First Encounter: the Christian-Hindu Confusion When the Portuguese Reached India

Abstract

Abstract: It is well known that Vasco da Gama and the men in his fleet thought the Hindus they met in Calicut were Christians and so reported their opinions to D. Manuel on their return. Early historians tried to explain this mistake away, and Camões simply erased it. It is not so well known that the confusion was mutual, for the Hindus thought the Portuguese were Hindus. I try to explain why this massive confusion occurred and then draw some reflections from the event, including a discussion of Camoes’s very negative description of the temple outside Calicut where Gama and his associates worshipped.