Uthradam Thirunal Marthanda Verma on the Padmanabhaswamy Temple Treasure
'The riches belong to nobody, certainly not to our family' The head of a former royal family renounced any personal claim to billions of dollars' worth of ancient treasure discovered in a temple in Thiruvanantharam, the kingdom his ancestors once ruled. Padma Rao Sundarji speaks toUthradam Thirunal Marthanda Verma, the former King of Tranvancore. PRS : What is your family's connection with the Padmanabhaswamy temple? Varma : We are the Cheras, one of the four erstwhile royal families of South India and have a long and dynastic family tree. By 1750 Travancore had become rich and big. So my ancestor, the then king, made a unique spiritual and historical contribution. He decided to surrender all his riches to the temple - Padmanabhaswamy is also our family deity. He said our family would look after that wealth, the temple and the kingdom forever. But he did want the ego that comes with possessing it. He was influenced by Emperor Ashoka's catharsis in the killing