THE SEEDS OF THE WORD IN THE WARLI TRIBE-CHISDA
Chisda is nestled in the evergreen forest situated in the South west of Daman, Dadra Nagar Haveli. Our sisters came here in response to the call of Pilar fathers “in the spirit of our Founder, to serve the poor and to work for the integral development of these people”.
The nearest town is Khanvel, 9 km away, where one has to go for ordinary purchases and to make an STD call. Ordinarily, the people walk to this town taking the short cut through the forest.
Chisda is a mosaic of primitive culture, idol-worship and utter poverty. The tribals speak either Marathi or the Warli dialect. They move about in sparse clothing. Their houses are made of mud walls and low roofs of thatched jowar and wild plants. Their staple food is ragi, potatoes and jowar bhakri. They cook their food in earthenwares. There is paucity of water in this place with only a small pond in the vicinity. The water is polluted as the inhabitants wash their clothes and themselves together with their cattle- goats and bullocks in the same water.
Most of the tribals are non-Christians. The few who are Catholics are for name’s sake. They look for material gain from the local church. But, while the 21st century favours abortion and feels bothered by the aged, for the Warlis a child is a gift of God and the aged are precious to the family as well as the community. They celebrate the birth of a child with pomp and festivity on the seventh day, in a communitarian spirit. On such occasions, rice is prestigious food together with freely flowing alcohol. They are independent, without law or faith. The first fruits of the season are offered to God before they are consumed. It consists of a ritual with a lot of alcohol and sacrificing a fowl. They have another custom of covering the face of the dead. They will not see the face. But they covering the loving hold the corpse in their arms all the way to the place of burial or cremation.
Our sisters visit the families in pairs or with a priest. They share their simple reflections on the Word of God with the people, pray spontaneously with them, and listen to their economic, social and health problems. These home visits are done on foot. Some families are about 5 to 10 km apart. The sisters visit them. Poor as they are, the Warlis have a loving and generous heart. They will offer you at least an egg when you visit them. The sisters also cater to teaching the children and conduct Mother and Child Health Programmes (MCH) as well as Mahila Mandals.
It is a challenging task and missionary in every aspect, where much still needs to be done. Yet the smoky hills, the mighty trees, the chirping of the birds and the mooing of the buffaloes God for His infinite love and care.
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