Palliadakku mukku, a small plot of land located outside the Fort, adjacent to the northwest bastion, has a story to narrate. For many centuries, this plot was used as a cremation ground of members of the royal family of erstwhile Travancore. However, no trace of the ancient graveyard can be seen now, for it is now a densely packed quarter, mostly occupied by people who are unaware of its past.
In the olden days, scattered all over the place were stone slabs, the memorial stones that marked the spot where eminent people were cremated. There were many ancient households in the area that looked after the remains of the deceased members. These houses were generally known amongst the locals as Asthi-stapicha Veedukal, the households where the ashes were deposited.
It is not known for sure when the cremation ground was established to the northwest of Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple. Thikkurishi Gangadharan, in Thekkanpattile Thampuran Kadhakal, mentions that Kerala Varma of Kottayam, who was murdered in 871 M.E. (c.1696 A.D.), was cremated at Palliadakku mukku. Sree Moolam Tirunal, who passed away in 1924, was the last king to be cremated at the ancient site.
Rev. Samuel Mateer, in his Naive Life In Travancore chronicles the ceremonies associated with the demise of the rulers of Travancore. According to Mateer, the funeral pageant resembles that of the arattu procession, “ It is headed by the Maharaja’s bodyguard on foot, bareheaded, leading their horses, followed by the band, with drums muffled and colours draped in black.”
The Brigade marched with their muskets reversed, British officers followed the procession in full uniform. The Elayaraja was followed by the palanquin carrying the body of the deceased ruler , “…surrounded by the domestics and favourite followers, and by hundreds of Sudra women, with their hair dishevelled…”
Meanwhile, the preparations for the funeral was made at Palliadakku mukku, underneath a huge shed decorated with “ flowers, plantain trees, young cocoanuts, palmyra nuts, and many other ornaments. After conducting the last rites, the sandal wood pile was set to fire by the closest relatives. The silence was shattered only at intervals when the “ mourning women utter a loud wail in unison.”
On the fifth day after the cremation, the prince collected a portion of the ash. After certain ceremonies by the Kakkattu Potti, the ash, enclosed in a pot, was sent to Benares. The rest of the remains was collected in an urn and buried in a neighbourhood site. A stone was placed, in order to mark the urn and the owners of the property became the guardians of the tomb. They received a daily allowance of two measures of rice and oil to maintain a lamp at the tomb.
In olden days, the locality had a dense population of jackfruit trees, which were planted to mark the cremation grounds of the junior members. The old Plamoottil Veedu located next to Palliadakku mukku is a tangible reminder of the age old custom. The family has preserved few stones in their property. “The old stone markers can still be found scattered in this area. Nowadays nobody is aware of its historic importance,” says Diwakaran Nair, the patriarch of Plamoottil Veedu. “These stones marked the spot where the bodies were cremated, however, now most of the stones are broken and used for building purposes,” adds Nair.
[The author is a conservation architect and history buff]
