In and beyond the Portuguese Empire: Coping with marriage ritual diversity in early modern Goa

As a fundamental instrument for the social and cultural reproduction of society, marriage was frequently at the core of the Portuguese Crown policies toward the populations of their overseas territories. This chapter addresses the problems faced by the Portuguese imperial authorities in a Catholic Goa in controlling the wedding rituals of the local populations that had not converted to Christianity. It examines the contradictory solutions designed to cope with the 'gentile' marriage rituals between the 16th and 18th centuries, as well as the attitudes of the locals (namely the Brahmans) toward the attempts of simplifying their weddings or to prevent their celebration in the Goan lands. Estado da Índia's dependency on the Brahman elites empowered them in the moment of negotiating the protection of their wedding rites, helping to explain the normative meandering of the 17th and 18th centuries. At the same time, the potential disqualification of their status beyond the empire, in the region of the Konkan and Deccan, is another fundamental variable to understand the urgency of the Brahmans in solving the problem. The almost impossibility of finding a consensus illustrates well the difficulties the Portuguese found, in different parts of its empire, in the moment of controlling cultural diversity. This chapter addresses the problems faced by the Portuguese imperial authorities in a Catholic Goa in controlling the wedding rituals of the local populations that had not converted to Christianity. It examines the contradictory solutions designed to cope with the 'gentile' marriage rituals between the 16th and 18th centuries, as well as the attitudes of the locals toward the attempts of simplifying their weddings or to prevent their celebration in the Goan lands. The attempts to transform the marriage practices of the local population of Goa started in the 16th century. The 18th-century decision-making scenario was favorable to the interests of the 'gentiles', specifically of the Brahmans. Controlling marriage and marriage ritual diversity was crucial for an imperial power interested in homogenizing society through Christianization. Finally, the fragmentation of positions among the 'colonizers' and the balance between 'liberals/politicians', 'legalists', and 'strict orthodox', between reasons of State and reasons of God, is also enlightening.