Exquisite Architecture of Sree Padmanabhaswamy shrine, Trivandrum

A 100-foot tall Raja Gopuram, exquisite life-like granite sculptures, colossal pillared corridors – Was I really in a temple in Kerala?

The fairly recent find of vast treasures (in excess of $20 billion) has got the eyes of the worldwide media to this remarkable structure; but its extraordinary architecture is what drew me in.

As an ardent follower of temple architecture, the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple presented a very unique proposition – a rare confluence of Southern Dravidian & Keralite architecture.

The origin of this magnificent structure is up for debate with some dating it to the 9^th century. The addition of the marvels inside its fortified walls are mostly in the last 500 years starting with the construction of the Gopuram (tall pyramidal tower at the entrance of South India temples) in 1560. I gather there are only 2 temples in Kerala with a grand gopuram of this sort.

The temple embodies the Keralite architecture ethos which I view as being spartan & minimalist with distinctive elements such as the Dwaja stambam (flag staff), Nalambalam (square enclosure with tiled roofing that encloses the sanctum), Vilakkumadam (a full wooden frame covering the walls of a shrine adorned with lamps). The temple also gives us a mesmerizing flavour of Nayaka period architecture (aka Dravidian style),  the high point of which were the Meenakshi Sundareswarar temple at Madurai & the Nellaippar temple in Tirunelveli town.

I am conscious of getting carried away by my experiences & will scrupulously restrict this write-up to the architectural aspects. Here are the attractions I highly recommend to you folks visiting the temple in the future:

Kulasekara Mandapam – Built in 1750s, this is an enclosed hall adorned with 28 marvelous granite sculpted pillars. Subjects range from the commonly seen ones like Venugopalaswamy, Ganapathi, & Bhadrakali to rare figurines of Swayamvara Krishna, Sivasakthi Panchakshari & Dhyana Mahavishnu. Note – opening times don’t coincide with temple darsan times. 8 30 am to noon and 4 pm to 7 pm only.

Murals – Frescos of organic dyes on the walls of both the main shrine of Padmanabhaswamy & the sub-shrine of Krishna are a must see. The most intricate & clearer murals are on the main shrine but can only be seen at times of less crowd i.e. early morning but the more elaborate & larger murals adorned the Krishna temple.

Namaskara Mandapam – While the Krishna shrine to the right of the main shrine is an impressive structure in its own right, the small hall right in front of it is a marvel of workmanship fully built of wood. The pillars of this structure & its multi-layered insides of the roof are highly ornate.

Ottukkal Mandapam – Ottukkal translates to ‘single stone’, one can definitely not be mistaken for overlooking this due to it being bang in front of the main shrine of Sree Anantha Padmanabhaswamy. The base (giving its name) is a single slab of granite 2.5 feet thick & a 20 foot square – this apparently took 42 days to haul down from a nearby hill by humans & beasts of all sorts. The wooden roof of this structure is studded with fine carvings & the pillars are of gleaming in gold plating.

In all, an eclectic amalgam of granite, wood & gold.

Idol of Sree Padmanabhaswamy – The idol of the main deity is itself a work of art beyond words & evokes a magical sense of spirituality. Supposedly composed of 12000 Saligrama gems (fossilized semi-precious stone), it is 18 foot long; the head & chest of which is seen thru door 1, hands thru door 2 and the feet thru door 3. As the inside of the shrine is sparsely lit, the grandeur of the idol can be missed, so keep an eye out.

I was blessed to visit this temple thrice this past week, mostly due to its magnetic attraction but in part due to the unique constraints placed on the visitors. My 1st visit last Wed was a short religious sojourn as the temple authorities retained their strict code to not allow my companion from England inside the shrine (this didn’t come as a real surprise & she gracefully spent the time seeing the exterior of the complex). My 2^nd trip was a lengthy visit that begun at 3 30 am – probably the best time to see this grand structure but the closure of the Kulasekara Mandapam meant a 3^rd trip, right before I caught we caught the train to Bangalore!

In summary, the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple is neither the largest temple I have seen (definitely the Ranganatha temple @ Trichy), nor the finest quality of sculpture (Vishnu temple @ Krishnapuram, Meenakshi Sudareswarar temple @ Madurai) nor set in the most pleasing atmosphere (maybe the beach-side grand temple at Tiruchendur) but in my travels, I am haven’t seen a finer blend of architectural styles.

Worthy reading…

• History of the temple –http://www.sreepadmanabhaswamytemple.org/History.htm
• Good read on the Architecture –com/opinion/op-ed/eclectic-architecture-exquisite-features/article2236138.ece#comments
• Unique features of Keralite temple architecture –http://www.keralawindow.net/templecomplex.html