Remnants of an ancient Hindu temple have been discovered in the Syro-Malabar Bishop’s Palace House Pala premises in Pala, Kottayam. The remnants were found during the excavation of land on February 5 for tapioca cultivation. The remnants consisted of a Shivling, an idol of Parvati Devi, a balikallu (a rock found in temples for offering bali), and a stone lamp. The place is very close to the Vellappad Bhagavathi temple.
Local natives state that their ancestors had spoken about a temple that stood in the area a couple of centuries ago. The ownership of the land has changed several times in the past, ultimately coming under the ownership of the Bishop’s Palace. The Eparchy of Palai has an area of 1166 Sq.Km. comprising the Meenachil Taluk and a few villages of the neighbouring Taluks in Kottayam, Ernakulam and Idukki Districts of Central Kerala.
As news spread, several Hindu devotees congregated ther e and started chanting hymns. Some of them cleaned the remnants with water. Some devotees say that a Devaprashnam (a ritual to determine the will of the deity) was conducted at the nearby temple about six months ago, and the astrologer had stated that a temple had existed in the vicinity a long time ago and would soon be discovered.
The Church authorities did not object when Hindus came to worship there. Some devotees reminisce that the place was formerly called ‘Thevar Purayidom,’ meaning “the land of the God,” and that there was a temple and a water well there. The land originally belonged to a Brahmin family, but as their financial situation deteriorated, some local people took control of the land on lease. Gradually, the Brahmin family lost ownership. At a later stage, the usurpers sold it to the Church.
Now, the Vellappad Bhagavathi Temple Committee has convened and deliberated on conducting a Devaprashnam to determine the deity’s will regarding the steps to be taken for the temple’s preservation. Fortunately, the Church authorities have agreed to permit the Devaprashnam at the site where the remnants were discovered. The temple committee thanked the Church for this cordial gesture. At the same time, the committee blamed a section of the media for attempting to rake up communal tensions in this context, as they could not tolerate the cordial relationship between the temple and Church authorities. The BJP has lauded the Church’s goodwill in light of the development.
Historically, as European colonial forces arrived first on the western coast of Bharat, Christian missionaries were an integral part of their expansionist system. The Goa Inquisition under the Portuguese, along with Dutch settlements and British forces, saw a significant penetration of the Church into these coastal regions. Many historians have documented this period as one of aggressive proselytization and destruction of Hindu traditions and temples.
According to Francis Xavier SJ: The Man and His Mission by Sita Ram Goel, the Goa Inquisition operated from 1560 to 1812. During this period hundreds of temples were destroyed in the western coast of Bharat. Even private Hindu temples within homes were banned, and those who defied this decree faced severe punishment.
As documented in ‘The History of Christianity in India, Vol. 1’, hundreds of Hindu temples were destroyed and missionary records confirm that many prominent Hindu temples were converted into churches.
