Some places don’t need to be seen; instead, they just exist and wait to be felt. Manapad is one of them. Indeed, it is a silent coastal village where the sea is always visible, and the wind consistently carries salt along with stories about generations who lived by its tides. Unlike bustling tourist spots, it is not a place of landmarks or crowds; instead, it doesn’t try to impress. Yet, the moment you stand on its shores, watching the waves stretch endlessly toward the horizon, something shifts. As a result, the world slows down. Consequently, the sky feels wider. And in that stillness, you finally begin to see. Closer to God explores that.
This book is not just about the landscapes or the people who call this place home. it’s about the feeling of being here. It’s about the way the ocean changes color with the light, the way fishermen set out before dawn, carrying nets or mending them under the first rays of sunlight. The way life unfolds in unhurried rhythms. This book isn’t just about the place—it’s about the feeling of being there.
It is a question of devotion, not just in the grand churches that dominate the skyline above the village but in the ordinary, mundane practices that tell of faith and tenacity. The silhouette of a woman walking up the hill towards the church as dusk falls. The old women walking up the hill with buckets of water carried on their heads, which are lit up like lanterns against the evening sky. Manapad is very contrasting.
The endless sea stretches to an endless horizon, yet there is the village where everyone knows everyone else’s name. Some of this history lingers in the old, cracked walls of the Holy Cross Church or in the twisting streets that lend themselves to wandering through the village, but life continually presses on in the conversations of children and in the smell of fresh fish carried by the wind. The stillness of a quiet afternoon turns into the glow of lanterns and murmurs of prayer as night falls.
Closer to God is an invitation to step into Manapad, to see it not just with your eyes but with all your senses. To feel the sun on your skin, the wind in your hair, the pull of something greater than yourself in the sound of waves breaking on the shore. And maybe, just for a moment, you’ll feel closer to something beyond words. Just as I did.
- Arrival
- Sculpted Shore
- By the sweat of the sea
- Eyes of the Coast
- Salt and Shadows
- Quiet Corners
- Nothing gold can stay
- Night’s embrace
As we close this visual and narrative journey through Manapad, what lingers is more than the memory of its landscapes. It is the echo of its spirit. This quiet coastal village, where the sea meets the sky and time seems to pause, is truly an experience. Throughout these pages, we have not only walked its shores but also traced history in the cracks of ancient church walls. Moreover, we have felt life’s unhurried rhythms in its people. Yet, Manapad still resists being fully captured; ultimately, it is a place that must be felt, not just seen.
“Closer to God” seeks to convey its essence, the ocean shifting from sapphire to gold under the sun’s gaze. The quiet devotion etched into the lives of its fishermen and faithful, the way the village hums with a sense of belonging both intimate and infinite. It is a place of contrasts: vast horizons and close-knit communities, timeless traditions and the steady pull of change. But beyond its physical beauty lies something deeper—a reminder of the power of stillness, the stories carried by the wind, and the invisible threads that bind us to one another.
Manapad is a reflection of life itself, simple yet profound. Perhaps that is why those who visit never truly leave. They carry its whispers in their hearts, whether in the scent of salt air that lingers or in the hush of waves that seem to speak even in silence. Ultimately, Manapad is a reflection of life’s quiet beauty and rhythm. Here, every path leads to the ocean, and every moment holds the weight of something timeless.
Thank you for allowing us to guide you through this journey. Thank you for pausing, even for a moment, to step into this world and feel it’s quiet magic. May the images and words within these pages stay with you. Not as a final portrait of Manapad, but as an invitation—to seek out the places that move you, to listen to the stories whispered by the wind and to find beauty in the stillness. Manapad is not just a place on a map; it is a feeling, a memory, a call to something greater. And now, it is a part of your story, too. Hope you too felt ‘Closer to God’.
Copyrights: All the photos and text in this post are the copyright of Kevin Navis and the Creative Hut Institute of Photography and film. Their reproduction, full or part, is forbidden without the explicit approval of the rightful owners.
