GUJARATI STREET - ALLEPPEY

    (Discovering Alleppey on a bicycle)

 (Coordinates- 9.495101°N , 76.3214678°E )

         There is something wonderfully nostalgic about cycling through Alleppey.

At my age, I suppose I am no longer merely cycling through its streets. I am travelling through time. Every familiar road, every canal and every old building seems to carry a memory. Some are my own - memories of a younger Alleppey that I knew and loved. Others belong to generations that lived here long before me.

And then, occasionally, an otherwise ordinary street opens a window into a story so extraordinary that I wonder how we could have overlooked it for so long.

One such place is Gujarati Street, in the Sea View Ward.

 For more than two and a half centuries, this little street has been associated with the Gujarati Jain community of Alleppey, whose roots here go back to the days of the celebrated Valiya Dewan Raja Kesava Das - the founder father of Alleppey.

   It was during his reign that 42 Jain families from Kutch in Gujarat were brought to Alleppey. They came from a distant land, yet Alleppey gradually became their home. Drawn here by the opportunities offered by the flourishing port, they engaged in the trade of spices, timber, arecanut and other merchandise, becoming an integral part of the vibrant commercial life of the town.

   Their story is inseparable from the story of Alleppey's rise as an important centre of maritime commerce. ️

    Standing on Gujarati Street today, it is difficult to imagine the Alleppey of those days - the bustling warehouses, merchants negotiating their deals, boats moving through the canals, and the ceaseless loading and unloading of goods.

     And then, there were the languages. Gujarati, Kutchi, Marwari, Malayalam, Tamil, Konkani and other tongues must have mingled in these streets, reflecting a remarkably cosmopolitan town where people from different parts of India came together in pursuit of commerce and opportunity.

     The Gujarati Jains contributed significantly to the commercial and industrial development of Alleppey. They became an important part of its maritime trading community and, in the process, influenced the town's socio-economic and cultural life during its prosperous heyday.

The Temple at the Heart of the Community

                At the heart of this community stood - and still stands - its most revered place of worship: the Sri Jain Shwetambar Temple.

     Believed to be over 130 years old, the temple is far more than a place of worship. It is a living reminder of the Gujarati Jain community's long and distinguished association with Alleppey.

     Even today, with only about 14 Jain families remaining in the town, the temple continues to serve as the spiritual and community centre of the local Jain community.

A Temple of Exceptional Beauty

                The first thing that strikes a visitor is the temple's distinctive Jain architectural style.

      Its intricate workmanship, graceful proportions and exquisite detailing give the shrine a character that is at once artistic and deeply spiritual. Built with Rajasthan stone and white marble, it reflects the craftsmanship and aesthetic traditions brought by the Gujarati Jain settlers from their homeland.

 Unlike many other Jain temples in Kerala Alleppey Jain Temple has a very distinct and definitive architectural grandeur and style. It is the only such Jain Temple in Kerala that did not use iron to build and also to flaunt a dome atop.

     Its greatest treasures, perhaps, are its remarkable frescoes, marble figurines and intricately carved images. Some of these figures are carved from single pieces of marble, displaying an extraordinary level of craftsmanship.

     At the sanctum One can observe the statues of four “Theerthankaras” in the temple and it has been arranged to provide maximum view for the devotees who come to worship at the temple. The statue of the 12th Tirthankara Vasupujya Swami is placed at the centre as principal deity and the statues of the 15th Tirthankara Swami
Dharmanatha and the 11th Theerthankara Swami Shreyanasanatha have been placed at the right and left sides of the statue of Tirthankara Vasupujya Swami. At the top floor of the temple, the statue of the 23rd Theerthankara Parshvanatha Swami can be observed as well.

 This statue is unearthed in Kuttanad - a fascinating reminder of the possibility of an older Jain presence in the region.

There is also a pilgrim house near the temple where Jain pilgrims can stay and offer 'puja' (worship).

Jain Traditions: A Way of Life
             To appreciate the community that built and sustained this temple, it is worth pausing to consider the principles that shape Jain life.    

    At the heart of Jainism lies ahimsa - the principle of non-violence towards living beings. This ideal extends beyond avoiding physical harm to cultivating compassion, restraint and respect for life.

     Traditional Jain dietary practices reflect this commitment. Strict observance generally involves vegetarianism, abstention from alcohol and avoidance of root vegetables such as onions, garlic and potatoes, since harvesting them may harm the organisms living in the soil and destroy the plant itself. Practices vary among individuals and communities, but the underlying concern is the minimisation of harm.

        The temple, accordingly, maintains its own standards of conduct and expects visitors to respect its religious discipline.

         For Jains, however, the ultimate objective goes beyond ritual observance. It is moksha - liberation from the cycle of birth and death, attained through the purification of the soul and freedom from karmic bondage.

     The temple is therefore not simply an architectural landmark. It represents a philosophy of life that has travelled across centuries and geographical boundaries, finding expression even in a small corner of Alleppey.
Jainism and Ancient Kerala.

     The history of Jainism in Kerala may, however, go back much further than the arrival of the Gujarati families. There is a possibility that Jainism reached Kerala as early as the third century BCE. One tradition connects its early spread with Chandragupta Maurya, who, according to Jain tradition, renounced his throne and accompanied Jain sages southwards, eventually reaching Shravanabelagola in present-day Karnataka.

     It is possible that Jain followers subsequently travelled farther south and reached Kerala, carrying with them the teachings and traditions of Jainism.

     The precise chronology and extent of this early Jain presence remain subjects of historical inquiry. Yet archaeological and cultural remnants point towards a much older Jain connection with Kerala.

Jainism in Kuttanad ( Alleppey)
     Jainism has deep historical roots in the Kuttanad region of Kerala, though its contemporary presence is very minimal. Historically, the broader Alappuzha (Alleppey) and Kuttanad regions served as key sites for ancient Jain transitions, leaving behind significant archaeological footprints before transitioning heavily into Hindu traditions.

The Kuttanad Tirthankara Discovery
         The most profound physical evidence linking Jainism directly to Kuttanad is a historic statue of the 23rd Tirthankara, Parshvanatha Swami. This ancient stone idol was unearthed directly from the waterlogged lowlands of Kuttanad.

     To protect and honour this historical artifact, the statue was later moved and installed on the top floor of the Swetamber Jain Temple located on Gujarati Street in neighbouring Alappuzha town. It serves as a lasting reminder of Jainism's flourishing past in the Kuttanad delta.

     The temple in Gujarati Street therefore represents more than the story of a community that came to Alleppey from Gujarat. It connects two fascinating chapters of history - the ancient spread of Jainism in Kerala and, centuries later, the arrival of Gujarati Jain merchants who became an important part of Alleppey's commercial and cultural landscape.

From Flourishing Traditions to Fading Footprints
            Jainism arrived in Kerala as early as the 3rd century BC via monks travelling south from Shravanabelagola. For centuries, Jainism and Buddhism thrived alongside early Hindu traditions in southern Kerala.

         However, around the 9th to 12th centuries AD, Jainism faced a steep decline across the region due to a lack of royal patronage and the revival of Saivite and Vaishnavite Hindu movements. In Kuttanad and surrounding areas, many ancient Jain shrines and places of worship were structurally adapted, assimilated, or repurposed into Hindu temples. Local deities were gradually integrated into the Hindu pantheon, which explains why the physical remnants of practicing Jains are now rare in Kuttanad, while historical relics remain embedded in the landscape.

A Vanishing Chapter
             But, like so many chapters of Alleppey's commercial history, this one too has gradually faded. As the centre of marine merchandise and maritime commerce shifted increasingly towards Kochi, many Gujarati families migrated from Alleppey. Their homes, businesses and institutions slowly disappeared from the town's commercial landscape.

     Yet one important legacy remains.

Gujrati Hitwardhak Vidyasala.

             The Gujarati community realised the importance of proper education to their children in the midst of their commercial indulgences and established the Gujrati Hitwardhak Vidyasala, a school that is more than 160 years old. It became an important institution for the community, educating generations of Gujarati children. But history, like commerce, is constantly on the move.

         With the gradual migration of the community from Alleppey to Cochin, the school eventually closed its doors in 1999.

         Yet memories linger. The spacious courtyards of the old Gujarati school once came alive during Navratri, filled with Garba and Dandiya, while Rangoli added colour and festivity to community celebrations. These were more than religious or cultural occasions. They were moments when families came together, friendships were renewed and a community maintained its bonds - far away from its ancestral home in Gujarat.

         With the school’s closure and the dispersal of its community, much of that vibrant world gradually faded from the town’s everyday life. The old school and the Jain temple, each in its own way, remind us that the history of a town is preserved not only in monuments and official records, but also in the institutions and memories of its people.

A Mahatma Gandhi Connection
               And then there is yet another remarkable thread in this story.

         Mahatma Gandhi visited Alleppey in 1927. During that visit, he is said to have been a guest of Khatao Khimji, a prominent member of the Gujarati community. The old haveli associated with him is said to be known today as “Eresseril.”
Just think of that for a moment.

         A Gujarati merchant family from distant Kutch. A haveli in old Alleppey. And Mahatma Gandhi walking through its doors nearly a century ago. How many conversations must those walls have heard? How many stories have disappeared with the people who once lived there?

The Alleppey I Knew… and the Alleppey I Am Rediscovering
     Perhaps what makes all this particularly poignant for me is that Alleppey is not a place I have discovered as a tourist. It is my home. I have known its streets for decades. I have watched it change. I have seen old landmarks disappear, familiar faces grow old, and generations move away.

             And yet, when I get on my bicycle and ride through these streets today, I discover another Alleppey - one that was always there, quietly waiting to be noticed.

             A canal I may have crossed countless times suddenly has a story. An old building becomes a memory. A narrow lane becomes a chapter in history. And a temple becomes a link with people who travelled thousands of kilometres from Gujarat and, in time, became Alleppyans.

             Perhaps that is the special magic of growing old in a historic town.

             The older you become, the more deeply you begin to see the place you have always known. What once looked ordinary begins to acquire meaning. What once seemed forgotten suddenly becomes precious. And so, Gujarati Street remains. The Jain temple remains. Quietly standing amid the changing face of Alleppey, they preserve the memory of a time when merchants from distant Gujarat came to this coastal town, made it their home, contributed to its prosperity, and became part of its extraordinary cosmopolitan story.

             Perhaps that is why I keep cycling.

             Because you don't merely cycle through Alleppey.

You pedal through its memories.  

 

- Ravi Nair-