Anti-Semitism has been an abidingly heartbreaking force in human history. Over millennia, Jewish people have been expelled from eighty countries, and have been the targets of persecution throughout the world. One of the only countries that has seen a continuously warm welcome for Jewish people is India.
Religious tolerance has been a hallmark of Indian life, and Jews have been living here peacefully for millennia. The Bene Israel group, according to the Jewish genealogical journal Avotaynu, “flourished for 2,400 years in a tolerant land that has never known anti-Semitism, and were successful in all aspects of the socio-economic and cultural life of the people of the region.”
Many Jews departed after the creation of Israel, so today India has a very small Jewish community—only 6,000 in a country of one billion people. Yet it remains a fascinating glimpse into one section of the Jewish diaspora. This in-depth India tour takes you into the heart of Judaic India, showing you the history, culture and impact of the Jewish people here.