BELAGAVI
Reiterating their faith which they have inherited from St Francis Xavier, walking pilgrims comprising Goan settlers in the upper ghats region reached Old Goa on Friday to pay homage to the revered saint, who like in Goa, is known as Goencho Saib.
Coming from places as far as Ichalkaranji in Maharashtra and Savadatti in Karnataka, many of them have walked a distance of over 250 kilometres reaching Sanquelim on Thursday night.
“More than 800 walking pilgrims reached Sanquelim and other places on Thursday night. From there, we reached Viceroy's Arc in Old Goa on Friday morning and later proceeded to the pandal in the premises of Basilica of Bom Jesus, where a special mass for pilgrims was held at 12.30 noon,” S M Bardeskar (Rodrigues), whose ancestral roots are embedded in Chorao, told The Goan.
Accompanying these 'Niz Goenkars', there are people of different faiths coming from Belagavi and Kolhapur district comprising small children, young and old men and women.
They said that due to the pilgrimage over the years their worries, health issues, domestic and personal woes are resolved as they believe in the intercession of Goencho Saib.
The pilgrimage that was commenced by the great Jesuit priest Swamy Prabhudhar 36 years ago with a meagre seven pilgrims has become more popular now.
“Pilgrims from Kolhapur, Gadhinglaj, Ajara, Watangi, Belewadi, Khanapur, Belagavi and Sindhudurg district are the part of the pilgrimage. Today, we had a procession and special prayers in the evening in the pandal. After the 'umav' (kiss) and expressing our thanks for fulfilling our 'angvonns', we will return to our villages on Saturday,” Prakash Carvalho said.
He added that a number of priests and nuns serving in the upper ghats region area also participated in the walking pilgrimage.
