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Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple at Trivandrum

SRI ANANTA PADMANABHA SWAMY TEMPLE

Trivandrum

LORD SRI ANANTA PADMANABHA SWAMY, Trivandrum

Sri Ananta Padmanabha temple is one of the most prominent temples of India. It is considered as one of the 108 Vaishnava temples (divya sthanam), one of the seven moksha sthalas and one of the six Narayana sthalas. Lord Balarama, Lord Nityananda and Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu visited this temple. The Temple is located inside the East Fort in the city of Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. It is the holiest abodes of Lord Vishnu. The main deity, Sri Padmanabhaswamy, is a form of Vishnu in Anantha sayanam posture (in yogic eternal sleep of yoga-nidra). This is an ancient temple and the city of Thiruvananthapuram derives its name from the name of the presiding Deity enshrined in the temple. This city is also called Syanandoora puram.

Inside the temple altar, Lord Vishnu is in a reclining position over Ananta Shesha. He is enjoying the aroma emanating from the lotus held in His left hand, and His right hand is blessing Lord Siva. There are three doors through which we can have the darshan - first the Lord’s face, then His Navel and His lotus feet. Through the first door, the worship is offered to Siva; through the second entrance Brahma prays to Lord Vishnu from his lotus navel, and through the third door is Lord Vishnu’s lotus feet, which are the only shelter and suitable means for a devotee of Lord by which one can cross over the ocean of material existence. Sri Devi and Bhu Devi, the two consorts of Lord Vishnu stand by His side and Lord Brahma is seen on a lotus, which emanates from the navel of Vishnu. Sages Bhrigu, Markandeya and assembly of celestials like Narada etc. are also present.

Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu came here to Sri Ananta Padmanabha temple during His South India tour as mentioned in Caitanya Caritamrta Madhya Lila 9.241-242. Lord spent two to three days before the beautiful darshan of Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy in chanting and dancing to the kirtan of the holy names: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. Here, Lord Vishnu gave darshan to sages like Divakar Muni and Bilvamangala Thakur.

History of Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple

According to the Brahmanda Purana the story of this temple is revealed. In Karnataka there was a sage named Divakar. Every day he worshiped the Supreme Lord. One day his beloved Lord disguised Himself as a very beautiful boy. He attracted the heart of Divakar like no one else. Every day that little boy came and everyday Divakar’s love was growing. One day this little child told him “I have no father, mother and no place of residence. I am just all alone wandering alone.” Divakar said to the small child “I will take care of you, stay with me”. The child said “I will stay with you if you promise me that you will never chastise me for anything I do. If you chastise me I will leave.” Divakar said, “I promise that I will never chastise you.”

This boy was very naughty. But because of Divakar’s love he was in ecstasy to see the naughtiness. But the child really tested him. One day Divakar was doing worship and he was alarmed to see that his ‘saligram sila’ was missing. He was searching and he found that the little boy was sucking on the saligram. Divakar didn’t had time to think about this and he chastised Him. The child told Divakar that since he has violated his promise, He will now leave.

The child ran and Divakar ran after him. As the boy was running His waist bells and ankle bells were tinkling. Divakar’s heart was charmed; he could not live without the child. The child told him, “If ever want to see me again you should look for me in the Ananta forest.” Then the child disappeared.

Divakar was searching everywhere; he spent rest of his life looking for this Ananta forest. He had never heard of such a place. He was walking and asking everyone. He came all the way down to southern part of Kerala, which is today Thiruvananthapuram. He came to a village where a very simple tribal lady was chastising her son, “You are so naughty. Next time you do this I am going to throw you into the Ananta forest.” When Divakar heard that he became very enlivened. He was a saint, a sannyasi and he approached this lady and said, “I will give you all blessings but please tell me where is this Ananta forest?” Tribal lady told him how to get there.

The forest was very dark, Divakar had a single wick. He went into the forest searching for the child. Suddenly he heard the tinkling of the waist bells and the ankle bells. He went into ecstasy and started looking from where that sound was coming. Suddenly an Ilupa tree fell to the ground with a massive crash and from the tree radiant effulgence blinded Divakar. When the effulgence flashed by, he saw manifested from the tree was the deity of Ananta Padmanabha.

The deity was very huge with head in one village, His feet were in another village and His waist was in the Ananta forest. According to the records he was approximately 18 km long. Divakar took unripe mango and then he grabbed a coconut shell and made a little plate and put the salty mango in the coconut shell and offered it with love and devotion. Divakar requested the Lord to reduce in size so that he could worship Him and serve Him. Lord immediately accepted his prayers and reduced Himself in size. Divakar had a stick and the Lord reduced to three times the length of that stick. Till this day, naivedyam or offering prepared from rice is offered to the Deity here in a coconut shell.

Saintly kings

In olden days Sree Padmanabha Kshetram and its properties were controlled by powerful lords known as Ettuveetil Pillamar under the guidance of Ettara Yogam. Later, Marthanda Varma defeated the Pillamar and his cousins “Kunju thampis” and took over power. King Marthanda Varma was very saintly. He accepted Lord Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy as the king of all kings. He accepted the Lord as the master and the proprietor. Lord Krishna explains in the Bhagavad-Gita 5.29,

bhoktaram yajna-tapasam sarva-loka-mahesvaram
suhrdam sarva-bhutanam jnatva mam santim rcchati

“A person in full consciousness of Me, knowing Me to be the ultimate beneﬁciary of all sacriﬁces and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods, and the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities, attains peace from the pangs of material miseries.”

If one want to attain peace it is not through various political diplomatic negotiations. That could create some temporary peace. But real peace must come from one’s own heart. And that is possible when we accept that the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna is the supreme enjoyer of everything and we are meant for His enjoyment. The Supreme Lord is the proprietor of everything, all material and spiritual worlds, and we are the trustees. In the Supreme Lord we can keep our complete faith, our complete hope that He is eternally the best loving well-wishing friend of all living beings and therefore we can take shelter and find real peace.

King Marthanda Varma 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”. He came before the Deity along with family and ministers and put his crown at the lotus feet of Lord Ananta Padmanabha. King then made official legal document saying that the deed for the entire state of Travancore is the property of Sri Ananta Padmanabha as long as the sun and moon last. And my family are simply the trustee servants of Sri Ananta Padmanabha. With this, Sri Padmanabha became the nominal head of the state of Travancore, assuming the title Perumal, the Emperor. And because he put that in the legal document even the British had to honour that Lord Vishnu is the king. It stood on court on many occasions but was indisputable. The British government saluted the Lord Sri Padmanabhaswamy with a 21-gun salute, a military tradition of colonial days, which was continued by the Indian Army as a mark of honor and respect to Lord Sri Padmanabhaswamy until the abolition of the privy purses by government of India with Mrs. Indira Gandhi as the Prime Minister.

In the past there were many great kings who were highly spiritually advanced and were leading the kingdom to enlightenment. One such dynasty was the Chera dynasty. The kings would get the title of Padmanabha Das. The royal insignia of the Lord, Valampiri Shankhu or dextral conch-shell, served as the State emblem of Travancore and even continued so for some time after the re-organization of the States. Sri Padmanabha is still regarded as regional deity of Travancore. The two annual festivals of the Temple culminate in a grand procession, in which the three deities are carried on flower-deck and aesthetically decorated Garuda Vahanas to the Shankhumukhom beach, for ‘aarattu‘. The ‘aarattu’ days are declared as local public holidays in Thiruvananthapuram.

The Temple

The original Deity made of Iluppa wood was replaced with a new one in the year 1729 AD because a mystical fire in the temple damaged the original Deity. The new Deity (as per the revelation in the priest’s dream) is made up of 12,008 Saligrams. 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 “katu sharkara yogam“, a special ayurvedic mix, was used to give a plaster. The consecration was conducted by Tanthri (chief priest) Tarananallur Padmanabharu Parameswararu in year 1739.

Given the huge size of Sri Anantha Padmanabhaswamy, one is able to have the full darshan of the Lord from three different openings- Head from the southern side, the body from middle door and the legs from a third entrance. The 18-feet-long Deity of Sri Anantha Padmanabha Swamy is covered with gold and invaluable precious stones and the Anantha is covered with silver plates. Since the Deity was made of Katu Sharkara Yogam, no abhishekham is carried out on this 18 feet long deity. Hence the thick smoke from camphor, lamps and agarbathis over the centuries gave a black color to the Deity. The temple faces east and surrounded by massive fort walls. The area covered by its enclosures is about 7 acres. The temple has a seven-tier gopuram.

SRI ANANTA PADMANABHA SWAMY TEMPLE, Trivandrum

Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple, Trivandrum

The East entrance of Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple

Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple

East Gopuram at Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple

North view of the East Gopuram at Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple

Sacred Padma Theertha Kulam

LORD SRI ANANTA PADMANABHA SWAMY

Utsava Deities - Lord Nrsimhadeva Swamy and Lord Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy after coming from Shankumuka Beach during Aarat Festival

Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple Trivandrum and sacred Padma Theertha Kulam

Laksha Deepam festival at Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple

Laksha Deepam is a unique festival being celebrated once in six years at Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple, Thiruvanantapuram. Lakshadeepam literally translates as one lakh (one hundred thousand) lamps. The entire Temple is adorned with one lakh (one hundred thousand) Oil Lamps in and around temple. The maiden Lakshadeepam was celebrated on the first of Makaram 925 ME / 14th or 15th of January 1750 AD. The festival was conducted with much pomp and fanfare, in the grandest manner possible by King Marthanda Varma. This mega festival is observed on the concluding day of Murajapam. Murajapam is a holy prayer offered to the Lord Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy once in 6 years which comprises chanting of 3 Vedas (Rigveda, Yajurveda and Samaveda) and Vishnu Sahasranamam for a period of 56 days which ends on the day of Makara Sankranti in the month of January. Laksha Deepam festival is celebrated on the day of Makara Sankranti. On this auspicious day the entire temple is adorned with one lakh (one hundred thousand) Oil Lamps in and around temple. This festival still continues as an immensely grand festival and visual magnitude attracting staggering numbers to the doors of this great Temple.

Laksha Deepam festival at Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple

Paraphernalia used in the service of Lord Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy

Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Maha-Prasadam

Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple

Saintly King Marthanda Varma

Trivandrum or Thiruvananthapuram

ISKCON (Hare Krishna) Trivandrum Temple

ISKCON Trivandrum

ISKCON Trivandrum Temple

THEIR LORDSHIPS SRI SRI GAURA-NITAI, ISKCON Trivandrum

Their Lordships Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai, ISKCON Trivandrum

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Founder-Acarya of International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON)

ISKCON Trivandrum

References of Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Vedic scriptures

Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple stands at a place considered as one of the seven Parasurama Kshetras. Texts including the Puranas, particularly the Skanda Purana, Padma Purana, Vayu Purana, Varaha Purana and Brahmanda Purana have references to this holy site. In the Padma Purana, there is reference to the temple of Ananta sayanam, where the Lord Vishnu is having his yoga-nidra. In the Skanda Purana, Sethu Mahatmya, Brahmakhanda Chapter-52, verses 102 to 105, some of the most important places of pilgrimages are indicated, which include the Ananta Padmanabha Swamy temple. It is also mentioned in the Srimad-Bhagavatam canto 10 chapter 79 that Lord Balarama visited “Syanandoorapuram” in the course of His pilgrimage. An entire chapter named Anantapura Mahatmyam in Brahmanda Purana is dedicated to this temple.

Other Darshans and Attractions inside the Temple

Inside Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple complex there are a number of shrines.

Sri Krishna Temple: Sri Krishna Temple is situated in the northern side and it is believed that this is the place where Bilwamangal Thakura disappeared from this world. This temple has a flag staff made of silver.

Hanuman Deity: There is a huge Deity of Hanuman near the golden flag staff of Lord Padmanabha. The body of Hanuman is covered with butter. This butter will not melt even in hot days or even with the presence of fire and will not attract ants and insects. In the seventeenth century, as mentioned above, when there occurred a massive fire in the temple, the butter was not affected. It is mentioned that the fire could not go beyond this point. Also, there are huge Deities of Jaya and Vijaya, the two kshetrapalas (protectors) are located near Hanumanji. It is believed that the foot of one kshetrapala is growing day by day. This is evident from the protruding of the leg beyond the wooden fencing.

Lord Nrsimhadeva Temple: Before entering the main altar of Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy, we also are blessed with the darshan of a beautiful form of Lord Nrsimhadeva.

Kulashekhara Alvar mandapam: As we come outside of the main altar of Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy we see a small mandapam dedicated to Kulashekhara Alvar. This is the place where King Kulasekhara composed many of his divine songs including famous Mukunda-mala-stotra. It is a marvelous and fantastic architectural work on stone. It is also known as Aayiramkaal Mandapam and Sapthaswara Mandapam. It is supported by 28 balustrades of pillars. The pillars on the four corners can produce musical notes when tapped. The pillars are adorned with exquisitely carved figures in half and full relief. It is called as Dashavatar Mandapam due to depictions of dashavatara on the mandapa pillars.

Ottakkal mandapam: The Ottakkal mandapam is single stone platform in the Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple is a striking feature. The Mandapam is in front of the sanctum sanctorum of Lord Sri Padmanabhaswamy. This structure is built with a single slab of granite which is two and a half feet thick and twenty feet square. The Abhishekams to Lord Sri Padmanabhaswamy are performed in this mandapam. Its granite pillars are covered with gold.

Abhisravana mandapam: This structure is in front of the Ottakkal mandapam but outside the Cherruchuttu containing the sanctum sanctorum. Special poojas related with Temple festivals are performed here. Devotees use this mandapam for meditation and prayers.

The Golden flag-staff (Dwaja Stambham): An eighty feet high pole near the eastern corridor was installed by Anizham Tirunal. A teak wood of this dimension was carried from the nearby forest to the Temple. As per Sastras the wood should not touch the ground while in transport. The teak pole was then covered completely with gold foils. The apex of the flag pole has a figure of Garuda Swamy, in kneeling posture.

Nine Entrances: The Temple has nine entrances, indicating the nine orifices of the human body.

Gopuram: The temple has a 100 foot, seven-tier gopuram on the eastern entrance. On the top there are seven golden domes suggesting pointers to the seven Worlds. The 10 incarnations of Lord Sri Krishna are portrayed inside the first storey of the gopuram. . The ground floor under the gopuram is known as the ‘Nataka Sala’ where the famous temple art, Kathakali is staged in the night during the ten-day uthsavam conducted twice a year, during the Malayalam months of Meenam and Thulam. The other three entrances are double storied Padippuras in typical Kerala Style. Entry to the upper levels of the Gopuram is restricted.

The Sreebalippura (Corridor): The Temple has a marvelous Sreebalippura. This magnificent rectangular corridor built of stone surrounds the main shrines and it is through this corridor that the Vahanams are taken out during Sreebali(procession). Records say that daily 4000 stone artisans, 6000 laborers and 100 elephants worked for a period of 6 months to finish the construction of the Sreebalippura. Sreebalippura is supported by 365 and a one quarter of pillars. Each pillar is a monolith. The master artisan Ananthapadmanabha Moothassari was in charge of the work.

Theerthams (Sacred water resources): The temple stands by the side of a tank, named Padma Theertham. Padma theertham is one of the oldest water bodies in the city of Thiruvananthapuram. The Temple has a large number of sacred water resources situated even in places far away from the Temple.

Bells: Large numbers of bells adorn the Temple. In most cases the tip of the bell has a metal banyan leaf attached to its tongue.

Mural paintings: The outer walls of the sanctum sanctorum of Lord Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy and Lord Sri Krishna are adorned with murals. Of these, the Anantha sayanam on the backside of the sanctum is termed as the largest one among the temple murals of Kerala, and was painted by a Brahmin artist by name Chalayil Kalahasti. It is of 18 feet long.

Multiplicity of Mandapams: Another feature of this Temple is the multiplicity of Mandapams (platforms). There are 11 mandapams in the Temple and 8 in the Padma theertham pond.

Other stories about the temple -

· In 1563, 10th January it was reported that milk started flowing from the cracks of the altar wall. This happened three times that year thus instilling the fact that Lord Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy is resting on the Milk Ocean. In 1628 this incident about milk was again observed, this time from northern side of Rama temple opposite to main altar. To stop this flow, cracks in this small shrine was sealed. If one is fortunate than one can see these sealed spots with a close look.

· Even today for a few fortunate at a particular location on the back side of the altar wall near the lotus feet of lord, one can hear the mild sound of sea waves.

· In 1818, the Deity of the Lord in sleeping pose moved and pujaris could feel the tremor in the altar.

· In 1865, at midnight one day a massive sound of a lion was heard inside the main temple. Even today after closing the temple gates the temple guards relate the same experience happening, thus indicating the wonderful pastime of Lord Nrsimhadeva in the temple.

Darshan, Sevas and Festivals

Sri Ananta Padmanabhaswamy Temple celebrates bi-annual festivals in the months of Thulam (Alppasi) and Meenam (Painkuni). A function is conducted for according formal sanction to conduct the Utsavam (festival). The Alppashi festival which is in October/November and the Painkuni festival which is in 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 festival starts with Kodiyettu (flag hoisting) at Sri Padmanabhaswamy’s gold and Sri Krishnaswamy’s silver flag poles. The festival is of ten days duration culminating in the spectacular Palliveta and Aarat processions on the 9th and 10th days respectively. Special Sreebalies (processions) are conducted twice a day, in the evening 4.30 pm and at night 8.30 pm.

The Deities of Sri Padmanabhaswamy, Lord Sri Krishna and Lord Nrsimhadeva are carried in the Aarat procession. The Aarat procession slowly proceeds with pomp and pageantry, colour and music, men carrying divine emblems and insignias of royalty. The procession reaches the Sanghumugham beach and the Vahanams are positioned in the Aarat Mandapam. Deities are given the holy immersion in the sea after the prescribed poojas. After this ceremony, the Deities are taken back to the temple as a procession in the light of traditional torches, marking the conclusion of the festival. Once during the reign of King Marthanda Varma, an elephant ran amock. Since then, the practice of using elephants to carry the Deities in the procession was given up and Vahanas (vehicles) carried on the shoulder by a number of priests came into vogue. Six different kinds of beautiful conveyances are used for these processions. They are the Simhasana Vahanam (Throne), Anantha Vahanam (Serpant), Kamala Vahanam (Lotus), Pallakku Vahanam (Palanquin), Garuda Vahanam (Garuda) and Indra Vahanam (Gopuram). Of these the Pallakku and Garuda Vahanas are repeated twice and four times respectively. The Garuda Vahanam is considered as the favourite conveyance of the Lord.

Laksha deepam

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 six 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 last laksha deepam was in January 2014.

Laksha Deepam is a unique festival being celebrated once in six years at Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple, Thiruvananthapuram. Lakshadeepam literally translates as one lakh (one hundred thousand) lamps. The entire Temple is adorned with one lakh (one hundred thousand) Oil Lamps in and around temple. The maiden Laksha deepam was celebrated on the first of Makaram 925 ME / 14th or 15th of January 1750 AD. The festival was conducted with much pomp and fanfare, in the grandest manner possible by King Marthanda Varma. This mega festival is observed on the concluding day of Murajapam. Murajapam is a holy prayer offered to the Lord Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy once in 6 years which comprises chanting of 3 Vedas (Rigveda, Yajurveda and Samaveda) and Vishnu Sahasranamam for a period of 56 days which ends on the day of Makara Sankranti in the month of January. Laksha Deepam festival is celebrated on the day of Makara Sankranti. On this auspicious day the entire temple is adorned with one lakh (one hundred thousand) Oil Lamps in and around temple. This festival still continues as an immensely grand festival and visual magnitude attracting staggering numbers to the doors of this great Temple.

Temple Darshan Timings

Morning

03:30 am to 04:45 am (Nirmalya Darshanam)

06:30 am to 07:00 am

08:30 am to 10:00 am

10:30 am to 11:10 am

11:45 am to 12:00 noon

Evening

05:00 pm to 06:15 pm

06:45 pm to 07:20 pm

The above-indicated time schedule is subject to changes during festivals and other special occasions. During the festival occasions the darshan time is reduced in order to performing the special poojas.

Annadanam Maha Prasadam

At 12 noon free Annadanam Maha-Prasadam of Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy is served inside the temple at Prasadam hall for all the visiting pilgrims.

GLORIES OF KING KULASHEKHARA

King Kulasekhara was born into the Sera dynasty of the royal family of Travancore, the southern half of the modern state of Kerala, in southwest India. The rulers of the land did not claim to own the kingdom but considered themselves vassals and ministers to Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy, whom they regarded as the actual owner of the land. The kings of Travancore would come before the Lord at least twice a day to offer obeisances and report on the administration of the country. Before the birth of Kulasekhara (around 3,000 BC), his parents were childless, a worrisome situation for a monarch. Kulasekhara's father, Drdhavrata, worshipped Lord Narayana and intensely prayed for a son who could rule the kingdom and lead everyone on the path of Krishna Bhakti. As a result of the king’s prayers, Alvar Kulashekhar was born.

Kulasekhara was sent by the Lord Himself to this world. He was a ksatriya of great prowess and became king not only of the Sera lands but also of the neighbouring lands of the Pandya and Chola dynasties. He had incredible intelligence. He learnt the knowledge of everything it took to rule the kingdom. He became a powerful warrior, expert at fighting with weapons, expert at diplomacy. He was so fair and just in the way he ruled his citizens that the weak people, the poor people were never afraid, they felt protected and empowered by their king and the wealthy people felt completely empowered as long as they were using their wealth and power for a just cause. And anyone who was arrogant and exploitative the king gave them no facilities to exploit the people with lower tendencies.

He actually ruled over all the three major kingdoms of South India - the Chola dynasty whose capital was in Kanchipuram, the Pandhya dynasty whose capital was in Madurai and the Chera dynasty in Travancore. All the three kingdoms wanted him to rule. He had everything. He was the ultimate success story materially but by the grace of God he wasn’t satisfied. As he was growing he was thinking I have everything but I have nothing. From sattva guna when we do good, our heart becomes very receptive to God’s grace. Even though king Kulasekhara have to work so hard and deal with so many worldly responsibilities, because he had such good intentions, such good motives and he was feeling himself, the servant of the people, he was receptive to God’s grace and in that grace, he began to think that this body is going to die. The living force the soul is real life; without the soul the body is just a corpse. The soul is taking shelter in a body for a little bit of time to do something in this world but the purpose of life is to realize our eternal existence, and he was meditating in this way.

He became so much deeply spiritual that at one point he was thinking that without the association of saints, living in this world is like being in the gallows with a rope choking your neck. He cried out like Vibhisana, he was willing to sacrifice everything and anything to get the shelter of Lord Ramacandra. He said, “I will go to Sri Rangam to take shelter of the Supreme Lord Ranganathar Swamy, I will go to Tirupati to worship Sri Venkatesvara Balaji, I will go to Kanchipuram to worship Sri Varadaraj.” He just wanted to go to see the Lord to surrender himself to the Lord and to be with devotees. He started inviting great saints to his kingdom. Blessed by the mercy of the Lord, Kulasekhara would often go into ecstasy. He recorded his spiritual visions and deep realizations in devotional songs, which became part of the Divya-prabandha. He now saw everything with purified spiritual eyes and developed a strong sense of detachment.

Kulasekhara felt shackled to the throne and could find no happiness in royal wealth and splendour. Now his ministers didn’t knew what to do, because they loved him. Nobody could rule the way he could rule, nobody had the power of the faith of the people like he had. But he wants to leave, and his ministers were thinking if he goes to visit Sri Rangam and starts associating with Vaishnavas there, he will never come back and then what happens to us and the whole kingdom. Somehow we have to keep him here, so let us bring as many devotees as we can here and whenever he starts leaving for Sri Rangam they will come and Kulasekhara will have to serve them and he will never leave. So he was always surrounded by devotees. Every time he said that I am going to Sri Rangam, some devotees would come and say “I have just come to your kingdom”. He would give them Prasad and hear Hari katha and do kirtan. In this way the king passed his days absorbed in loving feelings towards the Lord and His devotees. Kulashekhar understood, according to Sri Sampradaya scriptures, that by worshiping a pure saint one day one gets the same result as worshiping the Supreme Lord for 60000 years.

Hearing Ramayana

Kulasekhara chose to hear daily from the Valmiki Ramayana, the history of Lord Ramacandra. He was so entranced in spiritual consciousness that he lived and breathed the pastimes of Sri Ramacandra and felt them to be ever fresh and present. His hearing was not just theoretical. Some of us we read Ramayana because we have to give a class on Ramayana so we are making notes thinking, I hope I could remember those things. Some people read Ramayana to tell to the children to help them go to sleep. Some people read Ramayana because they will get the pious credit, some people read because they really want to develop devotion.

When King Kulashekhar heard Ramayana, it was like it was happening right now. It is not something that happened millions of years ago, it did happen millions of years ago but if you are absorbed it is happening at the present moment in your very heart, in some universe somewhere. So whenever there was some beautiful thing that happened in Ramayana, Kulashekhar would celebrate in his kingdom. The king celebrated with great care every important event mentioned during the daily recital of the Ramayana. Kulasekhara would have the Deity of Sri Rama carried through the streets of the city in procession, and then he would serve everyone a feast of prasadam.

On one particular reading he was hearing the pastime when Suparnakha, sister of Ravana, approaches Lord Rama and proposes Him for marriage. Lord Rama explains how He had taken a vow of single wife and directs her to Laxmana. But Laxmana also puts off her request. Suparnakha became outraged and she attacked Sita, thinking that she was the cause of her not being able to marry Ram. Seeing this, Laxmana immediately cut off her nose. She ran to the nearby forest to call her brothers Khara and Dushana, they immediately marched towards Rama and Laxmana with an army of 14000 powerful mystic asuras. Rama told Laxmana to guard Sita in the cave and He stood there to face the army.

As Kulashekhar was listening to this, his love of God went into frenzy. He called out to his ministers and army to prepare for battle and he began to march towards Panchvati. Now the ministers were thinking that the battle took place millions of years ago. But Maharaja Kulashekhar was experiencing the pastime now. He was fully enlightened but sometimes enlightenment does not harmonize with effective material management. The ministers asked a group of soldiers to go ahead and come back and tell the king that they had just been to Panchvati and that Lord Ramacandra single handily defeated the entire army. In spiritual delirium, Kulasekhara believed. He started crying and said “my Lord has conquered everyone.” Let us go back and celebrate.

After this incident the ministers decided that whoever is reading Ramayana should only read happy parts and skip other parts. There was one scholar who was reading the Ramayana as per this editorial policy and one day the he had to attend to some business and he asked his son to read the Ramayana, however he forgot to mention this policy. So he read the part where Maricha was asked to take form of a golden deer to allure Rama and Laxmana. Maricha appeared as the golden deer and Sita requested Rama to catch the deer for her. Rama told Laxmana to protect Sita but Maricha called out in Rama’s voice for help and Sita forced him to go and help Rama. At that time Ravana came in the disguise of a sadhu and abducted Sita. As Ravana was caking Sita, Jatayu tried to protect her but he died while fighting.

Kulashekhar upon hearing this proclaimed his armies to get ready and march to Lanka. The whole army started galloping towards Lanka. They reached Rameswaram and reached the ocean. Kulashekhar marched right into the ocean and was getting submerged while moving further. They were seeing him getting drowned. In that incredible crisis of devotion, Lord Ramachandra appeared right in the ocean coming from direction of Lanka. Rama said “the battle of Lanka is over. I won the war and I am again with Sita.” Sita said, “I am here with Rama and Laxmana is here too. So let us go back to kingdom and celebrate.”

Lord Ramacandra said, “Just as I lift My devotees from ocean of samsara and lift them to My eternal abode I will carry you.” He brought Kulashekhar to the kingdom and then disappeared. Kulashekhar then had a big festival on the occasion of Rama’s victory over Ravana. We cannot imitate such devotion. We can simply cherish it by being the servant of the servant of such devotees.

Ministers plot

The ministers were worried that the king always wants to go to Sri Rangam and if he goes there he will never come back. To avoid this we started bringing devotees for Hari Katha, but our solution has become a bigger problem. Even in midst of important meeting the king will leave to serve the visiting sadhus.

The ministers thought that the solution is if he loses faith in devotees he will lose faith in Sri Rangam. The foundation for all problems is the faith in the Vaishnavas. The king worshiped a deity of Lord Rama. So the ministers made a plot to take the deity’s necklace from jewellery box and hide it. When it comes to his attention he will hold investigation and since only Vaishnavas have access to it they will be found guilty.

The ministers reported the theft and asked the king to bring Vaishnavas to trial. Kulashekhar listened to his ministers and he said, "O ministers, lovers of God are incapable of stealing. There is no vice in their thoughts or actions. To prove the truth of my conviction and the falsity of your accusations against these innocent devotees, let a basket be brought to me with a venomous cobra in it, and I shall thrust into that vessel my hand. If devotees are pure then that cobra cannot harm me and if they have stolen then let that cobra bite me and kill me."

The ministers had to do as ordered. So they brought a basket with a venomous cobra in it and the king plunged his hand in the basket and took it out. The hand was spotless. Seeing the display of faith startled the ministers. Ashamed, the ministers hung their heads. They fell at his feet, confessed their trick, brought the necklace, and placed it before him in fear and respect. Maharaja Kulasekhara pardoned them and asked them to become servants of the Vaisnavas.

Final days of King Kulashekhar

The incident however convinced Kulashekhar that the time has come for him to go to Sri Rangam and do seva there. "No more will I dwell with these vile and scheming ministers," the king thought. "I am disgusted with them. Indeed, I am weary of the whole world. I would prefer to leap into fire than keep company with brutes turned away from God."

He gave the throne to his son and travelled to various holy places and he made his base in Sri Rangam where he spent so many years of his life in loving service of Sri Ranganatha and all the devotees. He would sometimes go on pilgrimage to other holy places, such as Tirupati, Ayodhya, and Chitrakuta. In Sri Rangam, Kulasekhara composed the Perumal-tirumoli, a work containing 103 devotional songs.

In his last days Kulasekara went to the shrine of Nammalvar at Tirunagari (Tamil name for the Adi Kesava temple, where Lord Caitanya found the important scripture Brahma-samhita), near present-day Tirunelveli. From Tirunagari, he went to the holy place called Brahma desam - Mannarkoil near Tirunelveli, where he stayed for some time serving the presiding Deity, Rajagopala Swamy. There in association of Vaishnavas he worshiped the deity of Rajagopala Swamy and returned to the spiritual world at age 67. Mannarkoil is a small village located at a distance of around 5 km from Ambasamudram near Tirunelveli. The temple at Mannarkoil is named as Rajagopala Swamy Kulasekara Perumal Temple. From Tirunelveli it takes about 1 hour to reach here. This temple is over 1000 years old and has beautiful architecture.

Inside Sri Ananta Padmanabha temple, Trivandrum there is a place called the Kulashekhar Alvar Mandapam where, according to the legends, he composed the Mukund Mala Stotra. A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada was especially fond of this work and would often sing one verse in particular:

krsna tvadiya-pada-pankaja-panjarantam
adyaiva me visatu manasa-raja-hamsah
prana-prayana-samaye kapha-vata-pittaih
kanthavarodhana-vidhau smaranam kutas te

"O Lord Krishna, let the royal swan of my mind now enter the tangled stems of the lotus of Your feet. How will it be possible for me to remember You at the time of death, when my throat will be choked with mucus, bile, and air?"

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu visited all these places and the beautiful thing is, by doing so He has opened the treasures of incredible wisdom and history of these places and revealed them to the world. This is why we are so enthusiastic, every year, to come to yatra to feel that devotion, take association of the devotees and in our hearts of hearts cry out the holy names:

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare |

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare ||

Whatever austerities we perform to do something holy, those austerities they come and go and we forget them. But the experience of the darshan, the experience of the blessing, the experience of the seva that we performed there is forever, eternal and enshrined in the hearts of the devotees.

[References: His Holiness Radhanath Swami Maharaj South India Yatra 2010 and Sri Sri Radha-Gopinatha Temple - ISKCON Chowpatty, Mumbai]

KING KULASHEKARA ALVAR

Selections from Mukunda-mala-stotra

By Kulasekhara Alvar

7
cintayami harim eva santatam
manda-hasa-muditananambujam
nanda-gopa-tanayam parat param
naradadi-muni-vrnda-vanditam

I always think of Lord Hari [Krishna], whose joyful lotus face bears a gentle smile. Although He is the son of the cowherd Nanda, He is also the Supreme Absolute Truth worshiped by great sages like Narada.

8
kara-carana-saroje kantiman-netra-mine
srama-musi bhuja-vici-vyakule 'gadha-marge
hari-sarasi vigahyapiya tejo-jalaugham
bhava-maru-parikhinnah klesam adya tyajami

The desert of material existence has exhausted me. But today I will cast aside all troubles by diving into the lake of Lord Hari and drinking freely of the abundant waters of His splendour. The lotuses in that lake are His hands and feet, and the fish are His brilliant shining eyes. That lake's water relieves all fatigue and is agitated by the waves His arms create. Its current flows deep beyond fathoming.

9
sarasija-nayane sa-sankha-cakre
mura-bhidi ma viramasva citta rantum
sukha-taram aparam na jatu jane
hari-carana-smaranamrtena tulyam

O mind, please never stop taking pleasure in thinking of the Mura demon's destroyer [Krishna], who has lotus eyes and bears the conch and disc weapon. Indeed, I know of nothing else that gives such extreme pleasure as meditating on Lord Hari's divine feet.

11
bhava-jaladhi-gatanam dvandva-vatahatanam
suta-duhitr-kalatra-trana-bhararditanam
visama-visaya-toye majjatam aplavanam
bhavati saranam eko visnu-poto naranam

The people in this vast ocean of birth and death are being blown about by the winds of material dualities. As they flounder in the perilous waters of sense indulgence, with no boat to help them, they are sorely distressed by the need to protect their sons, daughters, and wives. Only the boat that is Lord Visnu can save them.

12
bhava-jaladhim agadham dustaram nistareyam
katham aham iti ceto ma sma gah kataratvam
sarasija-drsi deve taraki bhaktir eka
naraka-bhidi nisanna tarayisyaty avasyam

Dear mind, do not bewilder yourself by anxiously thinking, How can I cross this fathomless and impassable ocean of material existence? There is one who can save you Devotion. If you offer her to the lotus-eyed Lord [Krishna], the killer of Narakasura, she will carry you across this ocean without fail.

26
tattvam bruvanani param parastan
madhu ksarantiva mudavahani
pravartaya pranjalir asmi jihve
namani narayana-gocarani

My dear tongue, I stand before you with joined palms and beg you to recite the names of Lord Narayana. These names describing the Supreme Absolute Truth bring great pleasure, as if exuding honey.

How to reach Trivandrum:

Trivandrum or Thiruvananthapuram is the capital of Kerala state in India. Trivandrum is well connected by air, train and road to rest of India. There are several express trains and buses from across the country to Trivandrum.

Nearest Railway Station: Thiruvananthapuram Central Railway Station is 1 km from Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple. Thiruvananthapuram is an important terminal on Indian Railways network, with connections from and to all parts of the country.

Nearest Airport: Trivandrum International Airport is 7 km from Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple.

PLACES TO VISIT NEARBY SRI ANANTA PADMANABHA SWAMY TEMPLE

#1. Sri Adi Kesava Temple, Thiruvattar: Sri Adikeshava Perumaal temple is an ancient and a very important temple situated in Thiruvattar. Thiruvattar is 6 km north-east of Marthandam town, 30 km north-west of Nagercoil (in Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu) and 54 km from Trivandrum. This is the temple where Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, during His South India tour, discovered the 5th chapter of Brahma Samhita. Brahma Samhita is said to contain 100 chapters. This scripture is so old and so sacred it was practically lost to the general population. But Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu understood the supreme importance of this scripture and He found it in the Sri Adi Keshava temple at Thiruvattar. As soon as Lord began to hear and read the content of Brahma Samhita, He was overwhelmed with ecstatic love. Lord transcribed Brahma Samhita to take it with Him and to share it with His devotees and ultimately with the whole world.

Directions to reach Sri Adikeshava Perumal temple Thiruvattar and map

#2. ISKCON Trivandrum: International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) has temple in Trivandrum. For details please visit: www.iskcontrivandrum.com

#3. ISKCON Parassala: Parassala is a small town at the southern border of Kerala and Tamil Nadu in-between Trivandrum and Kanyakumari. ISKCON (Hare Krishna) temple at Parassala was established in 2002 and through Sunday programs, feasts, festivals, book distribution and the annual Lord Jagannatha Rathayatra; temple is propagating the philosophy of Krishna consciousness to the people in this area. The main deity in the temple altar is of Sri Sri Jagannatha, Baladeva and Subhadra. The temple complex also houses a Goshala (protective shelter for cows) and a school imparting Vedic education to young children. The Sri Adikesavaperumal temple in Thiruvattar, Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy Temple at Trivandrum, Thirupathisaram near Nagercoil, ISKCON Nagercoil, Sthanumalayan temple in Suchindram, Sri Krishnaswamy temple in Neyyatinkara, Kanyakumari and many other places of Vaishnava interest are easily accessible from ISKCON Parassala. Website: www.iskcon-parassala.org

#4. Kanyakumari: Kanyakumari (formerly known as Cape Comorin) is less than 2-3 hour drive from Trivandrum. Srimad-Bhagavatam (canto 10 chapter 79 verses 16-17) mentions that Lord Balarama visited Kanyakumari in the course of His pilgrimage. Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu also visited Kanyakumari during His South India tour as stated in Caitanya Caritamrta Madhya Lila 9.223.

#5. Sri Rajagopala Swamy Kulasekara Perumal Temple, Mannarkoil near Tirunelveli: This is the place where Kulasekara spent his final days. He stayed here for some time serving the presiding Deity, Rajagopala Swamy. There in association of Vaishnavas he worshiped the deity of Rajagopala Swamy and returned to the spiritual world at age 67. Mannarkoil is a small village located at a distance of around 5 km from Ambasamudram near Tirunelveli. From Tirunelveli it takes about 1 hour to reach Sri Rajagopala Swamy Kulasekara Perumal Temple in Mannarkoil. This temple is over 1000 years old and has beautiful architecture.

#6. Thirukurungkudi Temple: This is an important Vaishnava temple and is amongst 108 divya-deshams. Known as the ‘Dakshina Badri’, Thirukurungudi temple is located about 40 km from Tirunelveli (and about 15kms from Nanguneri) off the Nagercoil highway at the foot of the Mahendra hill on the Western Ghat. Thirukurungudi is a village with history dating back more than 1500 years. At Badrinath, Lord Narayana instructed Sripad Ramanujacharya. Here, at Thirukurungkudi, He took the role of a disciple and obtained Vaishnava initiation from Ramanuja. Hence the Lord here is called Vaishnava Nambi. Thirukurungudi is also known as Kuranga-kshetram. Kuranga is the name of Bhoomi (earth) devi who performed penance for the Lord in this holy place. The Lord here has 39 different names including Kurungkudi Nambi, Tirupparkadal Nambi and Malai Mel Nambi. Under half a km from the main temple is the Thirupaarkadal Nambi temple and about 8 km from here on the Western Ghats is the Thirumalai Nambi temple, from where Hanuman is said to have taken the leap to Lanka.

History of Parasurama Kshetra:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCMK0u5R4es

Glories of Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy and King Kulasekhara:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQWlsWazIrI [Glories to Sri Ananta Padmanabha Swamy starts from 12^th min]

Glories of King Kulasekhara (continued):

www.youtube.com/watch?v=RK73jJt2ymg

Mukunda Mala Stotra book: http://vedabase.net/mm or www.vedabase.com/mm

Mayapur TV: http://Mayapur.tv

HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE |

HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA HARE HARE ||