Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple
Name:	Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple
Primary deity:	Padmanabhaswamy Vishnu
Architecture:	Kovil
Location:	Thiruvananthapuram

Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple, (Malayalam: ശ്രീ പത്മനാഭ സ്വാമി ക്ഷേത്രം) is a famous Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, located inside the East Fort in city of Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. The temple is one of the 108 divya desam^[1], the holiest abodes of Lord Vishnu and the main deity, Padmanabhaswamy is a form of Vishnu in Anananthasayanam posture (in eternal sleep of yognidra). This is an ancient temple and the city of Thiruvananthapuram derives its name from the name of the presiding deity enshrined in the temple. Image File history File links Padmanabhaswamy_temple. ... Vishnu (IAST , Devanagari ), (honorific: Sri Vishnu) also known as Narayana is the Supreme Being or Ultimate Reality for Vaishnavas and a manifestation of Brahman in the Advaita or Smarta traditions. ... The word temple has different meanings in the fields of architecture, religion, geography, anatomy, and education. ... Thiruvananthapuram   (Malayalam: തിരുവനന്തപുരം TiruvanÅ­ntapuraṁ), formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala and the headquarters of the Thiruvananthapuram District. ... Malayalam (മലയാളം ) is the language spoken predominantly in the state of Kerala, in southern India. ... This article discusses the adherents of Hinduism. ... Vishnu (Hindi: (विष्‍णु) is a form of God, whom Hindus pray to. ... Thiruvananthapuram   (Malayalam: തിരുവനന്തപുരം TiruvanÅ­ntapuraṁ), formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala and the headquarters of the Thiruvananthapuram District. ...   (IPA: ; , Written as േകരളം in the native language Malayalam) is a state on the Western Coast of south-western India. ... The Divya desams are 108 temples that are regarded by Srivaishnavite Hindus as being of special holiness. ... Vishnu (Hindi: (विष्‍णु) is a form of God, whom Hindus pray to. ...

Mythology

Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple stands at a place considered as one of the seven Parasurama Kshetras; texts including the Puranas, particularly the Skanda Purana and Padma Purana, have references for this shrine. Tradition states that in this place, the Hindu deity Lord Vishnu gave darshan to Indian sages like Divakarmuni and Vilvamangalam Swami^[1]. Another story tells of an Ezhava couple seeing Vishnu in the form of a child. The child took morsels of rice from the hands of the couple. In memory of this legend, naivedyam or offering is prepared from rice is offered to the deity here in a coconut shell. Purana (Sanskrit: पुराण , meaning ancient or old) is the name of a genre (or a group of related genres) of Hinduism literature (as distinct from oral literature). ... Skanda Purana, one of the major eighteen Puranas, a Hindu religious text believed to be written and compiled over a long period, from 6th century to 15th century, is the largest Purana, and is devoted mainly to the life and deed of Kartikeya (also called Skanda), a son of Shiva... Padma Purana, one of the major eighteen Puranas, a Hindu religious text, is divided into five parts. ... Darshan is a Sanskrit and Hindu (also used to some extent in Urdu) term meaning sight (in the sense of an instance of seeing something or somebody), vision, apparition, or a glimpse. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Vishnu (IAST , Devanagari ), (honorific: Sri Vishnu) also known as Narayana is the Supreme Being or Ultimate Reality for Vaishnavas and a manifestation of Brahman in the Advaita or Smarta traditions. ...

History

King Marthanda Varma, Maharaja of the erstwhile princely state of Travancore, did the last major renovation. He dedicated his kingdom to the deity, and pledged that he and his descendants would serve the kingdom as Padmanabha Dasa, meaning "servants of the Lord Padmanabha". With this, Sri Padmanabha became the Nominal Head of the State of Travancore, assuming the title Perumal, the Emperor. The British Government saluted the Lord with 21 Gun Salute, a military tradition of colonial days, which was continued by the Indian Army until the abolition of the privy purses by Govt.of India with Smt.Indira Gandhi as the Prime Minister. The royal insignia of the Lord, The Valampiri Shankhu or Conch-shell with the right twist, served as the State Emblem of Travancore and even continued so for some time after the re-organisation of the States. Sri Padmanabha is still regarded as National Deity of Travancore ^{[citation needed]}. The two annual festivals of the Temple culminates with a grand procession, with the three deities (Sree Padmanabha, Narasimha Swamy and Lord Krishna) carried in flower-decked and aesthetically decorated Garuda Vahanas to the Shankhumukhom beach, for'Aaraattu'. The 'aarattu' days are declared as local Public Holidays in Thiruvanathapuram. Marthanda Varma (1706 - 1758) was the son of the Rani of Attingal. ... The word Maharaja (also spelled maharajah) is Hindi as well as ancient Sanskrit for high king (a karmadharaya from maha great and rajan king). Its use is primarily for Hindu potentates (ruler or sovereign). ... A princely state is any state under the reign of a prince and is thus a principality taken in the broad sense. ... Flag for former princely state of Travancore Travancore or Thiruvithaamkoor (Malayalam: തിരുവിതാങ്കൂര്‍ [], തിരുവിതാംകൂര്‍ [], തിരുവിതാങ്കോട് []) was a princely state in India with its capital at Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram). ... Flag for former princely state of Travancore Travancore or Thiruvithaamkoor (Malayalam: തിരുവിതാങ്കൂര്‍ [], തിരുവിതാംകൂര്‍ [], തിരുവിതാങ്കോട് []) was a princely state in India with its capital at Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram). ... The Indian Army is the largest branch of the Armed Forces of India and has the primary responsibility of conducting land-based military operations. ... Flag for former princely state of Travancore Travancore or Thiruvithaamkoor (Malayalam: തിരുവിതാങ്കൂര്‍ [], തിരുവിതാംകൂര്‍ [], തിരുവിതാങ്കോട് []) was a princely state in India with its capital at Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram). ... Krishna with Radharani, 18th C Rajasthani painting Krishna (कृष्ण in Devanagari, in IAST ), according to various Hindu traditions, is the eighth avatar of Vishnu. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Thiruvananthapuram (Malayalam: തിരുവനന്തപുരം), formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala and the headquarters of Thiruvananthapuram District. ...

Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple

Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1024x768, 72 KB) Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1024x768, 72 KB) Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ...

The temple structure

Gopuram

The temple has a seven-tier gopuram. 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 exquisite and beautiful carvings. This corridor encompasses and leads one from the eastern side into the sanctum sanctorum. An eighty-foot flag-staff is erected 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 uthsavams conducted twice in a year, during the Malayalam months of Meenam and Thulam. Gopuram of Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam Gopuram, a prominent feature of the Hindu temple architecture of South India, is the rising tower at the entrance of a temple. ...

The sanctum

In the sanctum sanctorum, Vishnu is in a reclining position over the Anantha or Adi Sesha , the serpent with his face pointed upwards, he is enjoying the smell emanating from the lotus held in his left hand, his right hand is hanging over Lord Shiva. Sridevi and Bhoodevi, two consorts of Vishnu stand by his side and the Brahma is seen on a lotus, which emanates from the navel of Vishnu. The idol is made up of 10008 salagramams that compose the reclining lord. They are special because they are from Nepal, from the banks of river Gandhaki and they were brought to the temple with all pomp and gaiety on elephant top. On top of them "katusarkara yogam", a special ayurvedic mix, was used to give a plaster. The sanctum sanctorum is the area inside a Hindu temple complex where the main deity is installed. ... Brahma (written Brahmā in IAST) (Devanagari ब्रह्मा, pronounced as ) is the Hindu god (deva) of creation, and one of the Hindu Trinity - Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. ...

In order to perform darshan and puja, one has to climb on a stone slab and different parts of the Vishnu’s idol, namely, the face, the navel and the feet, are visible from three different door like openings.

Festivals

There are many festivals related to this temple. The major festivals are bi-annual. The Alpashy festival which is on October/November and the Painkuni festival which is on March/April, lasts for 10 days each. These festivals culminate with the Aarat (holy bath) procession to the Shankumugham Beach. The word Aarat refers 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 Aarat procession by foot. The deity images of Sree Padmanabhaswamy, Sree Krishna and Sree Narasimha are given a ritual bath in the sea, after the prescribed poojas. After this ceremony, the idols are taken back to the temple as a procession in the light of traditional torches, thus marking the conclusion of the festival. Stone Pavilion at Sankumughom beach, Trivandrum Shankumugham Beach is a beach in Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala, south India. ... Flag for former princely state of Travancore Travancore or Thiruvithaamkoor (Malayalam: തിരുവിതാങ്കൂര്‍ [], തിരുവിതാംകൂര്‍ [], തിരുവിതാങ്കോട് []) was a princely state in India with its capital at Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram). ... Pooja can mean: In Hinduism, a pooja or puja is a form of worship. ...

A major annual festival related to Sree Padmanabha temple is the Navaratri festival. The idols of Saraswathi, Durga, and Murukan is brought to the Kuthira malika palace in front of Sree Padmanabha temple as a procession. This festival lasts for 9 days. The famous Swathi Music Festival is held every year during this festival. Navratri or Navratra is a Hindu festival of worship and dance. ... This article is about Saraswati, the Hindu goddess. ... In Hinduism, Durga (Sanskrit: , Bengali: ) is a form of Devi, the supreme goddess, also identified with Parvati. ... Kartikeya(extreme right) in Durga Puja In Hinduism, Kārttikeya (also Skanda, Subrahmanya, Kumara, Arumugan, Shanmugan, Murugan, Guha, Saravana, Swaminatha, Velan, Velavan, Senthil) is a god born out of a magical spark created by Shiva. ...

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 56 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 2008. A lakh (Hindi: लाख, Urdu: Ù„Ú©Ú¾, Bengali: , Tamil : இலட்சம்) is a unit in the Indian numbering system, widely used both in official and other contexts in Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. ... Veda redirects here. ...

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple — Aswathi Thirunal Gouri Lakshmi Bayi, ISBN 1-127-36587-8

External links

• Sri Anantha Padmanabhaswamy Temple, Thiruvananthapuram
• Padmanabhaswamy temple
• Article on the temple

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