Snapshots of Indo-Portuguese history-II, Pinho notes that this was one of three orders by Salazar that Vassalo e Silva disobeyed.

Another writer, the Jesuit Delio de Mendonca, wrote that he disregarded the orders fearing an adverse reaction from Goan Catholics. The Basilica's current rector, Fr Patricio Fernandes, says that had the relics been moved away, things would have been very different in Goa. "With the presence of St Francis Xavier, things are very different in the way we live, perceive, and act. The relics have an aura, and people are drawn to the place and the mysterious experience," he said.

In 1961, Vassalo e Silva hurriedly organised an exposition, looking for a miracle for Goa. "The exposition ended with the arrival of Indian troops," said Maurice Hall in his book, 'Window on Goa'.