163-550: Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma ( Malayalam : അനിഴം തിരുനാൾ മാർത്താണ്ഡവർമ്മ ) was the founding monarch of the southern Indian Kingdom of Travancore (previously Venadu ) from 1729 until his death in 1758. He was succeeded by Rama Varma ("Dharma Raja") (1758–98). Marthanda Varma defeated the Dutch East India Company forces at the Battle of Colachel in 1741.He also put an end to the ettuveetil pillamars and
326-517: A Bhashya (language) where "Dravida and Sanskrit should combine together like ruby and coral, without the least trace of any discord". The scripts of Kolezhuthu and Malayanma were also used to write Middle Malayalam . In addition to Vatteluthu and Grantha script , those were used to write Old Malayalam . The literary works written in Middle Malayalam were heavily influenced by Sanskrit and Prakrit , while comparing them with
489-537: A Ratha Yathra from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram in May 2018 campaigning against opening the sacred Kallara. Azhvanchery Thamprakkal , the supreme spiritual leader of Kerala Brahmins, while addressing a meeting held in connection with the Ratha Yathra, also demanded that faith should not be trampled upon by opening Kallara B. According to a report by former Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai, at least
652-516: A bad omen. The seven-member team will consult with some more experts on 8 July 2011, and may make a final decision on opening chamber B. An Ashtamangala Devaprasnam conducted in the Temple to discern the will of the deity revealed that any attempts to open chamber B would cause divine displeasure, and that the holy articles in the other chambers were defiled in the inventorying process. The original petitioner (T. P. Sundarajan), whose court action led to
815-469: A canonical word order of SOV (subject–object–verb), as do other Dravidian languages . A rare OSV word order occurs in interrogative clauses when the interrogative word is the subject. Both adjectives and possessive adjectives precede the nouns they modify. Malayalam has 6 or 7 grammatical cases . Verbs are conjugated for tense, mood and aspect, but not for person, gender nor number except in archaic or poetic language. The modern Malayalam grammar
978-644: A certain 'Golden Temple' (Arituyil-Amardon) which is believed to be the Padmanabhaswamy Temple. Gold had been panned from rivers as well as mined in Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur , Wayanad , Kollam , Palakkad and Malappuram districts for thousands of years. The Malabar region (as a part of the "Tamilakam" region of recorded history) had several centers of trade and commerce since the Sumerian period ranging from Vizhinjam in
1141-508: A change in administration by forming a 5-member committee and appointing Vinod Rai as auditor. The committee will include Thiruvananthapuram District judge K. P. Indira, Thantri and Nambi of the temple and two members to be decided in consultation with the Government of Kerala . Additionally, IAS officer and former administrator of the temple, K. N. Satish was appointed as executive officer. The Government of Kerala agreed to comply with
1304-749: A distinct language due to geographical separation of Kerala from the Tamil country and the influence of Sanskrit and Prakrit from the Nambudiri Brahmins of the Malabar Coast . The Old Malayalam language was employed in several official records and transactions (at the level of the Chera Perumal kings, as well as the upper-caste ( Nambudiri ) village temples). Most of the inscriptions in Old Malayalam were found from
1467-535: A gift of ten thousand cows to holy men. Though the sannidhyam of Padmanabha has always been present in the holy land of Thiruvananthapuram, and it was a very ancient and renowned pilgrim spot even during the time of Balarama, the present-day temple for the deity came up later. The southwest part of the Chuttambalam was constructed at the holy spot where Balarama is believed to have donated cows to holy men. This portion came to be known as Mahabharatakonam and covered
1630-712: A gold sheaf weighing 500 kg (1,100 lb), a 36 kg (79 lb) golden veil, 1200 'Sarappalli' gold coin-chains that are encrusted with precious stones, and several sacks filled with golden artefacts, necklaces, diadems, diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, gemstones, and objects made of other precious metals. Ceremonial attire for adorning the deity in the form of 16-part gold anki weighing almost 30 kilograms (66 lb), gold "coconut shells" studded with rubies and emeralds, and several 18th century Napoleonic era coins were found amongst many other objects. In early 2012, an expert committee had been appointed to investigate these objects, which include lakhs of golden coins of
1793-637: A literary language. The Malayalam script began to diverge from the Vatteluttu and the Western Grantha scripts in the 8th and 9th centuries of Common Era . By the end of the 13th century, a written form of the language emerged which was unique from the Vatteluttu script that was used to write Tamil on the eastern coast. Old Malayalam ( Paḻaya Malayāḷam ), an inscriptional language found in Kerala from circa 9th to circa 13th century CE,
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#17327765837471956-592: A lot of its words from various foreign languages: mainly from the Semitic languages including Arabic , and the European languages including Dutch and Portuguese , due to the long heritage of Indian Ocean trade and the Portuguese-Dutch colonization of the Malabar Coast . Variations in intonation patterns, vocabulary, and distribution of grammatical and phonological elements are observable along
2119-489: A lotus emanating from the deity's navel, hence the name, "Padmanabha", gold abhisheka moorthies of Padmanabha, Sridevi and Bhudevi, and silver utsava moorthi of Padmanabha through the second door; the deity's feet, and Bhudevi and Markandeya Muni in Katusarkara through the third door. The idols of two goddesses holding chamaram, Garuda , Narada , Tumburu , the divine forms of the six weapons of Vishnu, Surya , Chandra ,
2282-420: A matter of dispute among scholars. The mainstream view holds that Malayalam descends from a western coastal dialect of early Middle Tamil and separated from it sometime between the 9th and 13th centuries. A second view argues for the development of the two languages out of "Proto-Dravidian" or "Proto-Tamil-Malayalam" either in the prehistoric period or in the middle of the first millennium A.D. , although this
2445-690: A means of limiting European involvement in ocean trade). The principal merchandise was black pepper , but other goods also came to be defined as royal monopoly items (requiring a license for trade) between the 1740s and the 1780s. Eventually, Travancore challenged and broke the Dutch blockade of the Kerala coast. Trivandrum became a prominent city in Kerala under Marthanda Varma. He undertook many irrigational works, built roads and canals for communication and gave active encouragement to foreign trade. In January, 1750, Marthanda Varma decided to "donate" his kingdom to
2608-598: A rare though very inadequate primary source material on the temple and its rich traditions. The rest of these Mathilakam documents – segregated under 70 "heads" – is still lying idle with the Archives Department. According to Aswathi Thirunal Gouri Lakshmi Bayi, a member of the Travancore Royal Family and author of a book on the temple, from a very early period in recorded history the temple had employed two kinds of 'record writers'. One group
2771-553: A ritual bath in the sea, after the prescribed pujas . After this ceremony, the idols are taken back to the temple in a procession that is lit by traditional torches, marking the conclusion of the festival. A major annual festival related to Padmanabhaswamy temple is the Navaratri festival. The idols of Saraswati Amman, Mun Uditha Nangai ( Parasakti , who appeared before Saraswati , Lakshmi and Parvati to help them identify their husbands who had been transformed into infants by
2934-722: A significant number of speakers in the Kodagu and Dakshina Kannada districts of Karnataka , and Kanyakumari , Coimbatore and Nilgiris district of Tamil Nadu. It is also spoken by the Malayali Diaspora worldwide, especially in the Persian Gulf countries , due to the large populations of Malayali expatriates there. They are a significant population in each city in India including Mumbai , Bengaluru , Chennai , Delhi , Hyderabad etc. The origin of Malayalam remains
3097-459: A small part of them had been inventoried then. An "article" could be either an individual item, or collections of several items, examples of the latter being a cache of 1.95 lakh 'Rassappanams' (Gold coins) weighing 800 kg and sets of Navaratnas (collections of nine different kinds of diamonds). There are over 60,000 fully precious stones set as parts of larger pieces of gold jewellery among those items inventoried as of March 2013. The results of
3260-472: A special regiment, which he did to the "entire satisfaction of the king". De Lannoy was raised to the rank of general in Travancore army and proved of considerable service to Marthanda Varma in subsequent battles. The ascent of Travancore seems to have been particularly rapid after about 1749. Marthanda Varma had declared a state monopoly on pepper in Travancore in 1743, thereby delivering a serious blow to
3423-685: A spirit of brotherhood. മനുഷ്യരെല്ലാവരും തുല്യാവകാശങ്ങളോടും അന്തസ്സോടും സ്വാതന്ത്ര്യത്തോടുംകൂടി ജനിച്ചിട്ടുള്ളവരാണ്. അന്യോന്യം ഭ്രാതൃഭാവത്തോടെ പെരുമാറുവാനാണ് മനുഷ്യന് വിവേകബുദ്ധിയും മനസാക്ഷിയും സിദ്ധമായിരിക്കുന്നത്. manuṣyarellāvaruṁ tulyāvakāśaṅṅaḷōṭuṁ antassōṭuṁ svātantryattōṭuṅkūṭi janicciṭṭuḷḷavarāṇŭ. anyōnyaṁ bhrātr̥bhāvattōṭe perumāṟuvānāṇŭ manuṣyanŭ vivēkabuddhiyuṁ manasākṣiyuṁ siddhamāyirikkunnatŭ. /manuʂjaɾellaːʋaɾum t̪uljaːʋakaːʃaŋŋaɭoːʈum an̪t̪assoːʈum sʋaːt̪an̪tɾjat̪t̪oːʈuŋkuːʈi d͡ʒanit͡ʃt͡ʃiʈʈuɭɭaʋaɾaːɳɨ̆ ǁ anjoːnjam bʱraːt̪rɨ̆bʱaːʋat̪t̪oːʈe peɾumaːruʋaːnaːɳɨ̆ manuʂjanɨ̆ ʋiʋeːkabud̪d̪ʱijum manasaːkʂijum sid̪d̪ʱamaːjiɾikkun̪ːat̪ɨ̆ ǁ/ Malayalam has
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#17327765837473586-800: A stone Yantra from the nearby Marthandan Madhom Palace and did pooja on it for several days. The Tantries explained that the Yantram had no connection with the Padmanabhaswami Temple and that it was for the protection of the Palace. But the Amicus Curiae insisted on having it installed in the Sanctum Sanctorum of the Temple. Due to severe opposition from the Tantries the Yantram remains where it was. Every morning, Padmanabha
3749-594: A temple). There are many festivals associated with this temple. The major festivals are bi-annual. The Aipasi festival and the Panguni festival in the Tamil month of aipasi (October/November) and Panguni (March/April) respectively, lasts for 10 days each. On the ninth day the Maharajah of the Travancore, in his capacity as Thrippappoor Mooppan, escorts the deities to the vettakkalam for Pallivetta. Centuries back,
3912-605: Is a Hindu temple dedicated to Vishnu in Thiruvananthapuram , the capital of the state of Kerala , India . It is one of the 108 Divya Desams which are considered the sacred abodes of Vishnu in the Sri Vaishnava tradition. The name of the city of 'Thiruvananthapuram' in Malayalam and Tamil translates to "The City of Ananta" (Ananta being a form of Vishnu). The temple is built in an intricate fusion of
4075-779: Is also a considerable Malayali population in the Persian Gulf regions, especially in Dubai , Kuwait and Doha . For the consonants and vowels, the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) symbol is given, followed by the Malayalam character and the ISO 15919 transliteration. The current Malayalam script bears high similarity with Tigalari script , which was used for writing the Tulu language , spoken in coastal Karnataka ( Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts) and
4238-486: Is also credited with developing the Malayalam script into the current form through the intermixing and modification of the erstwhile scripts of Vatteluttu , Kolezhuthu , and Grantha script , which were used to write the inscriptions and literary works of Old and Middle Malayalam. He further eliminated excess and unnecessary letters from the modified script. Hence, Ezhuthachan is also known as The Father of modern Malayalam . The development of modern Malayalam script
4401-412: Is based on the book Kerala Panineeyam written by A. R. Raja Raja Varma in late 19th century CE. The declensional paradigms for some common nouns and pronouns are given below. As Malayalam is an agglutinative language, it is difficult to delineate the cases strictly and determine how many there are, although seven or eight is the generally accepted number. Alveolar plosives and nasals (although
4564-408: Is believed to have come in the guise of a little boy who was mischievous, yet charming. Due to this charm, the sage wished that the boy stay with him. Thus, the boy agreed with the condition that the boy be treated with utmost respect. If this was to be broken, the boy would immediately vanish. As a result, for a while, the sage tolerated all of the childish activities done by the child; however, one day
4727-437: Is generally rejected by historical linguists. The Quilon Syrian copper plates of 849/850 CE are considered by some to be the oldest available inscription written in Old Malayalam . However, the existence of Old Malayalam is sometimes disputed by scholars. They regard the Chera Perumal inscriptional language as a diverging dialect or variety of contemporary Tamil . The oldest extant literary work in Malayalam distinct from
4890-512: Is influenced by Tamil. Labels such as "Nampoothiri Dialect", "Mappila Dialect", and "Nasrani Dialect" refer to overall patterns constituted by the sub-dialects spoken by the subcastes or sub-groups of each such caste. The most outstanding features of the major communal dialects of Malayalam are summarized below: Malayalam has incorporated many elements from other languages over the years, the most notable of these being Sanskrit and later, English. According to Sooranad Kunjan Pillai who compiled
5053-660: Is phonemic and all of the vowels have minimal pairs for example kaṭṭi "thickness", kāṭṭi "showed", koṭṭi "tapped", kōṭṭi "twisted, stick, marble", er̠i "throw", ēr̠i "lots" Some speakers also have /æː/, /ɔː/, /ə/ from English loanwords e.g. /bæːŋgɨ̆/ "bank" but most speakers replace it with /aː/, /eː/ or /ja/; /oː/ or /aː/ and /e/ or /a/. The following text is Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights . All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in
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5216-577: Is placed over a Shiva lingam . Sridevi- Lakshmi , the Goddess of Prosperity and Bhudevi the Goddess of Earth, two consorts of Vishnu are by his side. Brahma emerges on a lotus, which emanates from the navel of the deity. The deity is made from 12,008 saligramams . These saligrams are from the banks of the Gandaki River in Nepal , and to commemorate this, certain rituals used to be performed at
5379-485: Is the current trustee of the temple. Several extant Hindu texts including the Vishnu Purana , Brahma Purana , Matsya Purana , Varaha Purana , Skanda Purana , Padma Purana , Vayu Purana , Bhagavata Purana and Mahabharata mention the Padmanabhaswamy Temple. The Temple has been referred to in the (only recorded) Sangam period literature several times. Many conventional historians and scholars are of
5542-438: Is the earliest attested form of Malayalam. The beginning of the development of Old Malayalam from a western coastal dialect of Middle Tamil can be dated to circa 8th century CE. It remained a west coast dialect until circa 9th century CE or a little later. The origin of Malayalam calendar dates back to year 825 CE. It is generally agreed that the western coastal dialect of Tamil began to separate, diverge, and grow as
5705-734: Is to be awakened only by blowing the conch shell and chanting the Sripada Sooktham. But the Amicus Curiae introduced the daily rendering of Venkatesa Suprabhatam to awaken the deity. The Supreme Court requested the Tantri to take the final decision on whether the Suprabhatam could be sung. Following that, the Senior Tantri Nedumpilli Tharananalloor Parameswaran Namboothiripad directed the Temple authorities to stop
5868-476: Is widely considered the world's richest temple. The principal deity is Padmanabhaswamy ( Sanskrit : पद्मनाभस्वामि, IAST : Padmanābhasvāmi ), a form of Vishnu enshrined in the "Anantashayana" posture, engaged in eternal yogic sleep on his serpent mount named Shesha . Padmanabhaswamy is the tutelary deity of the Travancore royal family . The titular Maharaja of Travancore , Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma ,
6031-674: The saṁvr̥tōkāram , which is not officially a vowel, and not as actual vocalic consonants) have been classified as vowels: vocalic r ( ഋ , /rɨ̆/ , r̥), long vocalic r ( ൠ , /rɨː/ , r̥̄), vocalic l ( ഌ , /lɨ̆/ , l̥) and long vocalic l ( ൡ , /lɨː/ , l̥̄). Except for the first, the other three have been omitted from the current script used in Kerala as there are no words in current Malayalam that use them. Some authors say that Malayalam has no diphthongs and /ai̯, au̯/ are clusters of V+glide j/ʋ while others consider all V+glide clusters to be diphthongs /ai̯, aːi̯, au̯, ei̯, oi̯, i̯a/ as in kai, vāypa, auṣadhaṁ, cey, koy and kāryaṁ Vowel length
6194-565: The Chiranjivis , Ganapati , Sasta , and Kshetrapala (who guards the temple). Grand idols of Garuda and Hanuman stand with folded hands in the Valiya balikkal area. The foundation of the present gopuram was laid in 1566. The temple has a 100-foot (30 m) high 7-tier gopuram built in the Pandyan style. The temple stands by the side of a tank , named Padma Theertham (meaning
6357-686: The English East India Company (1723) and the Madurai Nayaks with the aim of strengthening his position (in the fight against the nobles and other hostile elements in Tranvancore). The role played by Marthanda Varma in these moves are highlighted by P. Shungoonny Menon, the 19th-century Travancore court historian. The Dutch Company positioned themselves against the emerging Travancore by helping Quilon and Kayamkulam. The English Company became an ally of Travancore against
6520-819: The Ettara Yogam (King and Council of Eight) with the assistance of Ettuveetil Pillamar ("Lords of the Eight Houses"). The Ettara Yogam consists of the Pushpanjali Swamiyar, the six member Thiruvananthapurathu Sabha, the Sabhanjithan (Secretary) and the Arachan (Maharaja of Travancore). The Thiruvananthapurathu Sabha was primarily responsible for the administration of the Temple. Koopakkara Potti, Vanchiyoor Athiyara Potti, Kollur Athiyara Potti, Muttavila Potti, Karuva Potti and Neythasseri Potti are
6683-415: The Gandaki River , north of Benares (now known as Varanasi ) to the temple. These were used in the reconsecration of Padmanabha. To perform darshan and puja , devotees has to ascend to the mandapam . The deity is visible through three doors – the visage of the reclining Padmanabha and Siva Linga underneath his hand is seen through the first door; Sridevi and Bhrigu Muni in Katusarkara, Brahma seated on
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6846-928: The Kerala style and the Dravidian style of architecture, featuring high walls, and a 16th-century gopuram . While as per some traditions the Ananthapura Temple in Kumbla in Kasaragod district in Kerala is considered as the original spiritual seat of the deity ("Mulasthanam"), architecturally to some extent, the temple is a replica of the Adikesava Perumal Temple in Thiruvattar in Kanyakumari district in Tamil Nadu . It
7009-632: The Laccadive Sea , he heard a pulaya lady warning her child that she would throw him in Ananthankadu. The moment the Swami heard the word Ananthankadu he was delighted. He proceeded to Ananthankadu based on the directions of the lady of whom he enquired. The sage reached Ananthankadu searching for the boy. There he saw the boy merging into an iluppa tree (Indian butter tree). The tree fell down and became Anantha Sayana Moorti (Vishnu reclining on
7172-530: The Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was designated a " Classical Language of India " in 2013. Malayalam has official language status in Kerala, Lakshadweep and Puducherry ( Mahé ), and is also the primary spoken language of Lakshadweep. Malayalam is spoken by 35 million people in India. Malayalam is also spoken by linguistic minorities in the neighbouring states; with
7335-998: The Middle East , the United States, and Europe. There were 179,860 speakers of Malayalam in the United States, according to the 2000 census, with the highest concentrations in Bergen County, New Jersey , and Rockland County, New York . There are 144,000 of Malayalam speakers in Malaysia . There were 11,687 Malayalam speakers in Australia in 2016. The 2001 Canadian census reported 7,070 people who listed Malayalam as their mother tongue, mainly in Toronto . The 2006 New Zealand census reported 2,139 speakers. 134 Malayalam speaking households were reported in 1956 in Fiji . There
7498-632: The Namboothiri and Nair dialects have a common nature, the Arabi Malayalam is among the most divergent of dialects, differing considerably from literary Malayalam. Jeseri is a dialect of Malayalam spoken mainly in the Union territory of Lakshadweep and Beary is spoken in Tulu Nadu which are nearer to Kerala. Of the total 33,066,392 Malayalam speakers in India in 2001, 33,015,420 spoke
7661-470: The Pashupatinath Temple . The deity of Padmanabha is covered with, "Katusarkara yogam", a special ayurvedic mix which is made of 108 natural materials collected from all over India and forms a coat-like protection that keeps the deity clean. The platforms in front of the vimanam and where the deity rests are both carved out of a single massive stone and hence called "Ottakkal-mandapam". On
7824-536: The Pathinettara Kavikal (Eighteen and a half poets) in the court of the Zamorin of Calicut , also belong to Middle Malayalam. The literary works of this period were heavily influenced by Manipravalam , which was a combination of contemporary Tamil and Sanskrit . The word Mani-Pravalam literally means Diamond-Coral or Ruby-Coral . The 14th-century Lilatilakam text states Manipravalam to be
7987-645: The Roman Empire , that were found in Kottayam, in Kannur District. According to Vinod Rai , the former Comptroller-and-Auditor-General (CAG) of India, who had audited some of the Temple records from 1990, in August 2014, in the already opened vault A, there is an 800 kg (1,800 lb) hoard of gold coins dating to around 200 BCE, each coin priced at over ₹ 2.7 crore (US$ 320,000). Also found
8150-430: The Saptarshi , Madhu, and Kaitabha are also in the Sanctum. Only the King of Travancore may prostrate on the "Ottakkal Mandapam" It is traditionally held that anybody who prostrates on the mandapam has surrendered all that he possesses to the deity. Since the ruler has already done that, he is permitted to prostrate on this mandapam. Inside the Temple, there are two other important shrines, Thekkedom and Thiruvambadi, for
8313-477: The Voiced retroflex approximant (/ɻ/) which is seen in both Tamil and the standard form of Malayalam, are not seen in the northern dialects of Malayalam, as in Kannada . For example, the words Vazhi (Path), Vili (Call), Vere (Another), and Vaa (Come/Mouth), become Bayi , Bili , Bere , and Baa in the northern dialects of Malayalam. Similarly the Malayalam spoken in the southern districts of Kerala, i.e., Thiruvananthapuram - Kollam - Pathanamthitta area
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#17327765837478476-486: The Yerava dialect and 31,329 spoke non-standard regional variations like Eranadan . As per the 1991 census data, 28.85% of all Malayalam speakers in India spoke a second language and 19.64% of the total knew three or more languages. Just before independence, Malaya attracted many Malayalis. Large numbers of Malayalis have settled in Chennai , Bengaluru , Mangaluru , Hyderabad , Mumbai , Navi Mumbai , Pune , Mysuru and Delhi . Many Malayalis have also emigrated to
8639-401: The colonial period . Due to the geographical isolation of the Malabar Coast from the rest of the Indian peninsula due to the presence of the Western Ghats mountain ranges which lie parallel to the coast, the dialect of Old Tamil spoken in Kerala was different from that spoken in Tamil Nadu . The mainstream view holds that Malayalam began to grow as a distinct literary language from
8802-459: The northern districts of Kerala , those lie adjacent to Tulu Nadu . Old Malayalam was mostly written in Vatteluttu script (with Pallava/Southern Grantha characters). Old Malayalam had several features distinct from the contemporary Tamil, which include the nasalisation of adjoining sounds, substitution of palatal sounds for dental sounds, contraction of vowels, and the rejection of gender verbs. Ramacharitam and Thirunizhalmala are
8965-423: The script and the region . According to Duarte Barbosa , a Portuguese visitor who visited Kerala in the early 16th century CE, the people in the southwestern Malabar coast of India from Kumbla in north to Kanyakumari in south had a unique language, which was called "Maliama" by them. Prior to this period , the people of Kerala usually referred to their language as "Tamil", and both terms overlapped into
9128-521: The 13th and 14th centuries of the Common Era . The Sandesha Kavya s of 14th century CE written in Manipravalam language include Unnuneeli Sandesam . Kannassa Ramayanam and Kannassa Bharatham by Rama Panikkar of the Niranam poets who lived between 1350 and 1450, are representative of this language. Ulloor has opined that Rama Panikkar holds the same position in Malayalam literature that Edmund Spenser does in English literature . The Champu Kavyas written by Punam Nambudiri, one among
9291-427: The 16th century CE, Thunchaththu Ezhuthachan from the Kingdom of Tanur and Poonthanam Nambudiri from the Kingdom of Valluvanad , followed the new trend initiated by Cherussery in their poems. The Adhyathmaramayanam Kilippattu and Mahabharatham Kilippattu , written by Ezhuthachan, and Jnanappana , written by Poonthanam, are also included in the earliest form of Modern Malayalam. Thunchaththu Ezhuthachan
9454-508: The 1880s, when the inventory and estimate were last updated, was INR 1.8 per gram (The price of gold was about US$ 18 for an ounce in the 1880s when the dollar was 3.3 to the rupee ). It is highly unlikely that Kallara B was opened after the 1880s. An article by Emily Gilchriest Hatch, a visiting Englishwoman in the 1933, recalls in her book 'Travancore: A Guide Book for the Visitor' (Oxford University Press, 1933) about an unsuccessful attempt to open one Kallara in 1908: "About 25 years ago, when
9617-603: The Chief Priests of the Temple. Two Nambies – Periya Nambi and Panchagavyathu Nambi – are allotted to Padmanabha and one Nambi each to Narasimha Moorthi and Krishna Swami. The Nambies hail from either side of the Chandragiri River. In line with the Temple Entry Proclamation , only those who profess the Hindu faith are permitted entry to the temple and devotees have to strictly follow the dress code. Men wear "vesti" with "angavastram" (the South Indian version of dhoti and shawl, both plain white in color) and women wear sari. The Padmanabhaswamy Temple and its property were controlled by
9780-478: The Deities, Ugra Narasimha and Krishna Swami respectively. Centuries back, several families of Vrishni Kshatriyas travelled to the south, carrying with them idols of Balarama and Krishna . When they reached the hallowed land of Sree Padmanabha, they gave the idol of Balarama, also known as Bhaktadasa, to Neythasseri Potti. Neythasseri Potti built a Temple at Budhapuram in the present day Kanyakumari District and had this idol installed there. The Vrishnis gifted
9943-412: The Dravidian or South-Indian Family of Languages" , opined that literary Malayalam branched from Classical Tamil and over time gained a large amount of Sanskrit vocabulary and lost the personal terminations of verbs. As the language of scholarship and administration, Old-Tamil, which was written in Tamil-Brahmi and the Vatteluttu alphabet later, greatly influenced the early development of Malayalam as
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#173277658374710106-399: The Dutch forts in the area and captured them all. In retaliation, a Dutch artillery force landed at Colachel from Ceylon and conquered up to Kottar . The Dutch forces then advanced against Kalkulam , Travancore's capital. Marthanda Varma, who was then in the north of his state promptly marched his forces to the south and arrived at Kalkulam just in time to prevent its fall to the Dutch. In
10269-478: The Dutch. Mobilisation of additional resources involved territorial conquests...The territorial conquests of Marthanda Varma were intended not only for settling political differences but also for controlling areas that yielded food crops and commercial products, particularly pepper for the ports of trade in southern and central Kerala...The reorganisation of land relations effected by Marthanda Varma following his conquest of Quilon, Kayamkulam, Tekkenkur and Vadakkenkur
10432-609: The Mathikalam had been donated later to the Archives Department in 1867 at the time of the formation of the latter. Each of these Cadjan leaf-records, which have been compiled over thousands of years, contains 10,000 documentations according to R. Nagaswamy , noted archaeologist and historian, totalling over 30 crores of records. Despite their cultural value, only a minuscule portion of these grantas (bundles) of cadjan leaf records, written mostly in ancient scripts of proto- Tamil and archaic-Malayalam, have been deciphered. The translations of this section of manuscripts by some scholars serve as
10595-532: The Pallivetta procession was said to pass through Kaithamukku, Kuthiravattom (Kunnumpuram), Pazhaya Sreekanteswaram and Putharikkandam. The 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 Maharajah of Travancore escorts the Aarat procession on foot. The festival idols "Utsava Vigrahas" of Padmanabhaswamy, Narasimha Moorthi and Krishna Swami are given
10758-399: The Perumal which he obtained from the pulaya woman. The spot where the Sage had darsan of the deity belonged to Koopakkara Potti and Karuva Potti. With the assistance of the reigning King and some Brahmin households a temple was constructed. The Ananthankadu Nagaraja Temple still exists to the northwest of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple. The samadhi (final resting place) of the swamiyar exists to
10921-428: The Sangam Tamil literature (500 BC to 300 AD wherein it was referred to as the "Golden Temple" on account of its then unimaginable wealth), and the treasures consist of countless artefacts dating back to the Chera, Pandya, Greek, and Roman epochs. The ancient late-Tamil-Sangam epic Silappatikaram (c 100 AD to 300 AD at the latest) speaks of the then Chera King Cenkuttuvan receiving gifts of gold and precious stones from
11084-485: The State needed additional money, it was thought expedient to open these chests and use the wealth they contained." "A group of people" got together and attempted to enter the vaults with torches. When they found the vaults "infested with cobras" they "fled for their lives. In 2011, the antechamber to Kallara B was opened by the Observers appointed by the Supreme Court of India. But the Observers could not open Kallara B. However, Gopal Subramanium in his report submitted to
11247-452: The Supreme Court in April 2014, recommended its opening after conducting another Devaprasnam. The two Pushpanjali Swamiyars are the highest spiritual dignitaries of Padmanabhaswamy Temple. The Pushpanjali Swamiyar of Naduvil Madhom sent letters to the Chairperson of the Administrative Committee and the Executive Officer on 8 February 2016 expressing his strong opposition to the opening of Kallara B. The Pushpanjali Swamiyar of Munchira Madhom led
11410-707: The Supreme court order. Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma remains the trustee of the temple and still does the ritual duties as the titular Maharaja of Travancore , but has no responsibility regarding the temple management after the interim ruling by the Supreme Court The report also found the existence of two more vaults that were never even made mention of or hitherto spoken about. The report named them Vault 'G' and Vault 'H'. Like Vault 'B' and all its antechambers, both these vaults and their antechambers were yet to be opened as of May 2014. The report also mentions that Mr. Subramanian found several large trunks filled with artefacts made of precious metals and precious stones outside of
11573-413: The Swamiyars of the Naduvil Madhom were appointed as Pushpanjali Swamiyars by the Maharaja of Travancore . Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma curtailed the authority of Ettara Yogam and liquidated the powerful Ettuveetil Pillamar. Ettara Yogam became an advisory and assenting body thereafter. Besides the Naduvil Madhom, the Munchira Madhom got the right to appoint Pushpanjali Swamiyars during his reign. In
11736-684: The Tamil tradition is Ramacharitam (late 12th or early 13th century). The earliest script used to write Malayalam was the Vatteluttu script . The current Malayalam script is based on the Vatteluttu script, which was extended with Grantha script letters to adopt Indo-Aryan loanwords. It bears high similarity with the Tigalari script , a historical script that was used to write the Tulu language in South Canara , and Sanskrit in
11899-503: The Temple). This ceremony took place at Kulasekhara Mandapam in Padmanabhaswamy Temple. Revathi Thirunal Balagopal Varma , grandson of Maharani Regent Pooradom Thirunal Sethu Lakshmi Bayi , is the titular Elayaraja of Travancore. The temple and its assets belong to the deity, Lord Padmanabhaswamy, and are for a long time have been controlled by a trust which is headed by the Travancore royal family . T P Sundararajan's litigations changed
12062-685: The Travancore Kingdom, a distinction was always made between the Government (State) Treasury (Karuvelam), the Royal Family Treasury (Chellam), and the Temple Treasury (Thiruvara Bhandaram or Sri Bhandaram). During the reign of Maharani Gowri Lakshmi Bayi , hundreds of temples that were mismanaged in the Kerala region, were brought under the Government. The excess ornaments in these temples were also transferred to
12225-560: The Vaults of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple. Instead the funds of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple were utilised for the daily upkeep of these temples. On 4 July 2011, the seven-member expert team tasked with taking stock of the temple assets decided to postpone opening of chamber B. This chamber is sealed with an iron door, with the image of a cobra on it, and has not been opened due to the belief that opening it would result in much misfortune. The royal family has also said that opening chamber B could be
12388-507: The adjacent Malabar region . The modern Malayalam grammar is based on the book Kerala Panineeyam written by A. R. Raja Raja Varma in late 19th century CE. The first travelogue in any Indian language is the Malayalam Varthamanappusthakam , written by Paremmakkal Thoma Kathanar in 1785. Robert Caldwell describes the extent of Malayalam in the 19th century as extending from the vicinity of Kumbla in
12551-573: The aggression of the Kingdom of Mysore . Marthanda Varma's legacy involved a major restructuring of the medieval political and economic relations of southern Kerala. Malayalam Malayalam ( / ˌ m æ l ə ˈ j ɑː l ə m / ; മലയാളം , Malayāḷam , IPA: [mɐlɐjaːɭɐm] ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry ( Mahé district ) by
12714-471: The articles inside, while Vaults A and B would be opened only for the purpose of making an inventory of the articles and then closed. The review of the temple's underground vaults was undertaken by a seven-member panel appointed by the Supreme Court to generate an inventory, leading to the enumeration of a vast collection of articles that are traditionally kept under lock and key. A detailed inventory of
12877-429: The articles recovered from Vault A and its antechambers. Even with only the five smaller of the reported eight vaults being opened (the larger three vaults and all their ante-chambers still remaining closed), the treasure found so far, is considered to be by far the largest collection of items of gold and fully precious stones in the recorded history of the world. The valuables are believed to have been accumulated in
13040-447: The artists and scholars from these places migrated to Trivandrum, turning it into a cultural centre. Marthanda Varma gave patronage to different temple art forms including Koothu, Padhakam, Kathakali, Thullal, and Koodiyattam. Noted artists such as Ramapurathu Warrier and Kunchan Nambiar amongst others served as his court poets. In 1749–50, Marthanda Varma decided to "donate" his realm to Sri Padmanabha ( Vishnu ) and thereafter rule as
13203-515: The authoritative Malayalam lexicon, the other principal languages whose vocabulary was incorporated over the ages were Arabic , Dutch , Hindustani , Pali , Persian , Portuguese , Prakrit , and Syriac . Malayalam is a language spoken by the native people of southwestern India and the islands of Lakshadweep in the Arabian Sea . According to the Indian census of 2011, there were 32,413,213 speakers of Malayalam in Kerala, making up 93.2% of
13366-533: The authorship of the medieval work Keralolpathi , which describes the Parashurama legend and the departure of the final Cheraman Perumal king to Mecca , to Thunchaththu Ramanujan Ezhuthachan. Kunchan Nambiar introduced a new literary form called Thullal , and Unnayi Variyar introduced reforms in Attakkatha literature . The printing, prose literature, and Malayalam journalism , developed after
13529-467: The boy defiled the idol which was kept for puja. The sage became enraged at this and chased away the boy who disappeared before him. Realising the boy was no ordinary mortal, the sage wept for forgiveness and asked for another darshan as a sign. He heard a voice say "If you want to see me come to the Anathavana (the unending forest or Ananthakadu). After a long search, when he was walking on the banks of
13692-414: The celestial snake Anantha ). But the edifice that the deity assumed was of an extraordinarily large size, with His head at Thiruvattar near Thuckalay , Tamil Nadu , body or udal at Thiruvananthapuram, and lotus-feet at Thrippadapuram near Kulathoor and Technopark (Thrippappur), making him some eight miles in length. The sage requested the deity to shrink to a smaller proportion that would be thrice
13855-407: The chanting of Suprabhatam forthwith, as it was causing 'Anya Mantra Yajana Dosham' (affliction due to worshipping the deity with incompatible mantras) to the presiding deity and the Temple. As atonement for this dosham, the Tantri wants Vedic scholars to chant 12 'muras' each of Rig Veda and Yajur Veda. In his first report to the Supreme Court, the Amicus Curiae directed the Tantries to examine whether
14018-623: The commerce of the Dutch. A treaty (the Treaty of Mavelikkara) was concluded between Marthanda Varma and the Dutch East India Company. It was signed at Mavelikkara on 15 August 1753. Thereafter, the Dutch Company officials report that "considerable spice producing lands came under direct royal control, while those merchants participating in illegal trade in spices stood in danger of being executed". Marthanda Varma
14181-692: The deity also dwell in this Kallara. Kanjirottu Yakshi , whose enchanting and ferocious forms are painted on the south-west part of the main Sanctum, resides in this Kallara worshipping Narasimha. Holy objects like Sreechakram were installed beneath this Kallara to enhance the potency of the principal deity. Ugra Narasimha of Thekkedom is said to be the Protector of Kallara B. There is a serpent's image on Kallara B indicating danger to anyone who opens it. A four-day Ashtamangala Devaprasnam conducted in August 2011 declared Kallara B as "forbidden zone". One of
14344-438: The deity's "vice-regent" (Sri Padmanabha Dasa). Ramayyan Dalava , prime minister and a close friend of Marthanda Varma, died in 1756. Ramayyan's death caused terrible grief to Marthada Varma, and he died two years later in 1758. He was succeeded by his nephew Rama Varma ("Dharma Raja") . Marthanda Varma's policies were continued in large measure by Dharma Raja (1758–98). He also went on to successfully defend Travancore against
14507-507: The early Middle Tamil period, thus making independent descent impossible. For example, Old Tamil lacks the first and second person plural pronouns with the ending kaḷ . It is in the Early Middle Tamil stage that kaḷ first appears: Indeed, most features of Malayalam morphology are derivable from a form of speech corresponding to early Middle Tamil. Robert Caldwell , in his 1856 book " A Comparative Grammar of
14670-517: The eight vaults and their antechambers. The CBI and the Intelligence Bureau have red-flagged the appointment of Gopal Subramanium as a Judge in the Supreme Court. The IB cites Mr Subramaniam's report on Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple as one of the instances where he relied heavily on his spiritual instincts rather than rational logic and hard facts. In his second report on Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple, Mr Subramaniam himself reveals that "It
14833-688: The entire city are often eulogised as being made of gold and the temple as heaven. The temple is one of the 108 principal Divya Desams ("Holy Abodes") in Vaishnavism according to existing Tamil hymns from the seventh and eighth centuries C.E and is glorified in the Divya Prabandha . The Divya Prabandha glorifies this shrine as being among the 13 Divya Desam in Malai Nadu (corresponding to present-day Kerala with Kanyakumari District). The 8th century Tamil poet Alvar Nammalvar sang
14996-511: The ettara yogam council and took the full power as a king. The Yogakars and Pillamars were always against the Royal Family of Venad (Padmabhaswamy Temple Judgement page :16) He then adopted a European mode of discipline for his army and expanded his kingdom northward (to what became the modern state of Travancore). He built a sizeable standing army of about 50,000 nair men, as part of designing an "elaborate and well-organised" war machine, with
15159-408: The following battle at Colachel (10 August 1741), the Travancore forces won a resounding victory over the Dutch. More than twenty Dutch were taken as prisoners of war from Colachel. Among them was Eustachius de Lannoy , who attracted the king's special notice. Eustachius de Lannoy, commonly known in Travancore as the 'Valiya Kappittan' (Senior Captain) was entrusted with the organisation and drilling of
15322-475: The glories of Padmanabha. It is believed that Parasurama purified and venerated the idol of Sree Padmanabhaswamy in Dvapara Yuga . Parasurama entrusted 'Kshethra karyam' (Administration of the Temple) with seven Potti families – Koopakkara Potti, Vanchiyoor Athiyara Potti, Kollur Athiyara Potti, Muttavila Potti, Karuva Potti, Neythasseri Potti and Sreekaryathu Potti. King Adithya Vikrama of Vanchi (Venad)
15485-475: The ground underneath which both Kallara B and Kallara A were situated. According to a popular legend, many devas and sages devoted to Balarama, visited him on the banks of Padmateertham. They requested him that they may be permitted to reside there worshipping the lord. Balarama granted them their wish. It is believed that these devas and sages reside in Kallara B worshipping the deity. Naga Devathas devoted to
15648-607: The historical relationship between the Maharaja and the temple: "That no deviation whatsoever should be made in regard to the dedication of the kingdom to Padmanabhaswamy and that all future territorial acquisitions should be made over to the Devaswom." In the Garbhagriha , Padmanabha reclines on the serpent Anantha or Adi Sesha . The serpent has five hoods facing inwards, signifying contemplation. The deity's right hand
15811-496: The idol of Krishna to Maharaja Udaya Marthanda Varma of Venad. The Maharaja constructed a separate shrine, known as Thiruvambadi, in the premises of Padmanabhaswamy Temple for this idol. The Thiruvambadi shrine enjoys an independent status. Thiruvambadi has its own namaskara mandapam, bali stones and flagmast. The deity of Thiruvambadi is Parthasarathi, the Divine Charioteer of Arjuna , who is the warrior prince and one of
15974-502: The inventory are not to be released until the completion of the whole process by order of the Supreme Court of India. In April 2014, Amicus Curiae advocate Gopal Subramanium filed a 577-page report to the Supreme court of India alleging malpractices in the administration of the temple. According to him, the authorities failed to perform their ethical duties by opening many bank accounts, trusts and also not filing Income Tax returns for
16137-534: The inventory, died in July 2011, adding credence to the folklore around the temple. Prior to this now-famous incident in July 2011, one of the several vaults in the temple which was not vaults B (untouched after the 1880s), G, or H (both rediscovered supposedly by the Amicus Curie only in mid-2014), was opened in 1931. This was possibly an antechamber of vaults A, C, D, E, or F that may not have been opened yet. This
16300-496: The items in vaults C, D, E, and F were completed (in August 2012) and formal inventorying of vault A had commenced. Several hundred pots and other items made of gold, that are used for daily rituals or intermittently for ceremonies in the Temple, were not inventoried as the Temple-priests expressed strong objections. Over 1.02 lakh "articles" had been retrieved from Vault A and its ante-chambers, until that point, though only
16463-415: The kingdom as Padmanabha Dasa . Since then, the name of every Travancore king was preceded by the title 'Sree Padmanabha Dasa'; the female members of the royal family were called 'Sree Padmanabha Sevini' both meaning the servant to Padmanabhaswamy; . The donation of the king to Padmanabhaswamy was known as Thrippadi-danam. The final wishes of Anizham Thirunal on his passing at the age of 53 clearly delineated
16626-461: The last Tiruvadi Sri Padmanabha ( Vishnu ) and thereafter rule as the deity's "vice-regent" (Sri Padmanabha Dasa). Marthanda Varma's policies were continued in large measure by his successor, Rama Varma ("Dharma Raja") . Marthanda Varma was born in 1706 to queen Karthika Thirunal Umadevi, the Queen of Attingal, and Raghava Varma of Kilimanoor Palace . Queen Karthika Thirunal Uma Devi - an adoptee from
16789-487: The last day, hundred thousand oil lamps are lit in and around the temple premises. Temples where 'Swamiyar Pushpanjali' is conducted are claimants to extra sanctity. Sannyasins from Naduvil Madhom and Munchira Madhom do Pushpanjali (flower worship) daily to Padmanabha, Narasimha Moorthi and Krishna Swami. Tharananallur Nambuthiripads of Iranjalakkuda are the Tantris of the Temple. The Nambies, altogether four in number, are
16952-528: The latter-half of the 18th century CE. Modern literary movements in Malayalam literature began in the late 19th century with the rise of the famous Modern Triumvirate consisting of Kumaran Asan , Ulloor S. Parameswara Iyer and Vallathol Narayana Menon . In the second half of the 20th century, Jnanpith winning poets and writers like G. Sankara Kurup , S. K. Pottekkatt , Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai , M. T. Vasudevan Nair , O. N. V. Kurup , and Akkitham Achuthan Namboothiri , had made valuable contributions to
17115-402: The length of his staff. Immediately the deity shrank to the form of the idol that is seen at present in the Temple. But even then many iluppa trees obstructed a complete vision of the deity. The sage saw the deity in three parts – thirumukham, thiruvudal and thrippadam. The swami prayed to Padmanabha to be forgiven. He offered rice kanji and uppumanga (salted mango pieces) in a coconut shell to
17278-492: The lotus spring). The temple has a corridor with 365 and one-quarter sculptured granite-stone pillars with elaborate carvings which stands out to be an ultimate testimonial for the Vishvakarma sthapathis in sculpting this architectural masterpiece. This corridor extends from the eastern side into the sanctum sanctorum. An 80-foot (24 m) flagstaff stands in front of the main entry from the prakaram (closed precincts of
17441-673: The main protagonists that appear in the story of Mahabharata . The two-armed granite idol, with one hand holding the whip and the other resting on the left thigh holding the conch close to it, is in standing posture. On Ekadashi days, the deity is dressed and decorated as Mohini . The Vrishnies who came to Venad and settled there are known as Krishnan Vakakkar as they belong to the lineage of Krishna. There are also shrines for Rama accompanied by his consort Sita , brother Lakshmana and Hanuman , Vishvaksena (the Nirmalyadhari of Vishnu and Remover of Obstacles), Vyasa and Ashwatthama
17604-465: The members of the Sabha. The Pushpanjali Swamiyar presides over the meetings of the Sabha. Sreekaryathu Potti is the Sabhanjithan of the Sabha. Any decision taken by the Sabha can be implemented only if the Maharaja of Travancore approves of it. It is believed that eight members of Ettara Yogam (seven Potties and the Maharaja of Travancore) received their rights from Parashurama Himself. In the past, only
17767-436: The mercenaries did not proceed with the misadventure. A pertinent event in the long history of the temple was the construction of a "granta-pura" (record-room) within the temple compound itself around 1425 A.D. by the then Venad King Veera Iravi Iravi Varma, to store the "Mathilakam" (within-the-walls) records, as the then existing temple records were known. A major portion of those records (over 3000 'Cadjan' leaf-records) from
17930-468: The modern Malayalam literature . The Middle Malayalam was succeeded by Modern Malayalam ( Aadhunika Malayalam ) by 15th century CE. The poem Krishnagatha written by Cherusseri Namboothiri , who was the court poet of the king Udaya Varman Kolathiri (1446–1475) of Kolathunadu , is written in modern Malayalam. The language used in Krishnagatha is the modern spoken form of Malayalam. During
18093-594: The modern Malayalam script does not distinguish the latter from the dental nasal ) are underlined for clarity, following the convention of the National Library at Kolkata romanization . Vocative forms are given in parentheses after the nominative , as the only pronominal vocatives that are used are the third person ones, which only occur in compounds. വിഭക്തി സംബോധന പ്രതിഗ്രാഹിക സംബന്ധിക ഉദ്ദേശിക പ്രായോജിക ആധാരിക സംയോജിക Padmanabhaswamy Temple Traditional The Padmanabhaswamy Temple
18256-399: The modern Malayalam literature. The life and works of Edasseri Govindan Nair have assumed greater socio-literary significance after his death and Edasseri is now recognised as an important poet of Malayalam. Later, writers like O. V. Vijayan , Kamaladas , M. Mukundan , Arundhati Roy , and Vaikom Muhammed Basheer , have gained international recognition. Malayalam has also borrowed
18419-434: The much smaller cellars that have been opened, date back to long before the institution of the so-called Travancore Kingdom, e.g. the 800 kg (1,800 lb) hoard of gold coins from 200 B.C that was mentioned by Vinod Rai. Noted archaeologist and historian R. Nagaswamy has also stated that several records exist in Kerala, of offerings made to the deity, from several parts of Kerala. Lastly, it has to be remembered that in
18582-408: The name of its language. The language Malayalam was alternatively called Alealum , Malayalani , Malayali , Malabari , Malean , Maliyad , Mallealle , and Kerala Bhasha until the early 19th century CE. The earliest extant literary works in the regional language of present-day Kerala probably date back to as early as the 12th century . At that time, the language
18745-571: The north where it supersedes with Tulu to Kanyakumari in the south, where it begins to be superseded by Tamil , beside the inhabited islands of Lakshadweep in the Arabian Sea . In a 7th century poem written by the Tamil poet Sambandar the people of Kerala are referred to as malaiyāḷar (mountain people). The word Malayalam is also said to originate from the words mala , meaning ' mountain ', and alam , meaning ' region ' or '-ship' (as in "township"); Malayalam thus translates directly as 'the mountain region'. The term Malabar
18908-412: The northern Kolathunadu ruling family - was the senior queen of Attingal at the time. His father Raghava Varma Koil Thampuran died of severe fever when he was one year old. At the time of Varma's birth, Trippappur Swaroopam (Thiruvithamkoor or Travancore) was a small chiefdom extending from Edava in the north to Aralvaimozhi in the south. The fundamental politico-economic structure of medieval Kerala
19071-673: The northernmost Kasargod district of Kerala. Tigalari script was also used for writing Sanskrit in Malabar region . Malayalam has also borrowed the Sanskrit diphthongs of /ai̯/ (represented in Malayalam as ഐ , ai) and /au̯/ (represented in Malayalam as ഔ , au) although these mostly occur only in Sanskrit loanwords. Traditionally (as in Sanskrit), four vocalic consonants (usually pronounced in Malayalam as consonants followed by
19234-530: The oldest existing estimates with respect to only Vault B, as per the Temple priests, was by the Travancore Royal Family themselves in the 1880s (when an older existing inventory and estimate were last updated). Then, the Gold in Vault B which is by far the largest and the only vault (of the reported six) that is unopened so far since the 1880s, was worth INR 12,000 Crores in the then (1880s') terms. The price of gold in
19397-403: The opinion that one of the names that the Temple had, "The Golden Temple", was in cognisance of the Temple being already unimaginably wealthy by that point (early Sangam period). Many extant pieces of Sangam Tamil literature and poetry as well as later works of the 9th century of Tamil poet–saints like Nammalwar refer to the temple and the city as having walls of pure gold. Both the temple and
19560-544: The orders of Marthanda Varma (1706–58), the Ottakkal-mandapam was cut out of a rock at Thirumala, about 4 miles (6.4 km) north of the temple. It measured 20 square feet (1.9 m ; 190 dm ; 19,000 cm ) in area by 2.5 feet (30 in; 7.6 dm; 76 cm) thick and was placed in front of the deity in the month of Edavom 906 M.E. (1731 CE). At the same time, Marthanda Varma also brought 12,000 shaligrams, aniconic representations of Vishnu , from
19723-543: The organized extraction by persons belonging to the highest echelons. There appears to be resistance on the part of the entire State apparatus in effectively addressing the said issues. The lack of adequate investigation by the police is a telling sign that although Thiruvananthapuram is a city in the State of Kerala, parallelism based on monarchic rule appears to predominate the social psyche." The Supreme court bench comprising justice R. M. Lodha and justice A. K. Patnaik ordered
19886-494: The outer door (antechamber) to Kallara B has been opened a number of times in recent decades - twice in 1991 and five times in 2002. Once Vinod Rai's report was out, Princess Aswathi Thirunal Gowri Lakshmi Bayi clarified that Mr Rai was referring to the antechamber to Kallara B, and that that antechamber was opened even in 2011 by the Supreme Court-appointed observers. The Kerala High Court ruled in 2011 that
20049-643: The parameters of region, religion, community, occupation, social stratum, style and register. According to the Dravidian Encyclopedia, the regional dialects of Malayalam can be divided into fifteen dialect areas. They are as follows: According to Ethnologue, the dialects are: Malabar, Nagari-Malayalam, North Kerala, Central Kerala, South Kerala, Kayavar, Namboodiri , Nair , Mappila , Beary , Jeseri , Yerava , Pulaya, Nasrani , and Kasargod . The community dialects are: Namboodiri , Nair , Arabi Malayalam , Pulaya, and Nasrani . Whereas both
20212-455: The past ten years. He alleged that Vault B was opened despite a previous ruling of the Supreme court prohibiting the same. The report states – "The large amount of gold and silver, the discovery of which was a shock to the Amicus Curiae, is a singular instance of mismanagement. The presence of a gold plating machine is also yet another unexplained circumstance. This discovery raises a doubt of
20375-451: The port of Kochi . He set out to conquer the major spice-producing areas supplying cargo to Kochi. After declaring a state monopoly on pepper in Travancore in 1743, between then and 1752, the king annexed Quilon , Kayamkulam , Thekkumkur , Vadakkumkur and Purakkad to Travancore (thereby delivering a serious blow to the commerce of the Dutch). Travancore then launched a series of raids on
20538-410: The possible literary works of Old Malayalam found so far. Old Malayalam gradually developed into Middle Malayalam ( Madhyakaala Malayalam ) by the 13th century CE. Malayalam literature also completely diverged from Tamil literature during this period. Works including Unniyachi Charitham , Unnichiruthevi Charitham , and Unniyadi Charitham , are written in Middle Malayalam , and date back to
20701-624: The power of chastity of Anasuya ) and Kumara Swami ( Murugan ) are brought from the Padmanabhapuram Palace , Suchindram , and Kumarakovil respectively to the Kuthira malika palace in front of Padmanabhaswamy temple as a procession. This festival lasts for 9 days. The famous Swathi Sangeethotsavam music festival is held every year during this festival in the Navratri mandapam and in some other surrounding temples. The festival
20864-500: The prehistoric period from a common ancestor, "Proto-Tamil-Malayalam", and that the notion of Malayalam being a "daughter" of Tamil is misplaced. This is based on the fact that Malayalam and several Dravidian languages on the Western Coast have common archaic features which are not found even in the oldest historical forms of literary Tamil. Despite this, Malayalam shares many common innovations with Tamil that emerged during
21027-579: The recent past, Uthradom Thirunal Marthanda Varma gave Pushpanjali rights to the Swamiyars of Thrikkaikattu Madhom and Thekke Madhom as well. Though the Maharaja is the appointing authority of the Pushpanjali Swamiyar, the former must do a Vechu Namaskaram when he sees the Swamiyar. With the passing away of Uthradom Thirunal Marthanda Varma in December 2013, his nephew Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma became
21190-459: The role of the travancore army and fortified the northern boundary of his kingdom ( Travancore Lines ). His alliance in 1757 with the ruler of Kochi (Cochin) , against the northern Kingdom of Calicut , enabled the kingdom of Kochi to survive. Travancore under Marthanda Varma made a deliberate attempt to consolidate its power by the use of Indian Ocean trade . It was the policy of Marthanda Varma to offer assistance to Syrian Christian traders (as
21353-479: The rule). The last major renovation of the Padmanabhaswamy temple commenced immediately after Anizham Thirunal's accession to the throne and the idol was reconsecrated in 906 ME (1731 CE). On 17 January 1750, Anizham Thirunal surrendered the Kingdom of Travancore to Padmanabhaswamy, the main deity at the temple, and pledged that he and his descendants would be vassals or agents of the deity who would serve
21516-462: The shrine, which was mostly destroyed in a fire during his predecessor Rama Varma's time, was also re-constructed. He also created Ottakkal Mandapam as well as the Sheevelippura. Out of the seven floors of the temple gopura, five were finished during his reign. Thiruvananthapuram became a prominent city in Kerala under Marthanda Varma. As a result of the annexation of neighbouring chiefdoms,
21679-597: The single largest linguistic group accounting for 35.5% in the Virajpet Taluk. Around one-third of the Malayalis in Kodagu district speak the Yerava dialect according to the 2011 census, which is native to Kodagu and Wayanad . In all, Malayalis made up 3.22% of the total Indian population in 2011. Of the total 34,713,130 Malayalam speakers in India in 2011, 33,015,420 spoke the standard dialects, 19,643 spoke
21842-566: The south to Mangalore in the north. Also, at times like the invasion by Mysore in the late 1700s, the other related royal families (of the Travancore Royal Family) in Kerala and the far south, like the Kolathiris, took refuge in Thiruvananthapuram and stored their temple-wealth for safekeeping in the Padmanabhaswamy Temple. Also, much of the treasures housed in the much larger and as-yet-unopened vaults, as well as in
22005-544: The standard dialects, 19,643 spoke the Yerava dialect and 31,329 spoke non-standard regional variations like Eranadan . The dialects of Malayalam spoken in the districts like Kasaragod , Kannur , Wayanad , Kozhikode , and Malappuram in the former Malabar District have few influences from Kannada . For example, the words those start with the sound "V" in Malayalam become "B" in these districts as in Kannada . Also
22168-476: The state government should take over the control of the temple and its assets, but the Travancore royal family appealed to the Supreme Court. An independent report was commissioned, and was completed in November 2012, finding no evidence that the royal family were expropriating the treasures. As of April 2016, vaults B, G, and H along with their several ante-chambers were yet to be opened; while inventorying of
22331-495: The temple assets, consisting of gold, jewels, and other valuables is yet to be made. While vault B (as also presumably Vault G and Vault H) remains unopened (since the 1880s), vaults A, C, D, E and F were opened along with some of their antechambers. Among the reported findings, are a 1.1 metres (3.5 ft) tall solid pure golden idol of Mahavishnu , studded with hundreds of diamonds and rubies and other precious stones. Also found were an 5.5-metre (18 ft)-long pure gold chain,
22494-753: The temple over several thousand years, having been donated to the deity (and subsequently stored there), by various dynasties like the Cheras , the Pandyas , the Travancore Royal Family , the Kolathiris , the Pallavas , the Cholas and many other kings in the recorded history of both South India and beyond, and from the rulers and traders of Mesopotamia , Jerusalem , Greece , Rome , and later,
22657-618: The temple. In the first half of the 18th century, in line with matrilineal customs , Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma , succeeded his uncle Rama Varma as king at the age of 23. He successfully suppressed the 700-year-old stranglehold of the Ettuveetil Pillamar ("Lords of the Eight Houses") and his cousins following the discovery of conspiracies which the lords were involved in against the royal house of Travancore (There are various legends and disputes about these mostly apocryphal stories, but overall, he took control and centralised
22820-876: The titular Maharaja of Travancore in January 2014. Like his predecessors, Moolam Thirunal also got concurrence from the Ettara Yogam before assuming the title 'Maharaja'. In the presence of the Maharaja designate, the Yogathil Pottimar and the Tantri, the Pushpanjali Swamiyar Maravanchery Thekkedathu Neelakanta Bharatikal signed on the Neettu (Order) of the Ettara Yogam accepting Moolam Thirunal as Chirava Mootha Thiruvadi (Maharaja of Travancore) and Thrippappoor Mootha Thiruvadi (Protector of
22983-590: The total number of Malayalam speakers in India, and 97.03% of the total population of the state. There were a further 701,673 (1.14% of the total number) in Karnataka , 957,705 (2.70%) in Tamil Nadu , and 406,358 (1.2%) in Maharashtra . The number of Malayalam speakers in Lakshadweep is 51,100, which is only 0.15% of the total number, but is as much as about 84% of the population of Lakshadweep. Malayalam
23146-421: The various colonial powers from Europe , and other countries as well. Some people have suggested that a part of the stored riches reached the Travancore kings in the later years in the form of tax as well as conquered wealth of other South Indian kingdoms. Most scholars however believe that this was accumulated over thousands of years, given the mention of the deity and the Temple in several extant Hindu Texts,
23309-743: The way the world looked at the Temple. In June 2011, the Supreme Court of India directed the authorities from the archaeology department and the fire services to open the secret chambers of the temple for inspection of the items kept inside. The temple has six hitherto known vaults (nilavaras), labelled as A to F, for bookkeeping purpose by the Court. (Since, however, an Amicus Curie Report by Gopal Subramanium , in April 2014, reportedly found two more further subterranean vaults that have been named G and H.) While vault B has been unopened over centuries, A
23472-431: The west of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple. A Krishna temple was built over the samadhi. This temple, known as Vilvamangalam Sri Krishna Swami Temple, belongs to Thrissur Naduvil Madhom . Mukilan , a Muslim marauder, invaded vast chunks of Venad in 1680 AD. He destroyed Budhapuram Bhaktadasa Perumal Temple owned by Neythasseri Potti. Mukilan had plans to plunder the vaults of Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple and destroy it. But he
23635-467: The western coastal dialect of Middle Tamil and the linguistic separation completed sometime between the 9th and 13th centuries. The renowned poets of Classical Tamil such as Paranar (1st century CE), Ilango Adigal (2nd–3rd century CE), and Kulasekhara Alvar (9th century CE) were Keralites . The Sangam works can be considered as the ancient predecessor of Malayalam. Some scholars however believe that both Tamil and Malayalam developed during
23798-615: Was a larger chest fixed to the ground with six sections in it. They were full of gold jewelry encrusted with diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. Besides these, there were four more chests of old coins (not of gold), and they were carried back to the Palace and state treasuries for counting. The Vault B, its original name being "Mahabharata Kallara", is by far the largest cellar. The Bhagavata Purana says that Balarama visited Phalgunam (more commonly known as Thiruvananthapuram), took bath in Panchapsaras (Padmateertham) and made
23961-541: Was a pure golden throne, studded with hundreds of diamonds and other precious stones, meant for the 5.5-metre (18 ft)-long deity. As per one of the men, who was among those that went inside this Vault A, several of the largest diamonds were as large as a full-grown man's thumb. According to varying reports, at least three, if not more, of solid gold crowns have been found, studded with diamonds and other precious stones. Some other media reports also mention hundreds of pure gold chairs, thousands of gold pots and jars, among
24124-439: Was also heavily influenced by the Tigalari script , which was used to write Sanskrit , due to the influence of Tuluva Brahmins in Kerala. The language used in the Arabi Malayalam works of the 16th–17th century CE is a mixture of Modern Malayalam and Arabic . They follow the syntax of modern Malayalam, though written in a modified form of Arabic script , which is known as Arabi Malayalam script . P. Shangunny Menon ascribes
24287-610: Was born a samanthan Wanting the status of a ( Kshatriya ), he performed a set of elaborate and expensive Mahadana rituals as which included the Hiranyagarbha . Marthanda Varma started normalising the relationship between the royal family (the ruler) and the Padmanabhaswamy Temple (the administrative body of the temple) as soon as he came to the throne. He undertook the Prayaschittam retribution that
24450-418: Was differentiated by the name Kerala Bhasha . The earliest mention of Malayalam as a language is found outside of Kerala in the 15th century Telugu work Śrībhīmēśvarapurāṇamu by Śrīnātha. The distinctive "Malayalam" named identity of this language appears to have come into existence in Kerala only around the 16th century , when it was known as "Malayayma" or "Malayanma"; the words were also used to refer to
24613-790: Was directed by Parasurama to do 'Paripalanam' (Protection) of the Temple. Parasurama gave the Tantram of the Temple to Tharananallur Namboothiripad. This legend is narrated in detail in the Kerala Mahathmyam which forms part of the Brahmanda Puranam. Another version regarding the consecration of the principal idol of the Temple relates to the legendary sage Vilvamangalathu Swamiyar. Swamiyar, who resided near Ananthapuram Temple in Kasaragod District, prayed to Vishnu for his darshan or "auspicious sight". The deity
24776-527: Was dissuaded from doing so by local Muslims loyal to the royals of Venad. Padmanabhan Thampi, arch rival of Anizhom Thirunal Marthanda Varma, marched to Thiruvananthapuram with his forces and tried to loot the vaults of the Temple. Thampi stayed at Sri Varaham and sent his mercenaries to Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple. It is said that divine serpents materialised in hundreds and scared away Thampi's men. Emboldened by this heavenly intervention, Pallichal Pillai and local people opposed Padmanabhan Thampi and ensured that
24939-510: Was essentially to ensure this control of resources. K. N. Ganesh, historian, in "The Process of State Formation in Travancore" (1990) Marthanda Varma ascended the throne when the crisis in Travancore had already deepened. King Rama Varma was forced to invite troops from Tamil Nadu to collect dues and impose order. Even the Padmanabha Swamy Temple affairs were heading towards a crisis due to lack of funds. The Thampi brothers, sons of Rama Varma, immediately revolted against Marthanda Varma (who
25102-435: Was going through a crisis. The power of the king of Venad was very weak and he could not sustain his control over his territory. The old political structure of the medieval Kerala was going through a crisis in the beginning of the 18th century. An English East India Company factory was established at Vizhinjam in 1644. The Ajengo Fort was established in 1695. The ruler Rama Varma (1721/22 - 1729) entered into treaties with
25265-406: Was his morning ritual of [shutting] his mind and seeking guidance, which resulted in discoveries in this direction." The Amicus Curiae has also been accused of conducting poojas in the Temple in violation of its customs. He performed poojas at the Thevarappura in the Temple and in front of the Vedavyasa Shrine. Despite opposition from the Royal Family and the Tantries of the Temple, he pulled out
25428-423: Was long overdue from the earlier Venadu kings. He reorganized the collection of dues from the temple lands. After the land survey of 1739–40, the allotment of expenses for the temple was fixed. Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram was re-created as the gigantic structure of today and new state ceremonies such as Murajapam, Bhadra Deepam, and others were introduced by Marthanda Varma. The main Vishnu idol of
25591-419: Was named in honour of the Maharajah of Travancore, Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma and is organized by his descendant in the Royal Family, Prince Rama Varma . The biggest festival in this temple is laksha deepam which means hundred thousand (or one lakh ) lamps. This festival commences once in 6 years. Prior to this festival, chanting of prayers and recitation of three vedas is done for 56 days (Murajapam). On
25754-418: Was necessitated due to the severe economic depression that India was going through. The Palace and State Treasuries had run almost dry. The small group of people, including the king and the priests, found a granary-sized structure almost full with mostly gold and some silver coins and jewels. Surmounted on top of it were hundreds of pure gold pots. There were four coffers filled with gold coins as well. Also found
25917-412: Was possibly opened in the 1930s, and vaults C to F have been opened from time to time over recent years. The two priests of the temple, the 'Periya Nambi' and the 'Thekkedathu Nambi', are the custodians of the four vaults, C to F, which are opened periodically. The Supreme Court had directed that "the existing practices, procedures, and rituals" of the temple be followed while opening vaults C to F and using
26080-475: Was the legitimate successor on the basis of the Nair matrilineal system) with the assistance of a Tamil army. Marthanda Varma's reign was one of constant warfare, against opponents both inside and outside his territory. After reducing the power of the Ettuveetil Pillamar, the Nair aristocracy, and their associates, the Yogakkars, Marthanda Varma turned his attention to central Kerala. He realised that Dutch power in Kerala stemmed from their flourishing spice trade at
26243-439: Was the most spoken language in erstwhile Gudalur taluk (now Gudalur and Panthalur taluks) of Nilgiris district in Tamil Nadu which accounts for 48.8% population and it was the second most spoken language in Mangalore and Puttur taluks of South Canara accounting for 21.2% and 15.4% respectively according to 1951 census report. 25.57% of the total population in the Kodagu district of Karnataka are Malayalis , and they form
26406-416: Was to record the proceedings and transactions of the Ettarayogam, a council of temple administrators, that included the then king. The other was to write and preserve the records of the day-to-day functioning of the temple, maintain correct accounts of the temple-treasury, and of temple-revenue-collections and temple-expenditure and as well as to note down all the other records, connected with the functioning of
26569-406: Was used as an alternative term for Malayalam in foreign trade circles to denote the southwestern coast of the Indian peninsula, which also means The land of hills . The term originally referred to the western hilly land of the Chera dynasty (later Zamorins and the Kingdom of Cochin ), Kingdom of Ezhimala (later Kolathunadu ), and Ay kingdom (later Travancore ), and only later became
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