Harvest festival: Paul’s paddy stalks go all over the world

 

Udupi, 07 Sep 2014 (TOI): It’s that time of the year here when children don new clothes and head to churches with a wicker basket full of flowers to sprinkle on the Maria Bambina statue of the Virgin Mary. The nine-day celebrations as a preparation for the Monthi Fest or Nativity of Blessed Virgin Mary, which is also celebrated as a harvest festival by Christians in this region, culminate on Monday.

 

Catholic families gather for the ’Nove Jevan’ (new meal) after having a mixture of crushed grain and coconut milk from the blessed paddy stalk given in church.

 

The interesting thing is that the majority of paddy stalks come from the fields of farmer Paul D’Souza at Shirva-Mudarangady. Paul, fondly known as ’Kanshi Paul’, has been supplying paddy stalks, free of cost, to churches and also temples for the harvest festival for three decades. They are not only used locally, but people, who come here for the fest, take them to Bahrain, Kuwait, Dubai, Israel, London, the US, Spain, Abu Dhabi, Muscat, Mumbai, Delhi, Shimoga, Kasargod, Bangalore and Kodagu.

 

 

 

He is perhaps the only farmer who grows paddy for this purpose during the hot summer months so that devotees can have it during the harvest festival. Paul says: "I start seeding in April 14 and May 15 I transplant. By August 22, the crop has ripened and is ready for harvest."

 

"My devotion to God makes me do it. God’s blessings are more important than anything else,’’ says Paul, whose wife Flavia and son Pradeep help him in the fields. Growing paddy in summer is quite tough. "It’s hard work and needs a lot of water,’’ says Paul.

 

Many Catholics stick to a vegetarian diet during these nine days. On the day of the festival, the fare is chiefly vegetarian consisting of an odd number of vegetable dishes. It’s a tradition followed for several generations. The dish of the day is alu dente with ambade and roce (coconut milk with jaggery, a thin version of payasam) with idli or sanna.