Caves, Temples, Churches and Remnants of the past - Heritage walk in suburb named after sweet berries - Borivali.

Borivali is a coastal suburb of Mumbai located at the Northwest end. It is believed that the name Borivali comes from bushes of sweet berries called "Borr" in the local language that was found in abundance here. It was once a congregation of small villages called Eksar, Vazira, Shimpoli, Mandapeshwar, Kanheri, Magathane, Tulsi, etc sandwiched between two major erstwhile rivers, Poisar river & Dahisar river. Some say it was called "Berewlee" under British rule. Prehistoric era caves of smaller Mandapeshwar & bigger Buddhist center cum settlement of Kanheri stand testament to the rich heritage of this place. But apart from these caves, there are many ancient religious places as well as pieces of heritage scattered across nooks & corners of Borivali which makes this suburb of Mumbai worth exploring and knowing about interesting trivia around it.

Borivali's most famous attraction is the well-preserved cave complexes of Kanheri, located deep inside the Sanjay Gandhi National park, A mammoth 109 caves were chiseled from massive basalt rock from 1st century BCE to 10th century CE and contain sculptures and reliefs of Buddha and Boddhisattvas, inscriptions and paintings. Worth noting about the caves are the viharas, chaityagrahas, and rainwater trapping and storage systems. 

Amidst all the attractions, one can find hidden stories in stone at Kanheri like the earliest representations of Buddha where he is shown wearing a robe and headgear. Many of the caves have inscriptions in ancient languages like Prakrit and Brahmi giving details of the donors and sometimes the period when it was excavated. Also one can find a Pahlavi inscription from the 10th century when some Parsi priests visited the caves.

Cave 34 even has a mural of Buddha on the ceiling in Bhumisparsha mudra gesture which is missed by many. Then there is cave 41 which has probably the only representation of eleven head Avlokiteshwara in India carved in stone. 

Yet another cave has a Japanese inscription on its verandah from the 12th century in cave 66. It is an inscription by one of the followers of the Buddhist Priest Nichiren who visited the caves.

There is a lot more to talk about the attractions of Kanheri which would require a separate post. Not many are aware that apart from Kanheri caves, Borivali is also home to lesser-known cousins of Kanheri. There are also two smaller caves located here.

Magathane caves are the smallest of all caves in Mumbai & situated closer to Kanheri. They were once equally important caves with inscriptions and paintings, a small pond close to the caves was considered holy so much so that it was used for holy rituals. Sadly over the years, the caves were neglected and then occupied by some families who built a house around them. Today the situation is that this important heritage has been lost completely and it's now impossible to explore them given that it is located in the densely congested maze of chawls and locals are not quite open to anyone inquiring about it.

Mandapeshwar caves are 5th-century caves initially built as viharas by Buddhist monks on the banks of Dahisar river which flowed close by before it changed course and moved further away. The caves located on a small hillock once used to provide transit to traveling monks between Kanheri and the important Buddhist site of Sopara.

It is hard to imagine in a present-day scenario that monks used to navigate between Kanheri and Mandapeshwar through the Dahisar river. These caves were later occupied by Brahmin's and were converted into Shaivite caves. A very elaborate sculpture representing marriage between Shiva and Parvati is carved on the southside of the cave and is one of the highlights. Also, an empty niche in one of the caves surrounded by sculptures of various devotees and a lotus bed suggests the presence of Lakulisha - an incarnate of Shiva. 

One of the surprises which are mostly overlooked by many is the neatly carved ancient board game on the cave floor, Backgammon game is found in bhog mandir on the left side of the entrance while another game called Alquerque was etched in front of garbagriha.

Borivali was a congregation of small villages once, the majority of these gaonthans were lost to urbanization over the years but a portion of these gaothans still exist surrounded by high-rise buildings. Some remain namesake in street names like Thakur pakhadi or Shimpoli Gaonthan or Babhai Naka. These old villages had their own temples dedicated to patron goddesses called "Gaondevi", These temples may have been renovated or rebuilt but some of the idols which have been worshipped for generations still find their place in the sanctum of the temple which is an important heritage with interesting tales. One of the gaondevi temples in the Devipada area here has a "Hero stone" as the deity which is quite unique. I have written a separate blog on these gaondevi temples of Borivali. (Gaondevi of Borivali).

One of the most prized heritage of Borivali is the Hero stone found in Eksar village pond, These stones were carved centuries ago in memory of war hero. Many veergal's have been found across Maharashtra, Karnataka & Goa but these stones some as tall as 8th feet were built as a tribute to a warrior who died in a naval battle that happened in nearby creeks. Hero stone depicting naval battles are rare and these are probably the only ones in Maharashtra. 

These relics were found near a pond and were 7 in total out of which only 4 remain. They are the most intricately carved stones found in India which depict naval battle connected with the Shilahara dynasty from the 8th to 12th century. These stones have been once used by women folks of the village to wash clothes unaware of their importance. Today they are worshiped as "Goddess Ekvira" by the Koli community of Eksar village. Today they have a permanent home in a small dedicated area within a high-rise building compound which was built at the exact spot where these stones were once discovered. (Herostone of Borivali)

Talking about the temples and gaothans in Borivali, There are a couple of temples in Borivali that still have the tag of being private or family-owned temples. These century-old temples though open to the public also bear the name of the family who built it like Chogle family who has been major landowners in Borivali has built two temples, one is Posai Mata temple dedicated to their family goddess and a Hanuman temple.

Similarly in Borivali east, there is a temple dedicated to Lord Ram which was built by the Katkar family.

When we talk about the heritage of Borivali, we cannot fail to talk about churches that dot its landscape. A 400-year-old church and hermitage known as "Church of Immaculate Conception" built by the Franciscans in Mt. Poinsur and a Jesuist built 400 years old church of "Our lady of Remedy" in Poisur on the southern end.

After the occupation of Bassein by the Portuguese in 1534, Friars started moving south to convert the locals into their faith. The first religious structure founded by missionaries was at Mandapeshwar or Mt Poinsur around 1547-48. It is said that Franciscans Antonio de Porto and Joao de Goa drew away the Hindu yogis dwelling in the Mandapeshwar caves and managed to covert one of them, also convinced crown to donate the Mandapeshwar village to him. When this convert yogi passed away, he bestowed the village to Franciscans order. They built a church - Nossa Senhora de Piedada (Our lady of Piety) and a monastery to train young converts. This monastery was called "Colegio Real de Manapacer". So Mandapeshwar became Manapacer or Mont Pezir and later it was called Mt Poinsur. The ruins of the monastery can still be seen on top of Mandapeshwar caves even today.

At one point the caves were converted into a chapel with plaster-coasted pillars and paintings of saints on the wall. On one of the walls, sculptures of the Hindu gods were destroyed and a cross carved over it which can be seen even today on the wall. When Marathas recaptured Bassein in 1734, the caves were restored back to their original form and the monastery was destroyed over it. Those ruins can still be seen.

In 1888 through the efforts of the people of Bandra and under the guidance of the dean of Thane, Fr Fernandes, the old parish church was rebuilt and started functioning. The I.C church still stands at the same place where it was built, though over the years it has undergone many repairs and expansions. Every year on 8th December, The Immaculate conception feast is celebrated which is attended by people from across Mumbai. A tradition that has been passed down for centuries.

There is another church just across the road, A century-old church on the hillock inside St Francis D'Assisi school.

Another surprise not known to many and hidden from plain sight is a circular chapel with a dome and having an effigy of Christ on the top. It is called the Marian Sacromonte or Sacred Mount dedicated to Mother Mary. Said to be built between 1630 to 1690 the conical structure lies atop a knoll and has seven niches carved in it. Jesus Christ stands on the top with his hands outstretched like Christ the redeemer !!

This unique structure stands tall surrounded by school buildings in the middle of the site which is the burial ground of members of brotherhood or Monastorial cemetery. A memorial also stands describing the work of Fr Antonio De Porto who established the first monastery and hermitage in Mandapeshwar, and he was buried somewhere on the hill.

Another notable memorial on one of the grave belongs to Bro Paulus Moritz who was born in Prussia in 1869 who arrived in Salsette in the 20th century and established the brotherhood - Society for the congregation of Franciscan Missionary Brothers which today runs education institutions of St Francis D'Assisi here and across the world. St Francis D'Assisi school was established in Borivali in 1908,  and even after completing over 100 years, the educational institution continues its service to date. 

On the southern end and close to Poisur river (river has long disappeared and what remains is sewage and garbage drain) lies another 400 years old church known as "Our Lady of Remedy". The Jesuits church was established in 1555 and was known as "Nossa Senhora Dos Remedios". The church stood on the ground along with a vicarage which was used as a parochial house and also a school was established where the vicar would give lessons to the children who were descendants of converted locals from neighboring villages.

Borivali is a suburb that is truly blessed with abundant remnants of the past, from caves to temples and churches. Then there are pockets of neighborhoods or gaonthans with their interesting customs like on the occasion of Holika Dahan, a century-old mango tree is worshipped by the ladies of the Babhai village and more recently a 200 years old well was discovered in I.C village which was used in East Indian community rituals of Umbrachya Pani. 

On the western front of Borivali, right across the creek lies Gorai island that forms part of a larger protruding peninsula called Dharavi Bet. With a large East Indian population, it was part of Portuguese territories from the 16th century. The Portuguese influence can be still be seen here in daily life, the architecture around the villages and Pakhadis as well as the few churches that dot the island.