The Cochin Jews are a great example of how a small religious-ethnic group can adapt to a larger, more tolerant society for at least a thousand years. It was done by telling a story about a time in history that had elements from both the original and the host religious cultures; by reenacting symbols from the Kerala caste hierarchy at least once a year; and by even adopting the host culture’s caste structure for its community. The Cochin Jews used Brahmin asceticism and symbols from the local nobility to make Pesah customs and Simhat Torah royalty symbols that fit well with the rules of Halakhah (Jewish law). When a group of Jews who were of Jewish descent was discriminated against by a group of local Jews who were thought to be descendants of slaves, the great judge Rabbi David ben Solomon ibn Abi Zimra (the Radbaz) of Cairo and his student Rabbi Jacob Castro was asked about it in a response. Their answers show how to do a lot of detailed halakhic analysis with a lot of compassion. This small group moved to Israel in 1948, but a few decades before they did, A.B. Salem led a fight for equal rights.
