TALES FROM THE CAPITAL CITY – 122

A FAMED ABODE OF A FORMER DEWAN

'A famed abode of a former Dewan', a write-up on Kravilakathu Putten Veedu, the ancestral house of Raja Kesava Das, The Hindu, 31-03-2018.

TALES FROM THE CAPITAL CITY – LXCIII

                                                  CHALA, A MARKET OF ANTIQUITY

'Chala, a market of antiquity', a search for the origin of Chala market, Thiruvananthapuram,                         The Hindu 21-01-2017.

TALES FROM THE CAPITAL CITY – LXI

SEAT OF ROYALTY

'Seat of Royalty', write-up on Padmanabhapuram palace, the abode of the Venad royals,The Hindu, 19-09-2015.

TALES FROM THE CAPITAL CITY – LVI

                                                                 HOUSE OF MEMORIES

'House of Memories', write-up on Valiya Kallaraikkal Veedu, Poovar and Pokku Moosa Maraykkar,   The Hindu, 04-07-2015.

TALES FROM THE CAPITAL CITY - XXIII

IN THE BANKS OF PADMATHEERTHAM

February 6, 2000; it was a Sunday, the day for attending the drawing classes at Chitrakalamandalam. Chitrakalamandalam, the art school was then housed in an old ottupura on the northern side of Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple. As a history freak, it was an unforgettable experience attending the drawing class in the old building. I still remember the dark cellar by the side of the courtyard, where we kept our drawing paper and paint brushes, the huge kalthotti and the wooden bed with beautifully carved legs. Many of the rooms were closed and were accessible only to the temple and palace officials and we kids used to peep through the keyhole, hoping to find some treasure chest inside the dark rooms.

Yes, it was February 6, 2000, and that day I was not in a mood to attend the drawing lessons. I went to my father’s studio and in the afternoon I coaxed him to take me to the Fort, to the banks of Padmatheertham, where there was an old man who sold coins and other interesting stuff. As we entered the Fort premises we could sense trouble, a crowd had gathered around Padmatheertham tank. Some of them seemed sad, some of them were arguing with others. The police were trying hard to remove the crowd from the banks of the tank. On one corner stood a group of old men, silently staring at the tank, I could see deep sorrow and disbelief in their eyes.

By then someone told my father that a man was drowned to death in the Padmatheertham!

The next day newspapers carried the shocking news on the front page. We, the residents of Thiruvananthapuram had not relieved from the shock. For us, Padmatheertham was the most sacred tank, an embodiment of spiritual purity, and now a man was murdered in the same sacred tank!

The temple and the tank in the 1900s - Photograph taken by Royal Photographer
J.B. D'cruz.

The old folk of Thiruvananthapuram who live in the precincts of the temple had an intimate association with the temple tank. For some, the tank and its banks were a favourite ‘hangout’, where they would gather with like age group to discuss all things under the sky. Years back, when the temple tank was free from the ugly railing surrounding it, the old folk used to spend hours sitting in the steps and the small mandapams around the tank. The serene waters of the tank, with the reflection of the pagoda and the smell of camphor and incense, imparted a divine ambience. Later, the authorities installed an iron railing around the tank and the pilgrims and visitors were charged to enter the mandapams and to take a dip in the tank. This physical barrier brought about a distance between the tank and the people. The newer generation lacked the ‘intimate’ relation the seniors shared with the tank. Time went by; the tank which was once known for its purity had begun to stink!

 Seniors 'hangout' in the banks of Padmatheertham (1970s)- Photograph from the private collection of K. Hari.

How old is Padmatheertham?

No one seems to have a correct answer; however, no one is doubtful about the antiquity associated with the tank, for it finds mention in ancient works regarding the temple and the temple town. The tank must be as old as the temple itself.

Ananthapuravarnanam (12th-13th century work) gives us a long list of sacred ponds once associated with the Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple and other sacred shrines within its precincts. Indratheertham (Attakulam), Brihutheertham (Manacaud Sree Dharma Sastha temple pond), Agnitheertham (Agneeshwara temple pond), Varahatheertham (Sree Varaham temple pond), Dakshina Ganga (Thekkanamkara canal), Agasthyakundam (Mithranandapuram temple pond), Kanvatheertham (Chettikulam), Varunatheertham (Karippukoikkal pond), Rudratheertham (Chirakkulam), Somatheertham (Manjalikulam) Ramatheertham (Vaniyankulam), Ananthatheertham (Padmatheertham), Ēshanatheertham (old Nandavanam pond), unfortunately many of these water bodies have vanished from the topography of Thiruvananthapuram (Prof. A.G. Menon,  History of the Sree Padmanabhaswami Temple). Padmatheertham was a small tank in its early days, with maybe a modest flight of steps leading to the water. Later it was during the reign of Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma(1729-1758) that the area of the tank was expanded and the ghats were added (Shasi Bhooshan M.G., Dr. Raja R.P., Charithramkuricha Sree Padmanabha Swamy Kshetram, D.C. Books (2011).

The tank had a companion, the Patrakulam, another tank which has disappeared from the topography of the Fort area. Marthanda Varma, who built check dams and tanks in Nanjinadu to irrigate the farmlands, had developed an excellent drainage system for Thiruvananthapuram also. The temple tank was constantly kept clean with the water from the Killi Ar, brought in by a small rivulet. The spillover from the Padmatheertham would flow to the nearby Patrakulam and then the water from the pond was in early days directed to the other ponds and to the gardens around the temple. Later the Thekkinakkara canal drained the water to the Parvathy Putten Canal, to the west of the Fort area. When Patrakulam vanished, the old drainage system also became partly defunct. 

The temple premises during early quarter of 20th century.

Picture from Life Collections, 1950s.

Padmatheertham, Patrakulam and the drainage system highlighted in dark blue - The map used here is a cropped portion of the 'Trivandrum Guide Map' (Survey of India 1968-69)

Padmatheertham and Patrakulam during the last quarter of 19th century - engraving from  ' Native Life in Travancore' by Rev. Samuel Matteer.

In the old days, in a society segregated by caste, Padmatheertham was always reserved for the use of the elite communities. Only royals, nobles and the Brahmins were allowed to use the tank. Every morning the residents from the nearby agraharams would gather there to perform the ambulation before entering the temple. This traditional system had a periodic way of keeping the tank clean. The tank was cleaned in every six years for the Lakshadeepam ceremony associated with the Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple. During murajapam the temple and its precincts would be crowded with Brahmins and certain rituals were also conducted in the tank. The tank has a small vault in its centre where the leftover sālagramams used to make the idol of Sree Padmanabha Swamy is stored. It was during the time of Sree Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma (1885-1924) that the Maharaja kept inside the vault the water from the sacred rivers from all over India, thus adding to its sanctity. The tank holds in its depth several interesting tidbits of history. When Travancoreans were shocked to hear about the murder in the temple tank many recalled a similar incident which took place in the days of Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma (1758-1798). Once Tippu Sultan sent a spy disguised as a sanyasi to the Travancore court, the man with his exceptional talents soon gained entry inside the Fort. He is said to have walked over the sacred tank with his yogic skill, however, the sanyasi was drowned in the same waters by Makayiram Thirunal, the younger brother of the King who found out that the sanyasi was a spy from Mysore. 

The famed vocalist Sreekanteswaram Ratnakaran Bagavathar shared with the author his feelings for Padmatheertham. Ratnakaran Bhagavathar who came to Thiruvananthapuram in the 1940s started his career as an ivory carver. He worked in a private firm in Palayam. Ratnakaran hailed from a family of craftsmen from Kadakkavoor. Some of his ancestors and relatives were well-known artists and musicians. Ratnakaran who had the affinity towards music devoted his free time listening music and attending concerts. One of his favourite hangouts in the city was the banks of Padmatheertham, there he would spend his evenings sitting in the granite steps, with his feet in the water and lend his ears to the music from the nearby small shops. The tank and its serene environment had helped in surviving the artist within.

The tank in its present state is a ghost of its glorious past; the old drainage system had once kept the water clean. Now the choked drain keeps the stagnant water in the tank itself, infested with dirt and algae. The temple authorities once tried to pump the water from the depths to aerate the murky water through surface agitation, thinking that it would help in improving the condition of the tank. But looking back one wonders how effective the whole process was.

Sharat Sunder Rajeev

28-01-2012.

For further reading:

http://www.hindu.com/2007/06/09/stories/2007060921560300.htm

http://www.hindu.com/2006/08/01/stories/2006080121810300.htm

TALES FROM THE CAPITAL CITY - XXII

THE ‘GUSTHI’ TRADITION OF MANACAUD 

Sitting in front of the thekkath in my grandmother’s ancestral home in Manacaud is a stone idol of Lord Hanuman; a relief carving in white stone. Until recently my grandmother's younger brother Kumara Swamy had maintained the thekkath, which was originally setup by his grandfather’s younger brother, a famed occultist of his time, Valiya mandravathi Govindan Achari (1850s-1944). The thekkath houses a small idol of Lord Ganesh, a small ‘Vel’ representing Lord Subramanyan and a cane that belonged to the mandravathi himself. The Hanuman idol was carved by the local stone masons, who lived in Manacaud and Kuriyathy regions. These craftsmen were associated with the Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple and the Valiya Kottaram. The ‘chellam vaka’ associated with the temple and the palace was in old days headed by the Kallampally karnavar. This section employed skilled craftsmen from all fields. 

A pyalwan (?) - from the private collection of
K. Ramakrishnan Achari.

During last century the fame of Manacaud spread all over India with the name of a single man - ‘Pyalwan Narayana Pillai’. Better known as ‘Kerala Gamma’, Narayana Pillai was one of the best traditional wrestlers Travancore has ever seen. Travancore has a long tradition of maintaining wrestlers, locally known as mallanmar. In the old days, many of them served as personal attendants and bodyguards to the Kings. Swathi Thirunal’s reign was the golden age of artists, musicians, and wrestlers. Many eminent wrestlers from far off lands came and performed before the King. ‘A number of native boxers from Travancore and other parts of Malabar skilled in the art of fencing, single combat, sword, stick, and other exercises, were entertained for the amusement of the court. To witness the mode of champion-fighting in other countries, the Maha Rajah got from the court of Mysore a few sets of trained athletes called Mullaga Chettis, who fight in single combat, till the combatants bodies are bathed in blood….A set of pyalwans (Mussulman champions) from Hyderabad who performs wonderful feats and exhibits extraordinary powers of muscle, were entertained at the court for some time. The performances exhibited by these men would be considered exaggerated, even if correctly related. One of them, a young man of about thirty years of age, with a strong-built body, used to lie on his back and allow a thick granite stone slab to be placed on his breast, and have the same split into pieces by pounding it with a thick iron pestle. He used to throw large iron cannon balls into the air and receive them on his head, back and breast’ (Shangunni Menon). C.V. Raman Pillai in his epic work 'Rama Raja Bahadur' gives a vivid description of a wrestling match between Azhakan Pillai and Kandiravarayar. V. Narasimhan Thampi, another historian of the royal family writes about the turbulent days of Dharmaraja’s reign when spies, disguised as wrestlers and magicians had gained entry inside the Fort. In old days Gatta gusthi, a form of wrestling was common in Thiruvananthapuram. Manacaud Narayana Pillai was one among the last famed wrestlers of Thiruvananthapuram. However, the wrestling community once patronized by the royals has now become almost extinct.

The Ganesh idol, Vel and the cane inside the thekkath and the Hanuman idol.

Once the name and fame of the Narayana Pillai spread all the way from Aarulvaimozhi to Kannur. He defeated several famous wrestlers such as Chotta Thimmayya, Gourimutthu, Ashique Hussain, Bhima Rao and Periya Pillai. During the 1940s many famous wrestlers camped in Narayana Pillai’s house in Manacaud. Children from the surroundings would crowd around the house to get a glimpse of the wrestlers. A senior resident of Manacaud says; “As children, we would assemble near the house of Narayanan Pillai to see the wrestlers who have gathered there. In the evenings they would all march to the nearby Shasta temple, with a group of children following them”. Matches would be conducted in the large grounds of Palayam. The Goda (arena) would be prepared and soft red soil from Thiruvallam was spread all over. The soft soil prevented injuries. The majority of the Pyalwanmar were worshippers of Lord Hanuman; some of them carried with them the idol of their favourite deity where ever they went. 

Kerala Gama Manacaud Narayana Pillai - in his younger years and during his last years - Picture courtesy - Kala Kaumudi Magazine, Issue 429, from an article written by Kallikadu Ramachandran.

Narayanan Pillai was a friend of artist K. Ramakrishnan Achari (my paternal grandmother’s father) and often visited the house. In front of Putten Veedu (another related house) in Manacaud was a large open space where the youngsters of the region assembled under the famous pyalwan Narayana Pillai to learn wrestling. Sundaram Achari and Lekshmanan Achari of Putten Veedu were his friends and disciples. Soon the ground was transformed into a goda where Narayana Pillai could formally train his students. The stone laying ceremony for the Goda was done by Elayaraja Uthradom Thirunal Marthanda Varma (the present King). Influenced by the wrestling tradition of Manacaud, my grandmother’s eldest brother Krishna Swamy of Pillavilakathu Veedu, his brothers and friends started a gymnasium in the 1940s. It was situated behind the studio building, situated opposite to the house. During those days a ‘pyalwan’ came there to train the youngsters. On special occasions, the famed pyalwan of Travancore, Narayana Pillai himself came to the goda and gave instructions. The idol of Lord Hanuman carved out of white stone was worshipped there. Once as a small boy Kumara Swamy kicked the idol, only to find that his foot had swollen up and he could not walk for days!

The Hanuman idol - Sketch by the author (2007).

Note:

Thekkath - a place of worship.
Karnavar- male head of a joint family.

References:

Narasimhan Thampi. V, Travancore Royal Family and Valiakottaram, 1976.

Shangunni Menon P, A history of Travancore from the Earliest Times, Volume I, Higginbotham, 1878.

TALES FROM THE CAPITAL CITY - XXI

KALLANA - THE GUARDIAN OF THE TEMPLE

Not everyone who visits East Fort would notice the granite elephant resting in the shade of a huge banyan tree on the banks of the Padmatheertham. The vendors who line the sides of the narrow street are the only friends of the elephant. Among the cluster of the hawkers who rest in the shade of the banyan tree, one finds it difficult to spot the elephant, though it hasn’t moved a bit in the last few centuries. A street hawker leans to the belly of the elephant for an afternoon nap, another man sits on top of it, and the elephant sits silently as ever; a silent witness to the many historic events of Travancore.

The 'kallana', in the shade of the banyan tree - Photograph taken by the author.

The figure of an elephant, carved in a single piece of granite and known to the locals as ‘kallana’ (meaning ‘stone elephant’ in Malayalam) has a mystery surrounding it. Like the great Sphinx who guards the Pyramids, this small elephant sits under the cover of the old tree, with his gaze fixed to the towering gopuram of Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple. Some are of the opinion that the elephant was installed there during the reign of Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma, the famed Dharma Raja (1724-1798) during whose reign the fame of the State spread far and wide. It was Dharma Raja who completed the renovation works of the temple which was initiated by his predecessor Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma (1729-1758). The Gopuram (temple tower), the Sheevelipura (circumambulatory path) and the famed Ottakkal and Kulashekara mandapas bear testimony to the craftsmen who have participated in the renovation works of the temple. According to popular belief, the elephant was also carved during the same time. However, the skill of the craftsmen exhibited in the intricate works of the temple fail to make its mark on the elephant. Was the work done by an unskilled apprentice, or is it the ravages of time that had rubbed away the details? No one seems to have an answer.

Sri. C.V. Raman Pillai, the author of historical novels like Marthanda Varma (1891), Dharma Raja (1913) and Rama Raja Bahadur (1918) was a person who knew every nook and corner of the capital city. The kallana finds a place in his novel Rama Raja Bahadur, where one of the characters in the novel named Azhakan Pillai hides behind the elephant. The mention of kallana in this famous novel might be the reason why most of the Travancoreans relate it with Dharma Raja, the main character.

Like any other historic object/structure inside the fort, kallana too have some intriguing stories associated with it. Uma Maheshwari, the author of the biography of the present Maharaja Uthradom Thirunal Marthanda Varma, an expert on the history of the fort and the royal family is of the opinion that the kallana has a much longer history than we often attach to it. According to Uma, the elephant was made perhaps during the period when the foundation stone for the gopuram was laid, during the reign of Aditya Varma (741 ME-1566 AD.). But what was the association of the elephant with the construction works of the temple? Well, according to Uma there is a long-standing tradition to offer prayers to Ganapathy (the elephant-headed God) -before executing a major work, thus an elephant was installed before commencing the work for laying the foundation for the gopuram. If this version of the story is true, then the kallana is more than four centuries old.

However, there is one thing about the elephant that always perplexed me; a keen observer will surely notice that one half of the sculpture is more embellished than the other. What was the reason for it? Was it due to the wear and tear the sculpture faced in all these years? It might be possible, if one takes into account its age and condition, unlike an exhibit inside a museum, the elephant has been exposed to the elements of nature. But why one side of the elephant suffered much more than the other? Did the craftsmen who were engaged in the work leave the work in halfway?

Uma is of the opinion that the turbulent political scenario that followed the stone laying would have affected the fate of the kallana too. Records say that the construction work of the gopuram was stalled due to the conflict between the King and the madampimar, so the kallana was also rendered unfinished. Later Veera Ravi Varma Kulashekara (1592-1609 A.D.) gave orders to reconstruct the nalambalam and balikalpura using stone, however, the work that commenced in 781 M.E. (1606 A.D.)[1] ended abruptly with his death in 1609 A.D. The later rulers also carried on the construction works. Finally, the temple was reconstructed to its present form during the reigns of Marthanda Varma and his successor Dharma Raja.

Two years back while doing a project on Thiruvananthapuram I came across many local people who narrated to me a wonderful story about the kallana, linking it with the ‘evergreen’ villains of the kingdom, the Ettuveettil Pillamar. According to the elders, long back in history when the madampimar wielded more power than the royals, one of the prominent members of the madampi clan named Ramanamadham Pillai had his house constructed on the banks of Padmatheertham. In those days the sacred pond was much smaller in its spread. The powerful madampi also constructed a small shrine on the banks of the pond, dedicated to Lord Shiva, his family deity. According to the story, during the clash between the Ettuveettil Pillamar and the King, the madampimar were finally vanquished and all their property was confiscated to the royal treasury. The King, in order to fulfill his vengeance, ordered his soldiers to demolish the houses of the Pillamar and excavated ponds in their place. In the case of Ramanamadhom Pillai’s property, the house situated on the banks of the pond was demolished and instead of making a new pond, the existing Padmatheertham was expanded, however, the small temple was left untouched. The final twist to the story came when a senior member mentioned that the kallana was actually a part of the sopanam of the house. According to him the kallana had a similar counterpart and both of them adorned the two sides of the main steps leading to the palatial mansion. And to my amazement he went on saying; “Have you closely observed the elephant?” he asked. “Only one of its side is carved, the other side is left unfinished as that part would not be visible when the steps where there”. So, where is the other elephant? The old man is of the opinion that it might have been destroyed by Marthanda Varma’s soldiers.

Padmatheertham pond and the temples and mandapams around it - the small Shiva temple can be seen in the left.

The above mentioned story may answer some of my doubts, but is it a true story? Dr. S. Hemachandran Nair, Superintending Archaeologist of the State Archaeology Department rules out the story as a mere local legend associated with Marthanda Varma and the Pillamar. “In Thiruvananthapuram, everyone has a story connected to Marthanda Varma and the Pillamar”, says Hemachandran; “These stories seem to be true when we hear it for the first time, however, when we look for details there are discrepancies and lack of records to prove them”. According to Hemachandran, there are no records to prove the above mentioned story and once again the kallana pulls over the veil of mystery.

Before coming to conclusions one should go through the ‘mathilakam records’ chronicling the history and day to day activities of the temple, there we may find the true story of the kallana, until then history/stories can be made and undone in the mind of the people. Even the street vendor who now curls beside the kallana will have his own version of ‘history’!

---

[1] Important Mathilakam Records, Published by Ulloor S. Parameshwara Iyer, 1941, Document no. 211, Curuna 1719, Ola 34.

For more information:

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-kerala/article2321135.ece

http://www.thehinduimages.com/hindu/photoDetail.do?photoId=7813281

Sharat Sunder Rajeev

December 2011.