Padmanabhaswamy Temple
This article is written like a manual or guide. (August 2017) |
Padmanabhaswamy Temple | |
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Religion | |
Affiliation | Hinduism |
Deity | Vishnu and Lakshmi |
Governing body | Travancore royal family |
Location | |
Location | Thiruvananthapuram |
State | Kerala |
Country | India |
Geographic coordinates | 8°28′58″N 76°56′37″E / 8.48278°N 76.94361°E |
Architecture | |
Type | Fusion of Kerala architecture and Tamil architecture |
Website | |
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Hinduism |
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Vaishnavism |
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The Padmanabhaswamy Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Vishnu in Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of the state of Kerala, India. It is one of the 108 Divya Desams which are considered the sacred abodes of Vishnu in the Sri Vaishnava tradition. The name of the city of 'Thiruvananthapuram' in Malayalam and Tamil translates to "The City of Ananta" (Ananta being a form of Vishnu).[1] The temple is built in an intricate fusion of the Kerala style and the Dravidian style of architecture, featuring high walls, and a 16th-century gopuram.[2][3] While as per some traditions the Ananthapura temple in Kumbla in Kasaragod district in Kerala is considered as the original spiritual seat of the deity ("Mulasthanam"), architecturally to some extent, the temple is a replica of the Adikesava Perumal temple in Thiruvattar in Kanyakumari district in Tamil Nadu.[4] It is widely considered the world's richest Hindu temple.[5]
The principal deity is Padmanabhaswamy (
History
Several extant Hindu texts including the
The temple is one of the 108 principal
It is believed that
Another version regarding the consecration of the principal idol of the Temple relates to the legendary sage Vilvamangalathu Swamiyar. Swamiyar, who resided near
Mukilan, a Muslim marauder, invaded vast chunks of Venad in 1680 AD.[18] He destroyed Budhapuram Bhaktadasa Perumal Temple owned by Neythasseri Potti. Mukilan had plans to plunder the vaults of Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple and destroy it. But he was dissuaded from doing so by local Muslims loyal to the royals of Venad. Padmanabhan Thampi, arch rival of Anizhom Thirunal Marthanda Varma, marched to Thiruvananthapuram with his forces and tried to loot the vaults of the Temple. Thampi stayed at Sri Varaham and sent his mercenaries to Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple. It is said that divine serpents materialised in hundreds and scared away Thampi's men. Emboldened by this heavenly intervention, Pallichal Pillai and local people opposed Padmanabhan Thampi and ensured that the mercenaries did not proceed with the misadventure.
Travancore royal family
In the first half of the 18th century, in line with matrilineal customs, Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma, succeeded his uncle Rama Varma as king at the age of 23. He successfully suppressed the 700-year-old stranglehold of the Ettuveetil Pillamar ("Lords of the Eight Houses") and his cousins following the discovery of conspiracies which the lords were involved in against the royal house of Travancore (There are various legends and disputes about these mostly apocryphal stories, but overall, he took control and centralised the rule). The last major renovation of the Padmanabhaswamy temple commenced immediately after Anizham Thirunal's accession to the throne and the idol was reconsecrated in 906 ME (1731 CE). On 17 January 1750, Anizham Thirunal surrendered the Kingdom of Travancore to Padmanabhaswamy, the main deity at the temple, and pledged that he and his descendants would be vassals or agents of the deity who would serve the kingdom as Padmanabha Dasa.[6] Since then, the name of every Travancore king was preceded by the title 'Sree Padmanabha Dasa'; the female members of the royal family were called 'Sree Padmanabha Sevinis' both meaning the servant to Padmanabhaswamy; . The donation of the king to Padmanabhaswamy was known as Thrippadi-danam. The final wishes of Anizham Thirunal on his passing at the age of 53 clearly delineated the historical relationship between the Maharaja and the temple: "That no deviation whatsoever should be made in regard to the dedication of the kingdom to Padmanabhaswamy and that all future territorial acquisitions should be made over to the Devaswom."
Temple structure
Main shrine
In the
The platforms in front of the
In order to perform
Other shrines
Inside the Temple, there are two other important shrines, Thekkedom and Thiruvambadi, for the Deities, Ugra Narasimha and Krishna Swami respectively.
Centuries back, several families of
There are also shrines for
Gopuram
The foundation of the present
Temple rituals
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (October 2019) |
Festivals and rites
There are many festivals associated with this temple. The major festivals are bi-annual. The Aipasi festival and the
A major annual festival related to Padmanabhaswamy temple is the
The biggest festival in this temple is laksha deepam which means hundred thousand (or one lakh) lamps. This festival is unique and commences once in 6 years. Prior to this festival, chanting of prayers and recitation of three vedas is done for 56 days (Murajapam). On the last day, hundred thousand oil lamps are lit in and around the temple premises.
Priests
Temples where 'Swamiyar Pushpanjali' is conducted are claimants to extra sanctity. Sannyasins from Naduvil Madhom and Munchira Madhom do Pushpanjali (flower worship) daily to Padmanabha, Narasimha Moorthi and Krishna Swami. Tharananallur Nambuthiripads of Iranjalakkuda are the Tantris of the Temple. The Nambies, altogether four in number, are the Chief Priests of the Temple. Two Nambies – Periya Nambi and Panchagavyathu Nambi – are allotted to Padmanabha and one Nambi each to Narasimha Moorthi and Krishna Swami. The Nambies hail from either side of the Chandragiri River.[4]
Temple entry
In line with the Temple Entry Proclamation, only those who profess the Hindu faith are permitted entry to the temple and devotees have to strictly follow the dress code.[27] Men wear "vesti" with "angavastram" (the South Indian version of dhoti and shawl, both plain white in color) and women wear sari.
Temple management
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (October 2019) |
The Padmanabhaswamy Temple and its property were controlled by the Ettara Yogam (King and Council of Eight) with the assistance of Ettuveetil Pillamar ("Lords of the Eight Houses"). The Ettara Yogam consists of Pushpanjali Swamiyar, six member Thiruvananthapurathu Sabha, Sabhanjithan (Secretary) and Arachan (Maharaja of Travancore). Thiruvananthapurathu Sabha was primarily responsible for the administration of the Temple. Koopakkara Potti, Vanchiyoor Athiyara Potti, Kollur Athiyara Potti, Muttavila Potti, Karuva Potti and Neythasseri Potti are the members of the Sabha. The Pushpanjali Swamiyar presides over the meetings of the Sabha. Sreekaryathu Potti is the Sabhanjithan of the Sabha.[28] Any decision taken by the Sabha can be implemented only if the Maharaja of Travancore approves of it.[29] It is believed that eight members of Ettara Yogam (seven Potties and the Maharaja of Travancore) received their rights from Parashurama Himself.
In the past, only the Swamiyars of the
Extant temple records
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (October 2019) |
A pertinent event in the long history of the temple was the construction of a "granta-pura" (record-room) within the temple compound itself around 1425 A.D. by the then Venad King Veera Iravi Iravi Varma, to store the "Mathilakam" (within-the-walls) records, as the then existing temple records were known.[30] A major portion of those records (over 3000 'Cadjan' leaf-records) from the Mathikalam had been donated later to the Archives Department in 1867 at the time of the formation of the latter. Each of these Cadjan leaf-records, which have been compiled over thousands of years, contains 10,000 documentations according to R. Nagaswamy, noted archaeologist and historian, totalling over 30 crores of records. Despite their cultural value, only a minuscule portion of these grantas (bundles) of cadjan leaf records, written mostly in ancient scripts of proto-Tamil and archaic-Malayalam, have been deciphered. The translations of this section of manuscripts by some scholars serve as a rare though very inadequate primary source material on the temple and its rich traditions.
The rest of these Mathilakam documents – segregated under 70 "heads" – is still lying idle with the Archives Department. According to Aswathi Thirunal Gouri Lakshmi Bayi, a member of the Travancore Royal Family and author of a book on the temple, from a very early period in recorded history the temple had employed two kinds of 'record writers'. One group was to record the proceedings and transactions of the Ettarayogam, a council of temple administrators, that included the then king. The other was to write and preserve the records of the day-to-day functioning of the temple, maintain correct accounts of the temple-treasury, and of temple-revenue-collections and temple-expenditure and as well as to note down all the other records, connected with the functioning of the temple.
Temple assets
The temple and its assets belong to Padmanabhaswamy and are for a long time controlled by a trust which is headed by the Travancore royal family. T P Sundararajan's litigations changed the way the world looked at the Temple.[31][32][33][34]
In June 2011, the Supreme Court of India directed the authorities from the archaeology department and the fire services to open the secret chambers of the temple for inspection of the items kept inside.[35] The temple has six hitherto known vaults (nilavaras), labelled as A to F, for bookkeeping purpose by the Court. (Since, however, an Amicus Curie Report by Gopal Subramanium, in April 2014, reportedly found two more further subterranean vaults that have been named G and H.) While vault B has been unopened over centuries, A was possibly opened in the 1930s, and vaults C to F have been opened from time to time over recent years. The two priests of the temple, the 'Periya Nambi' and the 'Thekkedathu Nambi', are the custodians of the four vaults, C to F, which are opened periodically. The Supreme Court had directed that "the existing practices, procedures, and rituals" of the temple be followed while opening vaults C to F and using the articles inside, while Vaults A and B would be opened only for the purpose of making an inventory of the articles and then closed. The review of the temple's underground vaults was undertaken by a seven-member panel appointed by the Supreme Court to generate an inventory, leading to the enumeration of a vast collection of articles that are traditionally kept under lock and key. A detailed inventory of the temple assets, consisting of gold, jewels, and other valuables is yet to be made.
While vault B (as also presumably Vault G and Vault H) remains unopened (since the 1880s), vaults A, C, D, E and F were opened along with some of their antechambers. Among the reported findings, are a 1.1 metres (3.5 ft) tall solid pure golden idol of Mahavishnu, studded with hundreds of diamonds and rubies and other precious stones.[36] Also found were an 5.5-metre (18 ft)-long pure gold chain, a gold sheaf weighing 500 kg (1,100 lb), a 36 kg (79 lb) golden veil, 1200 'Sarappalli' gold coin-chains that are encrusted with precious stones, and several sacks filled with golden artefacts, necklaces, diadems, diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, gemstones, and objects made of other precious metals.[37][38][39][40] Ceremonial attire for adorning the deity in the form of 16-part gold anki weighing almost 30 kilograms (66 lb), gold "coconut shells" studded with rubies and emeralds, and several 18th century Napoleonic era coins were found amongst many other objects.[3] In early 2012, an expert committee had been appointed to investigate these objects, which include lakhs of golden coins of the Roman Empire, that were found in Kottayam, in Kannur District.[41][42] According to Vinod Rai, the former Comptroller-and-Auditor-General (CAG) of India, who had audited some of the Temple records from 1990, in August 2014, in the already opened vault A, there is an 800 kg (1,800 lb) hoard of gold coins dating to around 200 BCE, each coin priced at over ₹2.7 crore (US$320,000).[43] Also found was a pure golden throne, studded with hundreds of diamonds and other precious stones, meant for the 5.5-metre (18 ft)-long deity. As per one of the men, who was among those that went inside this Vault A, several of the largest diamonds were as large as a full-grown man's thumb.[44] According to varying reports, at least three, if not more, of solid gold crowns have been found, studded with diamonds and other precious stones.[45][46][47] Some other media reports also mention hundreds of pure gold chairs, thousands of gold pots and jars, among the articles recovered from Vault A and its antechambers.[48]
Even with only the five smaller of the reported eight vaults being opened (the larger three vaults and all their ante-chambers still remaining closed), the treasure found so far, is considered to be by far the largest collection of items of gold and fully precious stones in the recorded history of the world.[49][50]
The valuables are believed to have been accumulated in the temple over several thousand years, having been donated to the deity (and subsequently stored there), by various dynasties like the
On 4 July 2011, the seven-member expert team tasked with taking stock of the temple assets decided to postpone opening of chamber B. This chamber is sealed with an iron door, with the image of a cobra on it, and has not been opened due to the belief that opening it would result in much misfortune.[58] The royal family has also said that opening chamber B could be a bad omen.[59] The seven-member team will consult with some more experts on 8 July 2011, and may make a final decision on opening chamber B.[60] An Ashtamangala Devaprasnam conducted in the Temple to discern the will of the deity revealed that any attempts to open chamber B would cause divine displeasure, and that the holy articles in the other chambers were defiled in the inventorying process.[21] The original petitioner (T. P. Sundarajan), whose court action led to the inventory, died in July 2011, adding credence to the folklore around the temple.[61] Prior to this now-famous incident in July 2011, one of the several vaults in the temple which was not vaults B (untouched after the 1880s), G, or H (both rediscovered supposedly by the Amicus Curie only in mid-2014), was opened in 1931. This was possibly an antechamber of vaults A, C, D, E, or F that may not have been opened yet. This was necessitated due to the severe economic depression that India was going through. The Palace and State Treasuries had run almost dry. The small group of people, including the king and the priests, found a granary-sized structure almost full with mostly gold and some silver coins and jewels. Surmounted on top of it were hundreds of pure gold pots. There were four coffers filled with gold coins as well. Also found was a larger chest fixed to the ground with six sections in it. They were full of gold jewelry encrusted with diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. Besides these, there were four more chests of old coins (not of gold), and they were carried back to the Palace and state treasuries for counting.[14]
Vault (Nilavara) B ("The Forbidden Zone")
The Vault B, its original name being "Mahabharata Kallara", is by far the largest cellar.[62][14] The Bhagavata Purana says that Balarama visited Phalgunam (more commonly known as Thiruvananthapuram), took bath in Panchapsaras (Padmateertham) and made a gift of ten thousand cows to holy men.[63] Though the sannidhyam of Padmanabha has always been present in the holy land of Thiruvananthapuram, and it was a very ancient and renowned pilgrim spot even during the time of Balarama, the present-day temple for the deity came up later. The southwest part of the Chuttambalam was constructed at the holy spot where Balarama is believed to have donated cows to holy men. This portion came to be known as Mahabharatakonam and covered the ground underneath which both Kallara B and Kallara A were situated.[64]
According to a popular legend, many devas and sages devoted to Balarama, visited him on the banks of Padmateertham. They requested him that they may be permitted to reside there worshipping the lord. Balarama granted them their wish. It is believed that these devas and sages reside in Kallara B worshipping the deity. Naga Devathas devoted to the deity also dwell in this Kallara.[65] Kanjirottu Yakshi, whose enchanting and ferocious forms are painted on the south-west part of the main Sanctum, resides in this Kallara worshipping Narasimha.[66] Holy objects like Sreechakram were installed beneath this Kallara to enhance the potency of the principal deity. Ugra Narasimha of Thekkedom is said to be the Protector of Kallara B. There is a serpent's image on Kallara B indicating danger to anyone who opens it. A four-day Ashtamangala Devaprasnam conducted in August 2011 declared Kallara B as "forbidden zone".[67]
One of the oldest existing estimates with respect to only Vault B, as per the Temple priests, was by the Travancore Royal Family themselves in the 1880s (when an older existing inventory and estimate were last updated). Then, the Gold in Vault B which is by far the largest and the only vault (of the reported six) that is unopened so far since the 1880s, was worth INR 12,000 Crores in the then (1880s') terms.[68][69] The price of gold in the 1880s, when the inventory and estimate were last updated, was INR 1.8 per gram (The price of gold was about US$18 for an ounce in the 1880s when the dollar was 3.3 to the rupee).[70]
It is highly unlikely that Kallara B was opened after the 1880s. An article by Emily Gilchriest Hatch,[71] a visiting Englishwoman in the 1933, recalls in her book 'Travancore: A Guide Book for the Visitor' (Oxford University Press, 1933) about an unsuccessful attempt to open one Kallara in 1908: "About 25 years ago, when the State needed additional money, it was thought expedient to open these chests and use the wealth they contained." "A group of people" got together and attempted to enter the vaults with torches. When they found the vaults "infested with cobras" they "fled for their lives.[14]
In 2011, the antechamber to Kallara B was opened by the Observers appointed by the Supreme Court of India.[72] But the Observers could not open Kallara B. However, Gopal Subramanium in his report submitted to the Supreme Court in April 2014, recommended its opening after conducting another Devaprasnam. The two Pushpanjali Swamiyars are the highest spiritual dignitaries of Padmanabhaswamy Temple. The Pushpanjali Swamiyar of Naduvil Madhom sent letters to the Chairperson of the Administrative Committee and the Executive Officer on 8 February 2016 expressing his strong opposition to the opening of Kallara B.[73] The Pushpanjali Swamiyar of Munchira Madhom led a Ratha Yathra from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram in May 2018 campaigning against opening the sacred Kallara. Azhvanchery Thamprakkal, the supreme spiritual leader of Kerala Brahmins, while addressing a meeting held in connection with the Ratha Yathra, also demanded that faith should not be trampled upon by opening Kallara B.[74]
According to a report by former Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai, at least the outer door (antechamber) to Kallara B has been opened a number of times in recent decades - twice in 1991 and five times in 2002. Once Vinod Rai's report was out, Princess Aswathi Thirunal Gowri Lakshmi Bayi clarified that Mr Rai was referring to the antechamber to Kallara B, and that that antechamber was opened even in 2011 by the Supreme Court-appointed observers.[75]
Litigations
The Kerala High Court ruled in 2011 that the state government should take over the control of the temple and its assets, but the Travancore royal family appealed to the Supreme Court.[76] An independent report was commissioned, and was completed in November 2012,[77] finding no evidence that the royal family were expropriating the treasures.[76]
As of April 2016, vaults B, G, and H along with their several ante-chambers were yet to be opened; while inventorying of the items in vaults C, D, E, and F were completed (in August 2012) and formal inventorying of vault A had commenced.[78] Several hundred pots and other items made of gold, that are used for daily rituals or intermittently for ceremonies in the Temple, were not inventoried as the Temple-priests expressed strong objections.[78] Over 1.02 lakh "articles" had been retrieved from Vault A and its ante-chambers, until that point, though only a small part of them had been inventoried then. An "article" could be either an individual item, or collections of several items, examples of the latter being a cache of 1.95 lakh 'Rassappanams' (Gold coins) weighing 800 kg and sets of Navaratnas (collections of nine different kinds of diamonds).[79] There are over 60,000 fully precious stones set as parts of larger pieces of gold jewellery among those items inventoried as of March 2013.[79] The results of the inventory are not to be released until the completion of the whole process by order of the Supreme Court of India.[77]
In April 2014,
The report states – "The large amount of gold and silver, the discovery of which was a shock to the Amicus Curiae, is a singular instance of mismanagement. The presence of a gold plating machine is also yet another unexplained circumstance. This discovery raises a doubt of the organized extraction by persons belonging to the highest echelons. There appears to be resistance on the part of the entire State apparatus in effectively addressing the said issues. The lack of adequate investigation by the police is a telling sign that although Thiruvananthapuram is a city in the State of Kerala, parallelism based on monarchic rule appears to predominate the social psyche." The report also found the existence of two more vaults that were never even made mention of or hitherto spoken about.
The report named them Vault 'G' and Vault 'H'. Like Vault 'B' and all its antechambers, both these vaults and their antechambers were yet to be opened as of May 2014.[88][89] The report also mentions that Mr. Subramanian found several large trunks filled with artefacts made of precious metals and precious stones outside of the eight vaults and their antechambers.[90]
The CBI and the Intelligence Bureau have red-flagged the appointment of Gopal Subramanium as a Judge in the Supreme Court. The IB cites Mr Subramaniam's report on Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple as one of the instances where he relied heavily on his spiritual instincts rather than rational logic and hard facts.[91] In his second report on Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple, Mr Subramaniam himself reveals that "It was his morning ritual of [shutting] his mind and seeking guidance, which resulted in discoveries in this direction."[92]
The Amicus Curiae has also been accused of conducting poojas in the Temple in violation of its customs.[91] He performed poojas at the Thevarappura in the Temple and in front of the Vedavyasa Shrine. Despite opposition from the Royal Family and the Tantries of the Temple, he pulled out a stone Yantra from the nearby Marthandan Madhom Palace and did pooja on it for several days. The Tantries explained that the Yantram had no connection with the Padmanabhaswami Temple and that it was for the protection of the Palace. But the Amicus Curiae insisted on having it installed in the Sanctum Sanctorum of the Temple. Due to severe opposition from the Tantries the Yantram remains where it was. Every morning, Padmanabha is to be awakened only by blowing the conch shell and chanting the Sripada Sooktham. But the Amicus Curiae introduced the daily rendering of Venkatesa Suprabhatam to awaken the deity. The Supreme Court requested the Tantri to take the final decision on whether the Suprabhatam could be sung. Following that, the Senior Tantri Nedumpilli Tharananalloor Parameswaran Namboothiripad directed the Temple authorities to stop the chanting of Suprabhatam forthwith, as it was causing 'Anya Mantra Yajana Dosham' (affliction due to worshipping the deity with incompatible mantras) to the presiding deity and the Temple. As atonement for this dosham, the Tantri wants Vedic scholars to chant 12 'muras' each of Rig Veda and Yajur Veda. In his first report to the Supreme Court, the Amicus Curiae directed the Tantries to examine whether a Sri Yantra can be installed in the Sanctum Sanctorum, in front of the utsava moorthi.[93]
On 13 July 2020, overturning the January 2011 judgment of the Kerala high court, the Supreme Court of India ruled that the Padmanabhaswamy Temple administration and control would be, henceforth, in the hands of the erstwhile Travancore royal family.[94][95]
See also
- Padmanabhaswamy Temple treasure
- Thirumal in Thiruvananthapuram
- Temples of Kerala
- Attukal Temple
- Vellayani Devi Temple
- Methan mani, clock tower adjoining the temple
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{{cite web}}
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External links
- Official website
- Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple (SPST)
- Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple (Information About Sree Padmanabhaswamy]
- Padmanabhaswamy Temple treasures belong to royal family: Sankaracharya