First rains in Goa are magical. After that initial shower, everything around is green and glistening, cradled by a cool sea breeze. There’s a promise in the air, for more. And, there will be more. Some more sporadic showers, before the monsoons descend in full and final glory, spread on for a stretch of a few months.
During these initial days of light and soulful rains, Goa celebrates São João, a festival revolving around water. Water has always been integral to the biblical context, where Jesus was baptised by St. John in the River Jordan, and is of deep reverence to the Catholic community, which celebrates the festival every year on 24th June.
The feast of São João is a celebration of the birth anniversary of St John, who was the son of St. Elizabeth, a relative of the Virgin Mary. Legend has it that the unborn baby John somersaulted with joy in his mother’s womb, when she was told about the birth of Jesus, and to this day, the act of jumping into waterbodies, commemorates this mythical tale.
Celebrated essentially in the villages of Aldona in the North and Benaulim in the South, it brings the local communities together through processions, musical performances, and the playful act of leaping into wells. Floral wreaths or kopels are woven and wearing those, people come together in jubilant singing. Local songs are sung in praise of the occasion, and one can see traditional musical instruments like the gumot and cansaim being brought out and strummed on. Seasonal treats like patoleo, traditional coconut and jaggery filled pancakes, steamed and wrapped in turmeric leaves, are elemental to the festival. As a tradition, many local villagers jump into wells, lakes and ponds shouting ‘Viva San Joao’. This may seem like a playful activity, but is symbolic of the unborn St. John’s leap of joy.
As we gather around in Benaulim, closer home, and as a precursor to the event, we glean more insights and precious nuggets about São João, from Achielia Fernandes, Visiting Faculty of History at Rosary College of Commerce & Arts, Navelim.
‘In the olden days, it was customary for newly married girls to visit their parental home during the festival. But the lead act was certainly, that of the son-in-law’s, who was showered with gifts, sweets and seasonal fruits, which he could carry back home. His only obligation was to take on the challenge of jumping in the well, after being adorned with kopels made of leaves and flowers, and taken on a procession around the village by celebrating friends and families.
The festival of São João is celebrated traditionally in villages like Siolim, Benaulim, Assolna, Anjuna, Pilerne and a few others, though the revelry has now become a yearly, themed activity in many hotels across Goa, where ticketed events span raffles, rain dances and pool parties, with buffet spreads, cocktails, competitions and live DJ.
The Siolim São João Traditional Boat Festival & Cultural Organization organises a host of fun activities and one can partake in boat parades with beautifully decorated boats, to the lilting beats of dulpod or traditional Goan dance songs.
Far away from Goa, São João is observed with similar fervour and spirit, in Porto, though here, it is a nocturnal celebration and observed on the eve of the festival.
‘Water, as believed in Porto, goes to sleep every night. Except on São João eve on 23rd June, a celebration of Porto’s patron saint, St, John the Baptist.’ says Dolores Silva, a 73 year-old Macau returnee, and with defined ancestry in Porto, about the festival we are about to witness.
At Alameda das Fontaínhas, people throng to wash themselves or drink from the fountain between midnight of 23rd June to dawn, in order to purify themselves. ‘The festival marks the summer solstice or the longest day of the year, and the jubilation is associated with fertility, harvest and abundance.’ The fireworks at midnight are a spectacle to be witnessed.
The night sky is a brilliant profusion of lights, brilliantly captivating as they reflect off the waters of the River Douro.
São João in Porto is perhaps the largest street party in Portugal, where the tradition of releasing hot air balloons and watching fireworks together, gives it a certain familial angle. The city of Porto comes alive with revelry during the festival, its streets aromatic with the smell of delicious sardines, grilled with paprika, better known as Sardinhadas. These are grilled until smoking and almost always accompanied by a glass of delicious vinho verde, a local blend of white grapes, indigenous to Portugal. On the streets, overflowing with jubilant partying, one would find the curious custom of revellers tapping one another, especially young children with small, plastic hammers or wilting leek sprigs for good luck.
While the water tradition, unlike in Goa, has started to pale in the face of modern celebrations, one would still find all night party-goers walk from Porto’s Ribeira up to the seafront in Foz or Matosinhos where they would wait for the sunrise, and cleanse themselves in the ocean, with the sun’s first rays. This traces back to the days where it was customary for young women to bathe in the river to enhance their chances of fertility during São João.