Recently eveyone heard about the priceless wealth found in secret chambers of Anantha Padmanabha Swamy temple, in Tiruvananthapuram, Kerala. Now it’s one of the richest temples in the world  and  considered wealthier than Sri Thirumala Venkateswara Swamy temple in Andhra Pradesh. There was a public outcry when the current descendent of the erstwhile Kingdom attempted to retain the control of the temple by citing the special law. Many argued that the wealth belonged to the people now.  A review of the temple’s underground vaults was undertaken by a seven-member panel appointed by the Supreme Court of India estimated 1,00,000 crores  Rupees worth. Considering that the committee takes in to account its value based on ancient and historical facts the value of the treasure will be approximately ten times to the value estimated right now. Treasure includes ancient gold chains, diamonds, rubies and precious stones, silver vessels, and gold statues the value of which is humanly impossible to evaluate in terms of money.

According to the locals the Travancore kings stored immense riches within the thick stone walls and vaults of the temple.  The temple is controlled by a trust run by the descendants of the Travancore royal family since Independence. The kingdom of Travancore merged with the princely state of Cochin after 1947. It eventually became the present-day state of Kerala. The inspection of the temple began after India’s Supreme Court appointed a seven-member panel to enter and assess the value of the objects stored in its cellars,including  the two chambers last thought to have been opened about 150 years ago.

The history of Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple dates back to 8th Century. In later years  King Sree Marthanda Varma  took over the control of the temple. Marthanda Varma has done a major renovation to the temple and it is said that the current structure of Padmanabhaswamy temple was made by the King. The members of the Travancore royal family consider themselves to be servants of the presiding deity at the temple. After the death of Marthanda Varma in 1758 all the succeeding Kings of Travancore took great care in continuing the daily poojas and ceremonies of Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple intact and also rule the kingdom as Padmanabha Dasa. The successors of Marthanda Varma was Dharma Raja, Balarama Varma, Gowri Lakshmi Bayi, Gowri Parvati Bayi, Swathi Thirunal, Uthram Thirunal, Ayilyam Thirunal, Visakham Thirunal, Moolam Thirunal, Sethu Lakshmi Bayi, and Chithira Thirunal. The present head of the Travancore Royal Family, Sri Uthradom Thirunal Marthanda Varma also keeps the words of Marthanda Varma and maintains the temple rituals and ceremonies intact.

Thiruvananthapuram’s most sacred Sri Padmanabha Swamy temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu. The temple is a blend of the Kerala and Dravidian style of architecture. People  coming to experience the holy bliss of the temple of Sri Anantha Padmanabhaswamy can find a gopuram or tower which is 100 feet tall. The temple is considered to be one of the 108 holy abodes, which are principal centres of  worship in Srivaishnavism. The sculpture of Lord Vishnu, the presiding God of the Sri Anantha PadmanabhaswamyTemple, is aesthetically embellished with stone and gold. Reclined on the great snake called Anantha this idol of the temple has a length of 18 feet. The unique trait of the Sri Anantha Padmanabhaswamy temple is that the entire idol can be seen part by part through the three doors of the holy temple. While the first and second doors show the torso, head, hands and midriff of Lord Vishnu, the third door offers a view of the feet of the God. Another characteristic of the temple is that only Hindu devotees are allowed to enter its premises along with a particular dress code. The royal family members of Travancore play an important role in the maintenance and operation of the Sri Anantha Padmanabhaswamy Temple. Arattu which is a popular festival followed in the temple is organized by the Travancore royal family. During this festival a procession with music bands and elephants with colorful decorations is taken out in the streets Tiruvananthapuram

 

 

The temple is very famous for its discipline and strict and unique ways of conducting poojas as per the rituals dictated by the Vilwamangaluthu swamiyar. Till this day the predecessors of swamiyar follow the same age old traditions without fail. Once the government takes over the temple, there is a huge chance of all these pooja getting sabotaged and politicians led board dictating norms to government as we see now in the case of  Sri Tirumala Balaji and some other temples.  The holy treasure is not just belongs to the royal family and or Govt. As we see  many of the other temples treasure were stolen, it is very imperative to save this  ancient treasure  including the special Historic valuables should be kept on special exhibition in a newly built Ultra High Security.

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