Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple

Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. The temple's existence dates back to the 8th century AD; however constructional additions have been made to the temple through out history as is common to most temples in India. The temple has special significance for Vaishnavites as it is considered to be one of the hundred and eight Divya Desams or Holy Abodes of the God.Recently it has dominated headlines in the past few months because of the Supreme Court's order to open five of the six vaults of the temple which has an estimated wealth of nearly 1 lakh crore. The order has sparked debates over what should be done with this considerable amount of wealth.Like most historical temples in India, this temple is under a trust which is headed by the royal family of Travancore. The Travancore Kings considered themselves to be servants of the Lord Padmanbhaswamy and called themselves Padmanabha-dasa. It was in the 18th century that  King Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma, also seen as the founder of modern Travancore, took control of the temple.  Since then the temple has remained under the royal family of Travancore.It was rather common for Kings in South India to declare themselves as servants of God because of both economic and political reasons. Temples were a large source of wealth because the Gods received a large number of offerings, especially in the form of gold.[caption id="attachment_62600" align="alignleft" width="380" caption="Devotees walk up the stairs leading to the 16th century Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Trivandrum. PTI."][/caption]The destruction of a temple was seen as sign of the destruction of that particular dynasty because the royal family often saw themselves as closely linked to the God and thus were consciously involved in the daily workings of the temple.The Padmabhaswamy temple was constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture,  and early Tamil literature of the Alvar saints glorify the structure. The Gopuram, which is the main tower at the entrance of a South Indian temple,was constructed in the 16th century. The temple gave its name to Kerala’s state capital Thiruvananthapuram. ‘Thiru’ ‘Anantha’ ‘Puram’ means Sacred Abode of Lord Anantha Padmanabha. The city was also known as Anandapura (City of Bliss). Ananda is none other than Sri Padmanabha Himself.The sanctum sanctorum or Sreekovil, is where the statue of Vishnu is kept. The deity is depicted in a reclining position over the serpent Anantha or Ses Naga. His right hand is placed over a Shiva lingam. Sridevi, the Goddess of Prosperity and Bhudevi the Goddess of Earth, two consorts of Vishnu are close to his side and Brahma emerges on a lotus, which emanates from the navel of Vishnu.Priests at the temple have sought to defend the temple's treasure. After an astrological examination or devaprasnam at the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple, the priests warned that those who tried to open its yet untouched vault B would die due to the wrath of the Gods. They also warned against any videography of the treasure discovered so far for it would anger the Gods more.The temple, among the richest in the world, has six vaults. Five of these were opened on the orders of the Supreme Court and a treasure trove estimated to be more than Rs.1 lakh crore was discovered. Vault B was not touched by a committee that was appointed by the court for stock taking of the temple's treasures last month.The Supreme Court later barred a seven-member committee from opening vaults of the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram.  A bench of justices R V Raveendran and A K Patnaik asked the petitioner Raja Marthanda Varma, erstwhile Prince of Travancore, and the Kerala government to come out with appropriate suggestions for ensuring sanctity and security of the ancient temple which has come to the limelight following discovery of the huge wealth.