Constanzo Beschi
Encyclopedia
Constanzo Beschi, also known under his Tamil
name of Vīramāmunivar or Constantine Joseph Beschi (in English) (8 November 1680 – 4 February 1747) was an Italian Jesuit priest, Missionary in South India
, and renowned poet in the Tamil language
.
, Mantova, Italy
, a place very close to the family castle of Aloysius Gonzaga
, Beschi got his secondary education in the Jesuit High School of Mantova. After becoming a Jesuit in 1698 he was trained in Ravenna
and Bologna
from where he requested, and obtained, from Superior General
Michelangelo Tamburini
the permission to be sent to the Madurai mission in South India. Sailing from Lisbon
he reached Goa
in October 1710, from where he proceeded immediately to South India. He arrived in Madurai
in May 1711.
. Then he served as parish priest in Kamanayakkanpatti
one of the oldest mission centers in Tamil Nadu. Also he visited several important centers such as Tirunelveli
, Ramanathaparam, Thanjavur and of course Madurai
, in order to learn the Tamil language
.
He met with persecution in 1714-15, and escaped a death sentence thanks to the influence of a Hindu
friend. The hostility of local kings prevented him from visiting Christian communities. This gave him more time to master the Tamil language in which he soon showed an astonishing proficiency. Thus he discovered that he would be a missionary of the pen.
Inculturation
Inspired by what was done in China
Beschi adopted an Indian life style and introduced a touch of Hindu esthetics even in the Christian statuary. Similarly the churches he built (Poondi Matha Basilica
at Poondi near Trichy, Periyanayagi maadha shrine at Konankuppam
, and Adaikala maadha shrine at Elakurichi
) in their architectonic lines, are inspired by Hindu temples. These churches are now Catholic pilgrim centers. There are two teak wooden cars built by him is still there in Kamanayakkanpatti
which is another example for his Hindu inspiration. He made himself a sannyasi (Indian ascetic) and adopted their saffron
coloured dress. His facility in making friendship, along with his cultural competence and obvious religious commitment gave him much influence which he used in order to protect Christians against exploitation
and persecution
. He is said to have baptized 12,000 people. He worked in the Thanjavur area till 1738 and settled in 1740 on the Coromandel coast
where he remained till the end of his life. He died at Ambazhakad, Kerala
, India.
, he is also known, in a broader circle, as one of the classical writers of Tamil literature
. Besides composing a literary Tamil grammar
, he also wrote a grammar for the common use of Tamil - the first to do so - which earned him the title of Father of Tamil prose. He compiled several Tamil dictionaries: including the Chaturakarati (சதுரகராதி), the quadruple lexicon containing words, synonyms, categories of words, and rhymes; a Tamil-Latin and Latin-Tamil-Portuguese dictionary.
His greatest poetical work is the Thembavani
(தேம்பாவணி) (the Unfading Garland), an extraordinary epic poem - 3615 stanzas long - on Salvation
history and the life of Saint Joseph
. It is considered a classic of Tamil literature. He also wrote a prabandham (one of the minor literature) called Kavalur Kalambagam (காவலூர் கலம்பகம்), a grammatical treatise called Thonnool (தொன்னூல்), a guide book for catechists with the title Vedhiyar Ozukkam (வேதியர் ஒழுக்கம்), and Paramarthaguruvin kathai (பரமார்த்த குருவின் கதை), a satirical piece on a naive religious teacher and his equally obtuse disciples.
In prose he left us polemical writings against the Lutheran missionaries and didactic religious books for the instruction of Catholics. He prepared a vademecum for newly arrived missionaries.
and winning debates over them. Yet his Thembavani
meaning "ornament of poems as sweet as honey" is proof that he had a positive approach to Hinduism
, as he often uses phrases, ideas and myths characteristic of Hinduism. The same spirit of dialogue and admiration for the Tamil culture led him to translate and explain in Latin the famous Thirukkural epic poem of Thiruvalluvar (1730). This Latin work was an eye opener for European intellectuals, discovering truth and beauty in a Tamil literature. They also found it to contain many thoughts similar to Christianity.
. In 1968 the State of Tamil Nadu erected a statue for Beschi on the Marina beach in the City of Madras (Chennai), as a recognition for his contribution to the Tamil language and literature.
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
name of Vīramāmunivar or Constantine Joseph Beschi (in English) (8 November 1680 – 4 February 1747) was an Italian Jesuit priest, Missionary in South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
, and renowned poet in the Tamil language
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
.
Early years and formation
Born in Castiglione delle StiviereCastiglione delle Stiviere
Castiglione delle Stiviere is a town and comune in the province of Mantua, in Lombardy, Italy, 30 km northwest of Mantua by road.-History:During the War of the Spanish Succession, the French under the duc de Vendôme occupied it....
, Mantova, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, a place very close to the family castle of Aloysius Gonzaga
Aloysius Gonzaga
- Early life :Aloysius Gonzaga was born at his family's castle in Castiglione delle Stiviere, between Brescia and Mantova in northern Italy in what was then part of the Papal States. He was a member of the illustrious House of Gonzaga...
, Beschi got his secondary education in the Jesuit High School of Mantova. After becoming a Jesuit in 1698 he was trained in Ravenna
Ravenna
Ravenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and the second largest comune in Italy by land area, although, at , it is little more than half the size of the largest comune, Rome...
and Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
from where he requested, and obtained, from Superior General
Superior general
A Superior General, or General Superior, is the Superior at the head of a whole religious order or congregation.The term is mainly used as a generic term, while many orders and congregations use other specific titles, notably:* Abbot general...
Michelangelo Tamburini
Michelangelo Tamburini
Michelangelo Tamburini , was an Italian Jesuit, who was elected fourteenth Superior General of the Society of Jesus from January 31, 1706 to February 28, 1730....
the permission to be sent to the Madurai mission in South India. Sailing from Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
he reached Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
in October 1710, from where he proceeded immediately to South India. He arrived in Madurai
Madurai
Madurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...
in May 1711.
In Tamil Nadu (Madurai Mission)
During the first six years, he worked as missionary in Elakurichy (ஏலாக்குறிச்சி), a town near TiruchirapalliTiruchirapalli
Tiruchirappalli ) , also called Tiruchi or Trichy , is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli District. It is the fourth largest municipal corporation in Tamil Nadu and also the fourth largest urban agglomeration in the state...
. Then he served as parish priest in Kamanayakkanpatti
Kamanayakkanpatti
Kamanayakkanpatti is a small village in Kovilpatti Taluk in Thoothukudi District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.- Demographics : India census, Kamanayakkanpatti had a population of 2426. Males constitute 50.05% of the population and females 49.05%. Kamanayakkanpatti has an average literacy...
one of the oldest mission centers in Tamil Nadu. Also he visited several important centers such as Tirunelveli
Tirunelveli
Tirunelveli , also known as Nellai , and historically as Tinnevelly, is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters of the Tirunelveli District and the sixth biggest city in Tamil Nadu...
, Ramanathaparam, Thanjavur and of course Madurai
Madurai
Madurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...
, in order to learn the Tamil language
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
.
He met with persecution in 1714-15, and escaped a death sentence thanks to the influence of a Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
friend. The hostility of local kings prevented him from visiting Christian communities. This gave him more time to master the Tamil language in which he soon showed an astonishing proficiency. Thus he discovered that he would be a missionary of the pen.
InculturationInculturationInculturation is a term used in Christianity, especially in the Roman Catholic Church, referring to the adaptation of the way Church teachings are presented to non-Christian cultures, and to the influence of those cultures on the evolution of these teachings....
Inspired by what was done in ChinaChina
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Beschi adopted an Indian life style and introduced a touch of Hindu esthetics even in the Christian statuary. Similarly the churches he built (Poondi Matha Basilica
Poondi Matha Basilica
Our Lady of Lourdes Basilica, Poondi, is a Catholic pilgrimage centre located in Tamil Nadu, South India. Poondi is a small village located in Thiruvaiyaru Taluk , about 35-km away from Thanjavur...
at Poondi near Trichy, Periyanayagi maadha shrine at Konankuppam
Konankuppam
Konankuppam is small village situated in Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu. Which was known as aariyanur Where veeramamunivar wrote the Thembavani in Tamil.-History:The Perianayagi Madha Shrine was constructed by the great missionary Fr.Beshi....
, and Adaikala maadha shrine at Elakurichi
Elakurichi
Elakurichi a tiny village in Perambalur district, Tamil Nadu, South India, is a Catholic pilgrimage center dedicated to Virgin Mary. It is 65 km from Perambalur...
) in their architectonic lines, are inspired by Hindu temples. These churches are now Catholic pilgrim centers. There are two teak wooden cars built by him is still there in Kamanayakkanpatti
Kamanayakkanpatti
Kamanayakkanpatti is a small village in Kovilpatti Taluk in Thoothukudi District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.- Demographics : India census, Kamanayakkanpatti had a population of 2426. Males constitute 50.05% of the population and females 49.05%. Kamanayakkanpatti has an average literacy...
which is another example for his Hindu inspiration. He made himself a sannyasi (Indian ascetic) and adopted their saffron
Saffron
Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the saffron crocus. Crocus is a genus in the family Iridaceae. Each saffron crocus grows to and bears up to four flowers, each with three vivid crimson stigmas, which are each the distal end of a carpel...
coloured dress. His facility in making friendship, along with his cultural competence and obvious religious commitment gave him much influence which he used in order to protect Christians against exploitation
Exploitation
This article discusses the term exploitation in the meaning of using something in an unjust or cruel manner.- As unjust benefit :In political economy, economics, and sociology, exploitation involves a persistent social relationship in which certain persons are being mistreated or unfairly used for...
and persecution
Persecution
Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual or group by another group. The most common forms are religious persecution, ethnic persecution, and political persecution, though there is naturally some overlap between these terms. The inflicting of suffering, harassment, isolation,...
. He is said to have baptized 12,000 people. He worked in the Thanjavur area till 1738 and settled in 1740 on the Coromandel coast
Coromandel Coast
The Coromandel Coast is the name given to the southeastern coast of the Indian Subcontinent between Cape Comorin and False Divi Point...
where he remained till the end of his life. He died at Ambazhakad, Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, India.
Master of Tamil literature
Even though he was primarily a missionaryMissionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
, he is also known, in a broader circle, as one of the classical writers of Tamil literature
Tamil literature
Tamil literature refers to the literature in the Tamil language. Tamil literature has a rich and long literary tradition spanning more than two thousand years. The oldest extant works show signs of maturity indicating an even longer period of evolution...
. Besides composing a literary Tamil grammar
Tamil grammar
Much of Tamil grammar is extensively described in the oldest available grammar book for Tamil, the Tolkāppiyam. Modern Tamil writing is largely based on the 13th century grammar which restated and clarified the rules of the Tolkāppiyam, with some modifications.-Parts of Tamil grammar:Traditional...
, he also wrote a grammar for the common use of Tamil - the first to do so - which earned him the title of Father of Tamil prose. He compiled several Tamil dictionaries: including the Chaturakarati (சதுரகராதி), the quadruple lexicon containing words, synonyms, categories of words, and rhymes; a Tamil-Latin and Latin-Tamil-Portuguese dictionary.
His greatest poetical work is the Thembavani
Thembavani
Thembavani , one of the Tamil classics, a poetical work of Veeramamunivar , on the life of Jesus Christ. This Tamil Divina Commedia is divided into thirty-six cantos, containing 3,615 stanzas. "It is," says Baumgartner, "the noblest epic poem in honor of St. Joseph written in any literature, East...
(தேம்பாவணி) (the Unfading Garland), an extraordinary epic poem - 3615 stanzas long - on Salvation
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
history and the life of Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph is a figure in the Gospels, the husband of the Virgin Mary and the earthly father of Jesus Christ ....
. It is considered a classic of Tamil literature. He also wrote a prabandham (one of the minor literature) called Kavalur Kalambagam (காவலூர் கலம்பகம்), a grammatical treatise called Thonnool (தொன்னூல்), a guide book for catechists with the title Vedhiyar Ozukkam (வேதியர் ஒழுக்கம்), and Paramarthaguruvin kathai (பரமார்த்த குருவின் கதை), a satirical piece on a naive religious teacher and his equally obtuse disciples.
In prose he left us polemical writings against the Lutheran missionaries and didactic religious books for the instruction of Catholics. He prepared a vademecum for newly arrived missionaries.
A man of dialogue
Local traditions abound of stories of Beschi challenging Hindu asceticsSadhu
In Hinduism, sādhu denotes an ascetic, wandering monk. Although the vast majority of sādhus are yogīs, not all yogīs are sādhus. The sādhu is solely dedicated to achieving mokṣa , the fourth and final aśrama , through meditation and contemplation of brahman...
and winning debates over them. Yet his Thembavani
Thembavani
Thembavani , one of the Tamil classics, a poetical work of Veeramamunivar , on the life of Jesus Christ. This Tamil Divina Commedia is divided into thirty-six cantos, containing 3,615 stanzas. "It is," says Baumgartner, "the noblest epic poem in honor of St. Joseph written in any literature, East...
meaning "ornament of poems as sweet as honey" is proof that he had a positive approach to Hinduism
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
, as he often uses phrases, ideas and myths characteristic of Hinduism. The same spirit of dialogue and admiration for the Tamil culture led him to translate and explain in Latin the famous Thirukkural epic poem of Thiruvalluvar (1730). This Latin work was an eye opener for European intellectuals, discovering truth and beauty in a Tamil literature. They also found it to contain many thoughts similar to Christianity.
Recognition
Beschi was no doubt one of the best known Jesuits of the 18th century in Tamil NaduTamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
. In 1968 the State of Tamil Nadu erected a statue for Beschi on the Marina beach in the City of Madras (Chennai), as a recognition for his contribution to the Tamil language and literature.
See also
- Poondi Matha BasilicaPoondi Matha BasilicaOur Lady of Lourdes Basilica, Poondi, is a Catholic pilgrimage centre located in Tamil Nadu, South India. Poondi is a small village located in Thiruvaiyaru Taluk , about 35-km away from Thanjavur...
(பூண்டி புதுமை மாதா திருத்தலம்) - ElakurichiElakurichiElakurichi a tiny village in Perambalur district, Tamil Nadu, South India, is a Catholic pilgrimage center dedicated to Virgin Mary. It is 65 km from Perambalur...
(Adaikala Matha Church) (அடைக்கல மாதா திருத்தலம்) - KamanayakkanpattiKamanayakkanpattiKamanayakkanpatti is a small village in Kovilpatti Taluk in Thoothukudi District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.- Demographics : India census, Kamanayakkanpatti had a population of 2426. Males constitute 50.05% of the population and females 49.05%. Kamanayakkanpatti has an average literacy...
Church of Our Lady of Assumption (பரலோக மாதா திருத்தலம்) - The Perianayagi Madha ShrineThe Perianayagi Madha ShrinePeriyanayagi Madha shrine is a famous Roman Catholic Church in Konankuppam, Tamil Nadu constructed by Fr. Constantine Beschi also called as Veeramamunivar. It is a 8 km drive from Ulundhurpet....
, KonankuppamKonankuppamKonankuppam is small village situated in Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu. Which was known as aariyanur Where veeramamunivar wrote the Thembavani in Tamil.-History:The Perianayagi Madha Shrine was constructed by the great missionary Fr.Beshi....
(பெரிய நாயகி மாதா திருத்தலம்)