BLESSED DEVASAHAYAM | KAIROS GLOBAL | APRIL 2022

Author: Jisha John

Intro: In May 2022, Blessed Devasahayam will be canonised a saint – the first layperson and martyr of Indian origin to be declared a saint of the worldwide Catholic Church. A brief biography by Jisha John.

After his baptism into the Catholic Church, he lived seven years. Though he had been a Catholic for only 2437 days, it was sufficient to place him among the hallowed ranks of the canonised in the altar of the Holy Catholic Church. Let us take a look at the life of him, who chose to call himself ‘God is my help’, Devasahayam – the local rendition of the name Lazarus. 

The road that traversed from Neelakandan Pillai to Devasahayam was a long, arduous and excruciating one. It will inspire us to live out the call to unique sainthood we are created for. Come, let us make that journey.

Two-and-a-half centuries ago

India was a land of numerous kingdoms in the 1700s. One of the kingdoms in the southern region was the kingdom of Travancore. Here, in a place called Nattalam, in the present day Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu, a baby was born to an affluent Hindu family on 23 April 1712. He was named Neelakandan. His father Vasudevan Namputhiri, a Brahmin, was a temple priest and his mother was Devaki Amma, who belonged to the Nair caste. According to the traditions prevalent at the time, children were identified by the caste of the mother. So Neelakandan was considered a Nair – a high caste second only to the Brahmins. 

As a youth, Neelakandan Pillai was trained in the study of languages and the art of warfare. He knew Tamil, Malayalam and Sanskrit. Apart from languages, he was probably taught archery, Varma Sastra – the South Indian martial art, as well as use of weapons of war. A calm and gentle young man, Neelakandan advanced in knowledge and stature, and was well-beloved of his teachers and friends. 

He began his career as a soldier, a profession he excelled in because of his integrity and acumen. He married Bhargaviammal, a woman belonging to his own caste, from a traditionally wealthy family. 

Serving the King of Travancore

When the king, Marthanda Varma came to know of the enthusiastic, intelligent and upright Neelakandan Pillai, he made him steward of the royal palace and custodian of the Padmanabhapuram court. Neelakandan thus became renowned in the kingdom as a court official loyal to the king. Later in his capacity as palace official, he came to work in the royal treasury. 

An unlikely friendship

In 1741, Dutch East India Company intent on establishing a trading post there tried to capture Colachel, a port belonging to the kingdom of Travancore. In the Battle of Colachel that followed, the Dutch were defeated and the men killed or captured. Twenty-four Dutchmen were imprisoned, including the Flemish commander Captain Eustachius De Lannoy. They were later pardoned on the condition that they serve the Travancore army. De Lannoy earned the king’s trust and was made commander-in-chief of the Travancore army. Under De Lannoy, the Travancore armed forces went on to win many battles and annexed various neighbouring territories. 

When King Marthanda Varma entrusted the rebuilding of Udayagiri Fort to De Lannoy, it brought the Dutchman into contact with Neelakandan Pillai, who was the paymaster there. An unlikely friendship began to grow between the two. It was further cemented with the sharing of each other’s personal lives. This friendship became a source of solace for Neelakandan when a period of trials afflicted his life. 

The twist in the tale

It so happened that Pillai, who was usually happy and content, was observed over a few days by De Lannoy to be grief-stricken. When enquiring the reason, Neelakandan shared his ordeal. He had been undergoing a series of unfortunate events with loss of crops and the perishing of herds of livestock. Neelakandan was beset with doubts and worry that the fury of the gods were upon him or that enemies were plotting against him with black magic. What bothered him was that even religious ceremonies and sacrifices performed for the appeasement of the gods had been futile. 

De Lannoy consoled Neelakandan by sharing his own Christian faith, speaking about God who instead of punishing, loves and saves everyone. De Lannoy’s narration of the biblical story of Job touched Neelakandan profoundly. That Job had such absolute trust in God amidst all his afflictions was such an alien yet consoling concept to Neelakandan’s Hindu sensibilities. 

The ongoing discussions between the two convinced Neelakandan Pillai that Christ was sufficient for him. He fell in love with Jesus and expressed a strong desire to get baptised. De Lannoy sent him to Fr Giovanni Battista Buttari, head of the Jesuit Mission at Vadakkankulam. De Lannoy was well aware of the political situation in the kingdom of Travancore and the implications of Neelakandan’s conversion. The king had threatened with imprisonment and death those noblemen who quit his court to become Christians. This was why he sent Neelakandan to Vadakkankulam, which was outside the territory of Travancore. 

Fr Buttari’s test

While Neelakandan was seized with the enthusiasm to become a Christian immediately, Fr Buttari made him pursue a period of catechumenate without specifying the period’s length. The priest too was aware of the dangerous path Neelakandan had chosen with his conversion, and wanted to be convinced of the depth of his conviction in the Catholic faith.

The eventual nine months of preparation and the periods of stay at Vadakkankulam gave Neelakandan the opportunity to test his reasons for becoming a Christian. He was able to observe the local Christian community and the problems of caste that still existed among them. Together with his study of the Christian faith, Neelakandan came to the realisation that he did not want to be a Christian encumbered with the burdens of the caste system. He wanted to be a follower of Jesus in its true essence – free from the yolks of casteism. 

Another problem that would arise from Neelakandan’s conversion was that he would be stripped of all his positions, lose his lofty social standing and be considered the equivalent of a low-caste – who the higher castes considered Christians to be. Yet Neelakandan was resolute. He was prepared to sacrifice every advantage he enjoyed – his wealth, his position, and even his life so that he could obtain Christ. 

Nine months of preparation later, Neelakandan was baptised by Fr Buttari on 14 May 1745. He received the name Devasahayam, the Tamil rendition of the name Lazarus. 

Devasahayam, the follower

Devasahayam’s life was now filled with a great joy – that of being able to live out his new faith. He was a devout Christian who dedicated his life to deepening his understanding of the faith and the practise of virtue. Though he had to walk long distances to the church, he made it a habit to go there frequently to receive the sacraments. His joy became complete when Devasahayam was able to win his wife over to the faith – this against the furious objections of the family. She too was baptised and received the name, Njanapoo, a rendition of Theresa.

Devasahayam continued to be in the service of the king for four years but began to be in the service to the King of kings for eternity. He preached the gospel and was determined and firm in his faith. Racial discrimination and struggles of the lower castes disturbed him. He became friends with the poor and the oppressed. Returning to the Padmanabhapuram court, Devasahayam wanted to be enlisted in the Christian army of the king, commandeered by De Lannoy. Though this surprised the king, Devasahayam was able to win for Christ souls from the army too. These military companions decided to fight under the sign of the Saviour – to win for the heavenly kingdom instead of the earthly one. Despite all threats from his relatives and those of the higher caste Brahmins, nothing could make him renounce Christ; he wasn't afraid of those who could kill the body. He entrusted himself to Christ who is high above every power on earth.

A Christian in a Hindu Palace

Devasahayam’s new way of life became a cause of consternation for his fellow Brahmin co-workers. They noticed that he had stopped attending all the Hindu rituals and practises that were performed at the palace temple but attended with ‘alarming’ regularity the church. His interactions with the low-caste Christians was more so now. It became a cause for insult that he not just freely moved about with them but even ate together with them. Devasahayam did not stop there. He began to speak against the superstitions and injustices the Brahmins and the ruling class perpetrated against the people. Devasahayam often challenged the Brahmins working at the palace to respond to his criticisms of their teachings and beliefs. 

The tolerant king and prince

Marthanda Varma had apparently been tolerant of the Christians in the kingdom, much to the infuriation of the Brahmins. His heir, the prince, had even donated land to Fr Buttari to build a church there. All this angered those against the Christian faith and they waited for a change to turn the king against Christians. 

Though Fr Buttari had the land for the church, he did not have the resources to build one – financially or otherwise. When he approached Devasahayam for a solution to this, the priest was assured help in the form of timber. Devasahayam thus petitioned the Dalawa (supreme governor) permission for wood. A Brahmin and one among those unsympathetic to Christians, the Dalawa got furious with Devasahayam and even threatened to exile the Christians of the kingdom. Unperturbed, Devasahayam simply stated that the said persecution ought to begin with him, a Christian. 

Those who had been waiting for an opportunity to strike discord in the king against Devasahayam now got their chance. They began to fill the king’s ears with false accusations that the prince and heir was under the ‘evil influence’ of Devasahayam, and it was due to this that the prince donated the land for the church. They even insinuated that if the prince was so influenced, what would be the state of the kingdom when he would inherit it. This at last was the ammunition they had been waiting for. The king ordered Devasahayam’s arrest. 

Some friends of his came to know of the king’s order and immediately informed Devasahayam, urging him to escape. But Devasahayam was no coward. He continued to live his Christian faith courageously. De Lannoy, who also came to know of the king’s order, was a source of strength. He encouraged Devasahayam to remain firm in the faith and even helped him receive sacraments from a priest nearby. Thus prepared, Devasahayam was arrested on 23 February 1749, four years after his baptism.

The Way of the Cross

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (Romans 8:35)

Arrested and brought before the king, when Devasahayam was threatened with cruelty unless he renounced his Christian faith, he politely affirmed his faith as a Christian. Neither could bribery coerce him. Enraged at his resolve, the king ordered his imprisonment. Away went the royal tolerance and soon Christians in the kingdom faced harsh persecutions.

Devasahayam was confined to a narrow dark prison. Though the death sentence was pronounced the next day, which brought him happiness at the grace of martyrdom, it was immediately revoked. Instead, he was ordered to be paraded across the kingdom, seated on a buffalo. This was a punishment by humiliation meted out at the time. Seated backwards on a buffalo, with his hands bound behind him, Devasahayam was paraded thus for sixteen days, open to the cursing and mocking of the people. All through these days, he was beaten with a thorny stick that tore at his flesh, and chilly/pepper powders rubbed into the wounds. When he lifted his eyes to pray, this was even put in his eyes. Often the beaten, wounded and tortured Devasahayam would fall off the buffalo, riding on rough terrains or at the whim of the animal. 

A second death sentence was pronounced and revoked like the first. This was followed by another tortuous parade around the kingdom as a form of deterrent against conversion. But people began to gather in great numbers to witness his courage and the joy with which he bore the suffering. 

Angered that none of these punishments were working, the king ordered that Devasahayam be imprisoned in Travancore. The torture continued even there but people began to gather at the prison. To prevent this, the king ordered his transfer to a prison at Peruvilai. On the journey there, overcome with thirst, he was battered for requesting water. Thrown among the rocks, Devasahayam wept and prayed. Then when he struck the rock, a spring broke forth – waters that quenched his thirst. This spring still flows at the place now called Muttidichan Parai.

At Peruvilai, Devasahayam’s chain-bound feet were fettered to a tree in such a manner that he could not stand or move. Seven months he was made to lie below the tree, under the watch of the executioner. He would spend his time in prayer. Here too, people would gather to meet him and seek his prayers. The executioner himself had no children and on Devasahayam’s prayer, was blessed with a child. To all who would come visit him, he would speak about Christ. Soon the prison began to get so crowded and resemble a place of prayer. 

Disappointed that every method of punishment was used by Devasahayam to bring more people to Christ, the king ordered for him to be incarcerated at another prison in Aralvaimozhi, where prisoners could be put to death in secret and people prevented from visiting. Tortures upon tortures were inflicted upon him. He was starved, suffocated, denied water, not permitted to bathe for three years, thrown into biting ant-infested caves, thrown amongst poisonous snakes and scorpions. He was dragged and carried on a stick. He was banished. He was brutally beaten regularly. But Devasahayam stood firm in his faith. Despite the torture and persecution, Devasahayam continued to share the merciful love of Jesus with the soldiers and all who came to visit him regardless of the restrictions. 

Martyrdom

Three years after his Gethsemane, he reached his Calvary. The king, prey to the fabricated stories of the Brahmins finally gave the order for Devasahayam’s secret execution. 

On 14 January 1752, at midnight, Devasahayam Pillai was taken to the fringes of the wild Aralvaimozhi forest, to a place called Kattadimalai. His legs bound in chains, he was carried on a pole like an animal for slaughter. When they reached the place, Devasahayam begged for time to pray and was given a few minutes. Then he was placed on a hillock, took aim and shot. Three shots were fired, and though wounded mortally, he was still alive. Five more shots were fired and his body fell. 

Since the execution was carried out in secret, it was only much later that Christians came to know – after having visited the prison and not finding him there. It was only days later that they managed to find Devasahayam’s mortal remains, which were then buried before the main altar of the Church of St Francis Xavier at Kottar, with all the honour due to a martyr. 

More info.

The rock at Kattadimalai still makes the sound of a bell when struck with an object. 

De Lannoy failed in the war but gained a soul for Christ.

Devasahayam was baptised at the age of 33 and martyred at 40.

The three years he was in chains were years of uncertainty as to life or death. But Devasahayam lived those years with a sure and resolute faith, confident in the grace of God that was available to him in prayer, penance and the sacraments. 

Just before he was killed, Devasahayam prayed on the rock at Kattadimalai, which left imprints of his knee and elbow, which can still be seen. 

His last prayer: 

        'O Jesus, do not abandon me.

          Into your hands O Lord, I commend my spirit.

          O beloved Mother Mary help me.'

Jisha John is a teacher by profession and lives in Pathanamthitta, India.