Padmanabhaswamy Temple

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Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple




Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple

Location in Kerala
Coordinates:
82858N 765637ECoordinates:
82858N 765637E
Name
Proper name: Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple
Location
Country: India
State: Kerala
Location: Thiruvananthapuram
Temple Details
Primary deity -
God:
Padmanabhaswamy (Vishnu)
Architecture and culture
Architectural
styles:
Dravidian architecture (Kovil)
Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple (Malayalam: l cm:em!:c oe,
padmabhasvmi kta
?
) is a Hindu temple dedicated to Vishnu located
in Thiruvananthapuram, India. The shrine is currently run by a trust headed by
the royal family of Travancore.
[1]
The temple is one of 108 Divya Desams (Holy
Abodes of Vishnu) principal centres of worship of the deity in Vaishnavism. The
temple, constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, is glorified in the Divya
Prabandha, the early medieval Tamil literature canon of the Tamil Alvar saints
(6th-9th centuries CE), with structural additions to it made throughout the 16th
century CE, when its ornate Gopuram was constructed.
[2][3]
The most recent
renovations to the temple occurred in the 18th century CE. The temple features
heavily in Akilam five series of the Akilathirattu Ammanai corpus, the holy text of
the Ayyavazhi belief system. Services were provided to the local community with
the temple's revenue. The temple gave its name to Keralas state capital
Thiruvananthapuram. Thiru Anantha Puram means Sacred Abode of Lord
Anantha Padmanabha.
The principal deity, Padmanabhaswamy, is enshrined in the "Anantha-sayanam"
posture (in the eternal sleep of Yoga-nidra on the serpent Ananta).
[4]
The
Travancore Kings regarded themselves as Padmanabha-dasa (Servant of Lord
Padmanabha).

[edit]History
In ealier years
[when?]
Padmanabhaswamy Temple and its properties were
controlled by eight powerful Nair feudal lords known as Ettuveetil Pillamar (Lords
of the Eight Houses), under the guidance of the Council of Eight and a Half. In a
battle of succession in the 18th century, King Anizham Thirunal Valiya Marthanda
Varma, the ruler traditionally regarded as the founder of Travancore, successfully
suppressed the Ettuveetil Pillais and his cousins following the discovery of
conspiracies the Lords were involved in against the Royal House of Travancore.
The last major renovation of the Padmanabhaswamy temple was also done
by Marthanda Varma. On January 3, 1750, Anizham Thirunal "surrendered" the
kingdom of Travancore to Padmanabha, the deity at the temple, and pledged that
he and his descendants would "serve" the kingdom asPadmanabha
Dasa.
[4]
Since then, the name of every Travancore King was preceded by the title
Padmanabha Dasa, while the female members of the Royal family were called
Padmanabha Sevinis. The donation of the Kingdom to Sree Padmanabhaswamy
was known as Thripadidanam and afterwards the Maharaja was known as Sree
Padmanabha Dasa Vanchipala Varma Kulashekara Kireetapati. By surrendering
the kingdom to Lord Padmanabha, the whole Travancore state became the
property of Sree Padmanabhaswamy.

[edit]The temple
The history of the temple dates back to the 8th Century CE, when
Thiruvananthapuram was ruled by the Chera Dynasty. The Divya
Prabandhacanon of literature by the Alvars glorifies this shrine as one of 11
Divya Desams in Kerala. It is said that there are references to this temple in four
puranas; namely Brahma, Vayu, Varaha, Padma. The 8th century Alvar
poet Nammalvar created four slokas and one phalasruthi about this temple.
[5][6]



Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple
Padmanabhaswamy Temple stands at a place considered one of the seven
Parasurama Kshetras; texts including the Puranas, particularly theSkanda
Purana and Padma Purana, have references to this shrine.


Entrance of Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple
The two annual festivals of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple culminate in a grand
procession, in which the three deities (Padmanabha, Narasimha andKrishna) are
carried on flower-deck and aesthetically decorated Garuda Vahanas
to Shankumugham Beach, for "arattu" (sacramental ablution). The arattu days
are declared as local public holidays in Thiruvanathapuram.
[edit]Gopuram
The foundation of the present gopuram was laid in 1566.
[7]
The temple has a
100-foot,
[8]
seven-tier gopuram made in the Pandyan style.
[9]
The temple stands
by the side of a tank, named Padma Theertham (meaning the lotus spring). The
temple has a corridor with 365 and one-quarter sculptured granite-stone pillars
with elaborate carvings. This corridor extends from the eastern side into the
sanctum sanctorum. An eighty-foot flag-staff stands in front of the main entry
from the 'prakaram' (corridor). The ground floor under the gopuram (main
entrance in the eastern side) is known as the 'Nataka Sala' where the famous
temple art Kathakali was staged in the night during the ten-
day uthsavam (festival) conducted twice a year, during the Malayalam months of
Meenam and Thulam.
[edit]Sreekovil

This article may contain wording that merely promotes the subject without imparting
verifiable information. Please remove or replace such wording, unless you can cite independent
sources that support the characterization.
In the Sreekovil, Vishnu is depicted in a reclining position over the
serpent Anantha or Adi Sesha.
[10]
The serpent has his face pointed inwards
(signifying contemplation). The Lord's right hand hangs over Shiva. Sridevi, the
Goddess of Prosperity and Bhudevi the Goddess of the Earth, two consorts of
Vishnu stand by his side and the god Brahma emerges on a lotus, which
emanates from the navel of Vishnu. The idol is said to be made from
12008 Saligram. These Saligram are from the banks of the Gandaki
River in Nepal, and it is believed that they were brought with much ceremony on
elephants. The idol is covered with, "Katusarkara yogam", a special ayurvedic
mix, was used to make a plaster which keeps the deity clean. The daily worship
is with flowers and for the abhishekam, special deities are used. The flowers
have always been removed using peacock feathers fearing damage to the
katusarkara.
[citation needed]

The platform in front of vimanam and where the deity rests are both carved out of
a single stone and hence called "Ottakkal Mandapam". In order to perform
darshan and puja, one has to climb on to the Mandapam. The deity is visible
through three doors Face of the Lord and Siva Linga underneath his hand in
the first door, Brahma seated on lotus emanating from the Lord's navel along with
the "Utsava moorthi" and deities of Lord Vishnu, Sridevi and Bhudevi in the
second door and the Lord's feet in the third door. Only the King of Travancore
may perform Namaskaram, or bow prostrate on the "Ottakkal Mandapam". It is
traditionally held that anybody who bows prostrates on the mandapam has
surrendered all that he/she possesses to the deity. Since the ruler has already
done that, he/she is permitted to bow on this mandapam.
There are other important shrines inside the temple for Hindu deities
Sri Narasimha, Sri Krishna, Sri Ayyappa, Sri Ganesha and Sri Hanuman. Many
other small shrines like Kshetrapalan (who guards the temple), Vishwaksena
and Sri Garuda are also present.


The approach road to Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple
[edit]Legend
There are many legends regarding the origin of the temple. One such legend
says that Vilvamangalathu Swamiyar alias Divakara Muni prayed to Krishna for
his darshan. Krishna came in disguise as a small, mischievous boy. The boy
swallowed the Saligrama which was kept in Puja. The Sage became enraged at
this and chased the boy until the boy hid himself behind a tree. The tree fell down
and became Vishnu in Anantha Shayanam (reclining posture on Anantha the
serpent) but when he did so, he was of an extraordinarily large size. The Sage,
recognizing that the tree was Vishnu, pleaded that because of the huge form the
lord had manifested before him he could not either have a mind fulfilling darshan
or circumambulate him. He then asked the Lord to shrink to a smaller proportion
thrice the length of his staff. Immediately, the idol shrank, and the Lord
instructed the sage that he should be worshipped through three doors. These
doors are now the doors in the temple through which the idol may be viewed.
Through the first door, the worship is offered to Shiva; through the second
entrance to Brahma on the Lord's lotus navel, and through the third is Vishnu's
feet, which are said to lead to salvation.
[citation needed]
Another story tells of
a pulaya couple seeing Vishnu in the form of a child. The child took morsels of
rice from the hands of the couple. Also it is believed that Divakaramuni, when he
saw the deity, took the first food item he saw which was an unripe Mango on a
coconut shell as an offering plate and performed primary pooja. To this day, the
naivedyam or offering of unripe mango is offered to the deity here in the same
coconut shell that Divakara Muni offered his prasadam to the Lord. Millions of
devotees believe that the Lord has personally come in disguise and had saved
the Travancore Kingdom from enemy attack on multiple occasions.
[edit]Naivedyam or offering to Perumal
Apart from the usual rice offering various other items are offered including Retna
Payasam or offering of Payasam in a Gem studded Golden Vessel, Meni Thula
Payasam or the Delicious Rice and Jaggery Pudding entirely made in Ghee, Pal
Manga, Otta Thula Payasam, Panthranu Kalam Payasam, and Paal Payasam
(Milk and Rice Pudding) which is very famous. During Thursdays, special
Panakam is offered to the Lord Narasimha. Unni Appam, Mothakam, Aval with
sugar is also offered to the Lord.
[citation needed]
But the most important Nivedyam in
this Temple is the Uppu Manga (unripe mango soaked in brine water) which is
offered in a gold covered chiratta or coconut shell. This coconut shell is more
than 1200 years old. The Great Sage Vilwamangalathu Divakara Acharyar
offered an unripe mango in this very same coconut shell and it is still preserved.
[edit]Darshan, sevas and festivals


NarasimhaSwamy & PadmanabhaSwamy after coming from Shankumuka Beach during Aarat Festival
There are many festivals related to this temple. The major festivals are bi-annual.
The Alpashy festival which is in October/November and the Painkuni festival
which is in March/April, lasts for 10 days each. These festivals culminate with
the Aarat (holy bath) procession to the Shankumugham Beach. The
word Aaratrefers to the purificatory immersion of the deities of the temple in sea.
This event takes place in the evening. The King of Travancore escorts
the Aaratprocession by foot. The festival idols "Utsava Vigrahas" of Sri
Padmanabhaswamy, Krishna and Narasimha are given a ritual bath in the sea,
after the prescribed pujas. After this ceremony, the idols are taken back to the
temple in a procession that is lit by traditional torches, marking the conclusion of
the festival.
A major annual festival related to Padmanabha temple is the Navaratri festival.
The idols of Saraswati, Durga, and Murugan are brought to the kuthira
malikapalace in front of Padmanabha temple as a procession. This festival lasts
for 9 days. The famous Swathi music festival is held every year during this
festival.


Big Idol of Pandavas displayed during Panguni festival
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 51 days. On the festival time, hundred thousand oil lamps are lit in and
around the temple premises. The next laksha deepam is slated on January 2014


Temple Tower during LakshaDeepam Festival
The temple is not a part of Travancore Devaswom Board. Its control rests with a
trust headed by the Maharaja of Travancore. Darshan times are (before noon)
3.30-4.45, 6.30-7.00, 8.30-10.00, 10.30-11.00, 11.45-12.00; (after noon) 5.00-
6.15 and 6.45-7.20. In line with the Temple Entry Proclamation, only those who
profess the Hindu faith are permitted entry to the temple. Devotees have to
strictly follow the dress code. Men should remove clothes above waist and
deposit in the locker room. No one is permitted to wear dress that displays both
legs separately, implying the prohibition of trousers for men and women. Dhotis
can be borrowed at the locker room for Rs. 15. Dhotis can be worn over pants or
churidhar. No cell phones or cameras are permitted inside the temple. Cell
phones must be deposited in the locker room after taking it out of the bag for Rs.
15 a piece. Hand bags are permitted inside.
[edit]Compositions
Nammalvar had sung in praise of Lord Padmanabha Swamy. Swathi Thirunal
Rama Varma wrote many songs on Sri Padmanabha. Most of these songs have
the word Padmanabha in them.
[edit]Temple assets

Wikinews has related
news:Hidden treasure worth
billions of dollars discovered
in Indian temple
The temple and its assets belong to Lord Padmanabhaswamy, and are controlled
by a trust run by the Royal family.
[11][12][13][14]
The royals consider
themselves Padmanabhadasas i.e. servants of Padmanabhaswamy.
[15][3]

There had been an earlier inventory of at least one vault on Sunday, December
6, 1931. A vault was opened in the presence of Sree Chithira Thirunal Balarama
Varma, then the Maharaja of the state of Travancore. Among the contents found
were gold and silver coins stored in a "granary like thing," four brass chests of
coins, over 300 gold pots, and a six-chambered wooden chest containing jewels
decorated with diamonds, rubies, emeralds and other precious stones. Four
coffers were removed and taken to the palace treasury for counting and
valuation.
[16]

The Kerala High Court ordered the temple and its assets be managed by the
State on January 31, 2011. As trustees of the temple, the royals have challenged
the Kerala Govt.'s decision. The lower court's ruling was set aside by
the Supreme Court of India. The Supreme Court directed utmost security in and
around the temple and asked the Central Valuation Institute of Lucknow for an
inventory valuation.
[12][17][18]

In June 2011, the Supreme Court directed the authorities from the fire services
and archeology department
[19]
to open the secret (sanctum sanctorum) chambers
of the temple for inspection of the items kept inside. A detailed inventory of the
temple assets, consisting of gold, jewels, and other valuables was made. Several
18th century Napoleonic era coins were found,
[3]
as well as a three-and-a-half
feet tall gold idol of Mahavishnu studded with rubies and emeralds, and
ceremonial attire for adorning the deity in the form of 16-part gold anki weighing
almost 30 kilograms (66 lb) together with gold coconut shells, one studded with
rubies and emeralds.
[20]

This revelation has solidified the status of the Padmanabhaswamy temple as one
of the wealthiest temples in India and with the final estimate of the wealth, it
might overtake the Tirumala Venkateswara Templehitherto thought to be the
wealthiest templehaving some 320 billion (US$7.14 billion) in gold, coins and
other assets.
[21]
It is estimated that the value of the monumental items is close
to 1.2 trillion (US$26.76 billion), making it the richest temple in the world.
[22][23]
If
the antique value is taken into account, these assets could be worth ten times the
current market price.
[22]

The valuables are thought to have been in the temple for hundreds of years,
having been put there by traders, pilgrims and royals such as the maharajahs
of Travancore, and by offerings of Travancore kings, other royals and ordinary
devotees to the deity.
[3][24][25]
While some Historians have suggested that a major
chunk of the stored riches reached the kings in the form of tax, gifts, as well as
conquered wealth of states and offerings stocked in the temple for
safekeeping.
[26]
A ferry transported traders, pilgrims and chroniclers across
the Gulf of Mannar from the Tenavaram temple, the famously wealthy Vishnu-
Shiva temple town emporium to the Chera kingdom via Puttalam of the Jaffna
kingdom during the medieval period.
[27][28]
This temple was destroyed in 1587 CE,
a few years after the Thiruvananthapuram Padmanabhaswamy temple gopuram
was constructed. Morrocan traveller Ibn Batuta visited Tenavaram in the 14th
century and described the Vishnu idol here as being made of gold and the size of
a man with two large rubies as eyes "that lit up like lanterns during the
night."
[29][30]
All people living within the vicinity of the temple and who visited it
were fed with monetary endowments that were made to the idol.
The temple has 6 vaults (Kallaras), labeled as A to F for book keeping purpose
by the Court. While vaults A and B have been unopened over the past 130 years,
vaults C to F have been opened from time to time. The two priests of the temple,
the 'Periya Nambi' and the 'Thekkedom 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. Vaults A and B shall be
opened only for the purpose of making an inventory of the articles and then
closed.
On July 4, 2011 the seven-member expert team which is taking stock of the
assets at temple decided to postpone opening of the secret chamber marked 'B'
till they obtained more expert opinion as preliminary examination of its gates had
found the vault to be secured with iron shutters making experts wonder what lay
inside. The royal family said that many legends were attached to the temple and
that chamber B has a model of a snake on the main door and opening it could be
a bad omen.
[31]
Seven-member team will consult with some more experts on July
8, 2011 and a then they may take the final decision on opening of chamber B.
[32]

In late June 2011, a review of the temple's underground vaults was undertaken
by a seven-member panel appointed by the Supreme Court of India to generate
an inventory, leading to the enumeration of a vast collection of articles that are
traditionally kept under lock and key. Unofficial estimates on the sixth day of the
inventory placed the value of contents at close to 100,000 crore (US$22.3
billion), making it one of the wealthiest in the world,
[23][33][34]
richer than
the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh by official
records considered to be the richest shrine in India.
[35][23][36]
The precious articles
come from the donations that were made by the Royal family and traders, who
used to come from other parts of the country and abroad, as offerings to the
deity, and were sealed within the thick stone walls and vaults of the temple for
over a millennium.
[37]

[3]

The final vault of the temple has an iron door with a picture of snake(a cobra) on
it and it has not been opened, due to the belief that a curse befalls those who
attempt to open it.
[38]
Less than a month after the first of the secret vaults was
opened, the chief petitioner for opening the vaults, T.P. Sundarrajan died after
suffering from a sudden unexplained illness.
[39]
This has been dubbed as "The
Curse of the Cobra" by the media.
[40]

[edit]