A Bright Spot in the Mumbai Darkness

I will never forget my experience in Mumbai and my friends Rabbi Gabriel and Rivki Holtzberg. In September 2004 I arrived in Mumbai on a work assignment and in the fourteen months that followed until I left, I was to experience the special warmth of the downtown Mumbai community, both the Holtzbergs in the Chabad-Lubavitch and the sefardi synagogue (the Sassoon synagogue in Fort) led by Mr. Sofer.

My first encounter of Mumbai Chabad-Lubavitch was a very special and intense light. To get to downtown Mumbai, it was necessary to travel through dense traffic, some of the fiercest on earth, and the driver would often pass through narrow roads full of chaos, electrical wires and animals to save a bit of time avoiding the main thoroughfare. But this was always a journey plagued by 'darkness,' and traveling by train was even worse. "First there was darkness, and then there was light"... It was hard to believe that the Chabad-Lubavitch was located at the top of a modest downtown hotel. The last part of the journey were four flights of stairs and sure enough at the top there was a mezuzah and suddenly there was the light.... This was the entrance of Rabbi Gavriel and Rivki's Chabad House. The light was intense and lit up the entire terrace so that all the tropical plants could be seen. Another unlocked door led to a different light....here was the Rabbi's and Rivki's small 2 bedroom apartment and there was the glow of some 15 Jewish souls, a mix of American Jewish volunteers, Israeli travelers and businessmen. This was a bright spot in the middle of the Mumbai 'darkness,' and this was my first encounter with the Chabad-Lubavitch.

One of Rabbi Gavriel`s trademarks was that each person around the table had to say a few words: it could be either about what they are doing and what brought them there, sing a song, or tell a story or do a "Le Chayim" about one of the things that inspired them in the past or something interesting that happened, or talk about the parasha and how it relates to something in everyday life. Everyone said their part and this, week-in week-out typified Rabbi Gabriel`s personable nature and meant that those people who had been there more than once could not just opt for the simple "who they were, etc." It also helped integration where half the people at the table were speaking Hebrew and the other half in English.

The Lubavitch in Mumbai led by Gavriel and Rivki was a focal point for bringing together young Israeli travelers post-army, Israeli diamond dealers, American peace corps and AJWS volunteers, older European, American, South African or Australian tourists, expatriates who were living in Mumbai, Indian B'nei Israel Jews or in fact any Jew who happened to be passing through regardless of their background. Friday night regularly attracted 30 or 40 people. Rabbi Gavriel and Rivki`s set-up was an example to the world... and this was only possible because of Rabbi Gavriel and Rivki and their love and devotion to reaching out to a Jewish soul wherever there was one. Gavriel and Rivki always made a farbrengen with love and joy, gathering together Jews in Mumbai. The more the better. The hard work and organization to bring this about was remarkable. We must not forget that the rabbi would personally ritually slaughter and kosher dozens of chickens each week from the local market!

In general we didn't have Shabbat morning minyan in the Lubavitch but we all used to go to the Sassoon sefardi synagogue. I remember after services more than half a dozen of us would walk back with the rabbi to his apartment (the Chabad-Lubavitch house) for kiddush and lunch and we used to always pass through the Taj Mahal hotel (the Victorian hotel that also was held hostage). We would walk through the lobby and Rabbi Gavriel would sometimes stop to talk to anyone that had the possibility of being Jewish so that they could join the band and come for kiddush. Very occasionally our band would increase in number...

During these years, India became one of the tigers of the emerging markets and had become a popular place for Jews to stop by, and sometimes stay longer than first planned... It should also be remembered that India's Hindu culture – one of pacifism, respect, and promotion of religious beliefs and values that were not their own – meant that conditions became even more fertile for the young Chabad-Lubavitch of Mumbai to flourish. There was a lot of optimism during these times... India was surely a strategic place for us to be in the midst of the 'darkness' that represent the nations that surrounded us.

Both the Rabbi and Rivki would do charitable deeds in the local communities. They would also take in the Bnei Israel Indian Jewish kids and teach them Torah and mitzvot. Rabbi Gabriel Holtzberg was quick to the scene to save Israeli travelers on one of the islands off India during the Tsunami in December 2004 where the water had risen to a level where it almost covered all life. Rabbi Gabriel, at 25 or 26 when I knew him, had a very mature head on young shoulders...

Everything was possible with Rabbi Gavriel and Rivki, thanks to their wonderful optimism in the face of the adversity of India's day-to-day life, thanks to their love of life and energy, their consideration of others and their selfless work, and thanks to their remarkable leadership. In those days the Chabad House was a rooftop terrace apartment (different from the present location), the top apartment of a downtown hotel, decorated with tropical plants and open to the heavens, with one of the best views onto the Arabian Sea. It was completely inconspicuous to the outside world. Somehow we all felt safe in this special place...

Gavriel and Rivki were true tzaddikim. And this is made all the more remarkable for their firstborn child. I decided with Rabbi Gavriel that we should all put on tefilin every day until his child recovers. To this day I wait for him to tell me to stop.......

They were a real inspiration to all that passed through, a glow to the Shabbat table, with a lot of laughter, le chayim and joy.

Their loss is painful and is bitter and tragic for us all. And so is the loss of life of the other Jews, and other innocent people in Mumbai.

May their souls be blessed in peace.

May we take Gavriel and Rivki Holtzberg's example and together make the world a better place.

Raphael Altman