Treasure hunt begins in Andhra temples

Treasure hunters are exploring the Nallamala deep forest area to try their luck, particularly in the vicinity of the historic Ahobilam belt where a closed well in Lakshmi Narasimha Swami temple is believed to have treasure larger than that of Padmanabhaswamy temple.

The stone and palm leaf scriptures reveal that underground den sealed with big stones just in front of main deity, contains a huge golden and diamonds treasure hidden by South Indian King Sri Krishnadevaraya of the 16th century.

For three decades several attempts were made to plunder this treasure, but whoever attempted had died immediately, say locals. “One archeology professor, who tried to dig the surface, died on the spot when some poisonous fumes erupted from the side hole of the earth 20 years ago,” said a priest on the condition of anonymity.

“Recently, an engineer who attempted to break open the treasure not only failed in his attempt but also lost his life,” narrates Penchalayya, a tea  stall owner at Ahobilam.
Some people say former chief minister of Andhra Pradesh Marri Chenna Reddy also got some secret survey done in and around the temple to find out the treasure, but for some mysterious reasons he withdrew from that task. Subsequently no attempts were made by anyone to find the treasure.

It is believed in Ahobilam that when the Ghajani Mohammad and other Arabs invaded on India to plunder the vast opulence of the then Indian Kingdoms, the Kings used to hide the treasures below the temples or in dens to protect them from being plundered by enemy countries.

The scriptures around the temple says the treasure cannot be taken out now as still one more generation has to pass as per the dates of the scripture. So it is better not to make attempts to discover the treasure below the temple to avoid pre-mature death, according to temple priests.

Similarly in Vundavalli rock caves in the Guntur district of the state, there is a 15-foot single stone of Sri Anantha Padmanabha Swami statue which resembles Sri Anantha Padmanabha Swami of Tiruvananthapuram.

It is said that there is a large treasure inside the caves and a secret tunnel towards the temple of Panakala Lakshmi Narasimha Swami which is located on a Passive Volcano on Mangaliri road.

Last week, in Gopanpalli village in Zaheerabad mandal of Medak district, unidentified people entered an old Siddeswaraswamy temple located in the village and dismantled two Nandi statues in the pursuit of searching for treasure. Those who entered the temple for the treasure also offered prayers, lit lamps, and broke coconuts before digging.

In yet another incident in the Malkapur village of Rangareddy district, unidentified people damaged the Shivalingam and Nandi statue hoping to find some treasure. The treasure hunters also dug up huge pits in the premises of local Hanuman temple located on Bacharam-Korremula road in Hayathnagar mandal in the same district of the state.