A dessert devotees can enjoy until the end of time

The origin of the famous Ambalapuzha Palpayasam is a curious one. The time consuming dish takes around seven and a half hours to make. The only ingredients for this tasty offering is water from manikinar, milk, sugar, and red rice. The ingredient that gives the palpayasam its unique flavour is a mystery. The story that is most popular around the origin of the palpayasam involves how lord krishna disguised himself as a young warrior to teach Chemabakassery PooradamThirunal, the ruler of Chembakassery  a lesson after he became obsessed with gambling and started distributing the wealth of the kingdom for his personal benefit.

Ambalapuzha Sree Krishna Swamy temple Image:Wikipedia

The process begins at 4am and concludes around noon when the whole of the payasam is offered to the deity. After which it is served to the devotees. The curious story behind the origin of the story goes like this, Ambalapuzha Krishnan appeared one day in the appearance of a warrior before the ruling Raja of Chembakassery, a small kingdom that included the present-day Purakkad and Kuttanad, a thriving seaport in ancient times.

Ambalappuzha Temple is thought to have been constructed under the reign of Chemabakassery PooradamThirunal. He was a devout to Lord Krishna and after the temple was built, the kingdom began to prosper, they were now the leading producer of grain. Other kingdoms relied on Chembakassery Thirunal for grain. Even though his love and devotion for Krishna was present he started getting involved in gambling. He enjoyed the game a bit too much, he played the game with his ministers, and loved to beat them. Even if he was beaten he enjoyed knowing how they placed their moves and invited them to play with him till he won. Despite winning or losing he gifted the players with gold or grains as now his treasury was filled. People lined up to now play with him for the gift that they would receive at the end of the game.

One afternoon after all his duties were sorted he wanted someone to play chathurangam (an oriental variation of chess)  with him, he was bored with all the people in the castle, he knew their every move by now. A young warrior passing through the kingdom expressed his desire to play chathurangam with the Raja. The chess-crazed Raja, who sincerely believed that no one on the planet could beat him at the game, accepted the challenge right away. The Rani was very smart and noticed that in spite of the warrior that he claimed to be his body was not shaped like one, his skin was smooth, his eyes calm like a sage instead of the typically red eyed warriors she was accustomed. There was a certain calmness about him too. She thought that a neighbouring king had sent him as a trap to harm the Raja and kept a close eye on the game. Well she was unaware that it was Lord Krishna who had disguised himself to help the raja overcome his arrogance.

As the game's rules imply, the Raja asked the young warrior to fix the award he wanted if he won, before the game started. The sage explained to the Raja that he was uninterested in earthly riches, but he had to follow the rules. He stated that his demand was relatively low, stating that he only needed a few paddy grains. It should be distributed in such a way that one paddy grain is distributed for the first square on the board, four grains for the second, sixteen grains for the third, two hundred and fifty-six grains for the fourth, and so on. The Raja dismissed the demand, despite the fact that it amounted to millions of tonnes.

The game started. As the game went, he recognised the game was becoming increasingly difficult, and the opponent was formidable. He defeated Raja once, the raja wanted to play again, he humbly obeyed the raja, he lost again. At the end of the third game, the Raja realised that this was no ordinary man in front of him.

More alarming to him was the fact that he couldn't keep his pledge even if he had the complete stock of his granaries. The young warrior, moved by the Raja's befuddlement, revealed his genuine self and revealed his plan. He advised the Raja that instead of giving the prize all at once, he should build a *palpayasam (rice pudding flavoured with cardamom, raisins, saffron, cashews, pistachios or almonds served as a dessert)*out of a portion of the paddy and offer it to him and his worshippers every day. And he should do so until the debt is totally paid off.

He wanted to show the Raja that all that he is using as his personal wealth does not belong to him and that he is a mere person that the Lord chose as a medium to serve the people.

Temple pond Image:Wikipedia