From the title,one can easily guess the subject of discussion in this post. Yes, its about Padmanabhaswamy temple which has been in the news for past 1 week or so.Before this news,many dint know about this temple. I happen to visit this temple 11 years back. I dont remember much about my visit because it was just another temple in terms of everything.There was no much speciality in terms of temple architecture or design except for the 'garbhagriha' where the deity of Vishnu is depicted in a reclining position over the serpent 'Anantha'. Many believe that the temple was built by the King of Travancore.But it is not .One of the most famous rulers was Marthanda Varma,who took over the temple and renovated to the present form. Travancore royal family were Vishnu devotees and would visit the temple daily as was their custom.If they are not able to make it to the temple even for a day,they would deposit a certain amount to temple for skipping their visit.Such was their devotion and fear for god.Even today,the Travancore king pays Rupees 151.55 to the temple the next day if he is not able to make it to the temple.The administration ways of this temple implemented by Marthanda Varma,is still being followed. According to them,the temple is not being maintained by the money that comes as donation or hundial deposits,as is the case in almost all temples.The donations and hundial deposits will remain untouched. The money earned by the Travancore family by selling pepper and other spices to the west is being used for temple administration and maintenance.This custom is being followed to this day.
Now the question arises from where did all those wealth came in those temple vaults? This wealth belongs to the Travancore Royal family .Marthanda Varma donated all those wealth to the temple and pledged that he and his descendants would "serve" the kingdom as Padmanabha Dasa, meaning "Servant of the Padmanabha"..The rulers of Travancore were not as well known as Tipu Sulthan or Cholas . But they were their people's god.He had pledged that the wealth donated to the temple would be used if there were any droughts or famines in his state. Till date,the wealth donated has not been used by the family of Travancore for any of their personal purposes.The Mathilakom records shows how such a huge amount of wealth was managed so well without a single pie stolen. Now there is no Kingdom of Travancore and so those wealth cannot be declared as public either.
I do not want to comment on what has to be done with that wealth.Let the court(Not rulers) decide .If it is asked to be taken over by govt,not a single pie will reach the poor.Better if it remains with the Royal family and temple trust until they find good alternative.It has been safe and well managed for many centuries and it will be so for centuries to come.There is lot to be learnt from this by our so called "elected democratic" present rulers.
