Every year millions of visitors throng religious places owing to the rich heritage and cultural significance these temples carry. They offer many precious assets to the temple as a token of their respect and faith.  Tirupati temple received Rs. 900 crore in the form of donations and Hundi collections till Dec 2019-20. “How rich are our temples?” Which are the Rich Temples of India?

Richest Temples of India

1. Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple, Kerala
2. Tirumala Tirupati Venkateswara Temple, Andhra pradesh
3. Shirdi Saibaba Temple, Mumbai
4. Vaishno Devi Temple, Jammu
5. Siddhivinayak Temple, Mumbai
6. Meenakshi Amman Temple, Madurai
7. Golden Temple, Amritsar
8. Jagannath Temple, Puri
9. Kashi Vishwanath Temple, Varanasi
10. Somnath Temple, Gujarat

The video belows shows the various rich temples in India.

The richest temple Lord Venkateswara in the country has received Rs. 900 crore in the form of donations and Hundi collections till Dec 2019-20. TTD Srivari Hundi at Tirumala received cash offerings to the tune of Rs. 777 crore and various trusts operated by the TTD received Rs. 213 crore in the form of donations during the last 7 months.  In November 2019 alone, about 21.16 lakh devotees worshipped at the Tirumala temple and the temple Hundi received Rs. 93.77 crore donations from the devotees while the Hundi collections recorded at the Tirumala temple during the November – 2018 was Rs. 86.77 crore. During the last 7 months, TTD also received 803 kgs of gold and 3852 kgs of silver articles from devotees as offerings extended to the Tirumala Hundi

In 2016, about 2.6 crore devotees went to Balaji temple and the hundi saw donations of Rs 1,018 crore almost Rs 115 crore more than the last calendar year. This is an all-time record in the history of the world famous temple. After demonetisation, the temple recorded huge collections both in old and new notes.

•  Notably, the donations in form of cash have increased from Rs 853.49 crore in 2015 to Rs 959.05 crore in 2016.
• Coins of different denominations worth Rs 42.41 crore were received in 2016, as against Rs 44.17 crore the previous year.
• A sum of Rs 50.63 crore was received in the form of cheques, demand drafts and foreign currencies this year, which is about six crore rupees more than last calendar year.
• Around 67.12 lakh devotees purchased the online Rs 300 special entry darshan tickets in 2016 and this added another Rs 201 crore to the temple’s kitty. 10 crore pieces of the famous ‘laddu prasad’ were prepared at the shrine.

Rich Temples of India: Padmanabhaswamy Temple, Kerala

Padmanabhaswamy temple, Kerala is one of the 108 Divya Desams of Lord Vishnu at Thiruvananthapuram, Kerela.  Thiruvananthapuram is named after Vishnu, the word literally means the land of Sri Anantha Padmanabhaswamy. The principal deity Vishnu is enshrined in the “Anantha Sayanam” posture, the eternal yogic sleep on the serpent Adisheshan. 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. The temple and its assets belong to Lord Padmanabhaswamy, and were for a long time controlled by a trust, headed by the Travancore Royal family. However, for the present, the Supreme Court of India has divested the Travancore Royal Family from leading the management of the temple.

Temple shot to fame on 7th July 2011, after the assets worth more than Rs. 1,00,000 crore(around US$22.3 billion) were found from 5 secret cellars of the temple, without even calculating the antique value of the objects, covered in YouTube video Pictures of Padmanabhaswamy Temple Treasure. The treasure that was found: Antique gold ornaments, Sack full of Diamonds, Golden idol of Mahavishnu worth Rs. 500 Crore, Golden Crowns, Golden Bow, 17 kg of gold coins(dating back to the East India Company period), Gold in shape of rice trinkets(Weighing one tone! ), 18 feet long golden necklace weighing 2.5 kg, Thousands of pieces of antique jewellery studded with diamonds and emeralds, Golden Vessels. Even with only five of the eight vaults being opened (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 precious metals and precious stones in the recorded history of the world

When was the temple built? There are many legends which are handed down through the centuries. One such legend which finds a place in the old palm leaf records of the Temple, as also in the famous grantha entitled  Ananthasayana Mahatmya, mentions that it was built by a Tulu Brahmin hermit named Divakara Muni. On the 950th year of Kali Yuga a reinstallation of the idol was done. In the 960th Kali year King Kotha Marthandan built the Abhisravana Mandapam. Srimad Bhagavatha says that Balarama visited this Temple, bathed in Padmatheertham and made several offerings. Some well known scholars, writers and historians, like the late Dr. L.A.Ravi Varma of Travancore, have expressed the view that this Temple was established on the first day of Kali Yuga (which is over 5000 years ago).   More at http://www.sreepadmanabhaswamytemple.org/History.htm

Rich Temples of India: Tirumala Tirupati Venkateswara Temple, Andra Pradesh

Also known as Tirupati Balaji temple, Website: http://www.tirumala.org/,  is the most sacred and second richest temple of India. It is situated in Trimula in Andra Pradesh and is the major pilgrimage destination of South India  The Temple is dedicated to Lord Venkateswara, an incarnation of Vishnu, who is believed to be appeared here to save mankind from trials and troubles of Kali Yuga. Hence the place has also got the name Kaliyuga Vaikuntham and Lord here is referred to as Kaliyuga Prathyaksha Daivam.  Venkateswara is known by many other names: Balaji, Govinda, and Srinivasa Lord Balaji is worshipped in this temple.. Tirumala  Hills comprises seven peaks, representing the seven heads of Adisesha. Hence the temple is also referred to as “Temple of Seven Hills”.

Donations are repayment of loan to Kuber taken by Vishnu for his marriage : Lord Vishnu bore human form as Srinivasa, left Vaikuntam, in search of Lakshmi, reached Tirumala Hills and started meditating. Lakshmi was angry with Vishnu because she felt sage Bhrigu insulted Vishnu by kicking him but Vishnu had apologised. It is believed that Srinivasa had to make arrangements for his wedding to Padmavati. Lord Kubera credited money to the god Venkateswara for his marriage with Padmavati. Srinivasa sought a loan of one crore and 11.4 million (11,400,000) coins of gold from Kubera and had Viswakarma, the divine architect, create heavenly surroundings in the Seshadri hills. Together, Srinivasa and Padmavathy lived for all eternity while Goddess Lakshmi, understanding the commitments of Lord Vishnu, chose to live in his heart forever. In remembrance of this, devotees go to Tirupati to donate money in Venkateswara’s hundi (donation pot) so that he can pay it back to Kubera.

Why people donate their hair at Tirupati : When Lord Balaji was hit by a shepherd on his head, a small portion of his scalp becomes bald. There is no hair growth over there and Gandharva princess Neela Devi noticed it. She feels “such an attractive face should not have a flaw”. Immediately she cuts a portion of her hair and with her magical power she implants it on his scalp. Then Lord Balaji notices her sacrifice as hair is the beautiful aspect of Female, he promises her that all his devotees who come to his abode should render their hair to him and she would be the recipient of all that hair received. Hence it is believed that hair offered by the devotees is collected by Neela devi.

Some interesting Facts about the temple:

• Tirupati’s Venkateswara deity is clad with about 1000 kgs of gold!
• Around 50,000 pilgrims visit the temple every day
• Every day around 150,000 laddus are made at the temple to serve the devotees. The revenue from the sale of laddu annually is more than 11 million rupees.
• It is said that people drop bags of gold and at times even diamonds at the feet of Sri Venkateshwara.
• The temple gets up to Rs 650 crore in donations every year.

Thondaiman, ruler of the ancient Thondaimandalam (present day Kanchipuram) (capital: Kanchipuram, just south of modern day Chennai), is believed to have first built the temple after visualizing Lord Vishnu in his dream. He built the Gopuram and the Prakhara, and arranged for regular prayers to be conducted in the temple. Later on the Chola dynasty vastly improved the temple and gave rich endowments.  Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams(TTD) is operated by a Board of Trustees that has increased in size from five (1951) to eighteen (2015). The daily operation and management of TTD is the responsibility of an executive officer who is appointed by the Government of Andhra Pradesh. Highlights of The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) annual budget of Rs.2530.10 crores for the year 2015-16, TTD APPROVES ANNUAL BUDGET FOR THE YEAR 2015-16,

• TTD expected to receive Rs. 905 crores from capital funds (as kanuka) from devotees, which would be the major earner, while Rs.300 Special Entry Darshan was expected to fetch a minimum of Rs. 215 crores for the financial year.
•  TTD is expecting to garner Rs.98.5cr on accommodation and Rs.50crores through Arjitha Seva tickets.
• The payment of wages and salaries was expected to be the major outgo, to the tune of Rs. 482 crores.
• Estimated Rs. 200cr towards the sale of human hair,
• Rs.150cr has been allotted on Engineering works, Rs.118.6cr for HDPP, Rs.94.45cr on educational institutions, Rs.62.81cr on TTD-run hospitals.
• Towards the development of Health and Sanitation the estimated budget is Rs. 109.71cr,
• Vigilance and Security department is Rs.55.88cr.

Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) officials indicated in Aug 2015 that 4.5 tonnes of gold have been deposited in banks and that the temple administration is in the process of depositing one more ton of the yellow metal in the State Bank of India soon. Calculated at today’s rates, the total cost of the 5,500 kg ‘disclosed’ gold with the TTD stands at Rs 1,320 crore. Reference: Tirumala has 4.5 tonnes of gold in banks, gets 80kg as yearly interest

Rich Temples of India: Saibaba Temple, Shirdi

Sai temple of Shirdi, http://shrisaibabasansthan.org.in/, is located at Shirdi, a town in the west Indian state of Maharashtra. approximately 296 Kilometers from Mumbai. It was established in 1922 to carry out the services of Shri Sai Baba. Shri Saibaba of Shirdi lived between 1838 and 1918, whose real name, birthplace and date of birth are not known. An Indian spiritual guru and a fakir, Shri Saibaba in Shirdi was regarded with great reverence by both Hindu and Muslim followers. Lord Sai lived in a mosque and after death his body was cremated in a temple. It is the third wealthiest temple in India where millions of devotees of different religions and castes visit everyday.

Shirdi Saibaba Temple is managed by Shirdi Sai Sansthan Trust(SSST). The SSST has received Rs 22,84,00,000 through donations, either in ‘hoondis’ (cash boxes) or online in the past three (financial) years from 2012-13 to 2014-15,   The Trust has Rs 1,413 crore as fixed deposit in different nationalised banks, and as per today’s market rates, also possesses 376 kg gold worth Rs 100 crore, silver valued at Rs 14 crore and diamonds worth Rs 7 crore.The SSST is currently running two hospitals and a number of schools, carrying out ‘Annadaan’ (food donation) besides providing residential arrangement at reasonable rates for devotees, giving free ‘ladoos’ and free ‘prasad’, and providing ‘bhojan’ (food) at cheap rates. Ref: Times of India Shirdi Saibaba temple witnesses huge spurt in donations

Rich Temples of India: Siddhivinayak Temple of Mumbai

The Shree Siddhivinayak Ganapati Mandir,: http://www.siddhivinayak.org/, is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shri Ganesh. It is located in Prabhadevi, Mumbai, Maharashtra. It was originally built by Laxman Vithu and Deubai Patil on November 19, 1801. also stands firmly in the list of richest temples in India. Well, known celebrities and VIPs visiting this temple is a common sight here. The dome over Ganesha is coated in 3.7 kilos of gold that was donated by a Kolkata-based businessman. On an average, the monumental Siddhivinayak Temple sees anywhere between 25,000 to 2 lakh devotees flocking in every day to just get a glimpse of their beloved Ganesha.  The temple owns hundreds of kilos gold ornaments and fixed deposits.

Siddhivinayak temple has earned a special blessing, ISO 9001:2008 certificate labelled FS 636570.  for devotee management as well as its social and educational welfare schemes. One of the shrine’s largest donations was made in May 2015 when it donated Rs 34 crore towards the state’s drought relief plan. The temple trust also gave Rs 1.5 crore to Wadia Hospital, which set up 20 neonatal ICUs. It allocates around Rs 1 crore each year to outstation patients suffering from heart, liver and kidney ailments as well as accident victims or those who require knee replacement. A sum of Rs 25,000 per patient is forwarded to treating hospitals.

Temple is thronged by 25 thousand to 2 lakh people every day. Yes, you guessed it right! The annual income of the Siddhivinayak Temple ranges from Rs 48 crore to Rs 125 crore. The dome over the main shrine of Ganesha is coated with 3.7kg gold. The black stone idol of Lord Ganesha found in this temple is around 200 years old. The temple was converted to a six storeyed building in 1990.

In 2004, the Siddhivinayak Ganpati Temple Trust, which operates the temple, was accused of mismanaging donations. Consequently, the Bombay High Court appointed a committee headed by retired judge V P Tipnis to scrutinize the trust’s donations and probe the allegations. The income of this temple including donations goes upto Rs 48 crore every year. The dome over Ganesha is coated in 3.7 kilos of gold that was donated by a Kolkata-based businessman.

Rich Temples of India: Vaishno Devi, Kashmir

Vaishno Devi Mandir is a very popular Hindu temple dedicated to the Hindu Goddess Durga , located at the Trikuta Mountains in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Holy Cave is situated at an altitude of 5200 ft. The Yatris have to undertake a trek of nearly 14.5 km from the base camp at Katra. Darshans are open round the clock throughout the year. At the culmination of their pilgrimage, the yatris see three natural rock formation known as Pindies inside the holy cave.

This temple is one of the oldest in the country. It gets more than 4.5 million visitors every year and an income of Rs 500 crore annually. Since the year 1986, when the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (commonly called Shrine Board) was formed, the management of the Shrine and regulation of the Yatra(the journey) has been vested in the Board. The Board has undertaken a number of developmental activities aimed at making the Yatra a comfortable and satisfying experience for the Yatris.The Governor of the state of Jammu and Kashmir by virtue of his office is the ex-officio Chairman of the Board. He nominates nine members in the Board at the policy making level. The Board continues to reinvest the offerings and donations received in carrying out improvements in various kinds of Yatri facilities.

There are other temples like  Golden Temple (Amritsar), Meenakshi Temple(Madurai),Jagannath Temple(Puri),Kashi Vishwanath Temple(Varanasi),Somnath Temple(Gujarat),Guruvayurappan Temple(Kerala) also where millions of devotees visit.

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