Who should control Kerala temple's $22 billion treasure?
The centuries-old Sree Pasmanabhaswamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala on its way to become the richest shrine in India. Ornaments and valuables reportedly worth a whopping Rs one lakh crore have already been recovered from the secret cellars of the temple. Now the big questions is, who should control all this wealth.
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Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple is one of 108 Divya Desams (Holy Abodes of Vishnu) – principal centres of worship of the deity in Vaishnavism. It dates back to the 8th century CE. The temple gave its name to Kerala's state capital Thiruvananthapuram. ‘Thiru' ‘Anantha' ‘Puram' means Sacred Abode of Lord Anantha Padmanabha.
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The unearthing has led to the question of who should manage the wealth, much of which is believed to have been deposited at the temple by the royal family of the princely state of Travancore, which acceded to India when the country became independent in 1947. Some of the vaults under the temple have not been opened for nearly 150 years.
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Temples in India often have rich endowments, mainly from donations of gold and cash by pilgrims and wealthy patrons, but the wealth discovered at Padmanabhaswamy dwarfs the known assets of every other Indian temple. Such assets are typically meant to be used by administrators to operate temples and provide services to the poor, but they have often become the subject of heated disputes and controversies.
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Kerala Government officials say that the state would not seek control of the temple or its treasure, a step that some activists have recommended. "The treasure is donated to the temple from disciples and believers; it's the property of the temple," an official said. "It has nothing to do with the state."
