Varma, all kings ruled the erstwhile Venad Kingdom (which was expanded by Marthanda Varma to form Thiruvithaamkoor) from Padmanabhapuram in Kanyakumari District. It was Dharma Raja, the nephew and successor of Marthanda Varma, who shifted the capital to Thiruvananthapuram. Padmanabhapuram Palace, the erstwhile royal abode of Travancore Kings, is still preserved in all its glory and is situated at Padmanabhapuram in Kalkulam Taluk of Kanyakumari District. Marthanda Varma was a staunch devotee of Lord Adikesava and used to worship at the temple before all the major war campaigns undertaken by him. The presiding Deities of Thiruvattar, Thiruvananthapuram and Thiruvalla had a three-cornered connection which reflects in the quantitative measurement of commodities utilised etc. The Perumals of Thiruvattar and Thiruvananthapuram remain closely bound to each other with this closeness being mirrored not only in festivals which coincide, special days and many rituals but also in the structural pattern including the Ottakkal Mandapam. In both cases the Moola Vigrahas are of Katu-Sarkara and are containing Salagramas. The strong affiliation of the Venad kings to both Thiruvattar and Thiruvananthapuram temples in their privileges and responsibilities provide ample evidence of enduring interconnections. Many ceremonies had to be initially performed at Sree AdiKesava Temple before being conducted at the Padmanabha Swamy Temple. Legend The Lord AdiKesavaSwamy means 'Foremost Friend'. Legend says that Lord AdiKesavaSwamy defeated the demon Kesi. The demon's wife prayed to the River Ganges and to River Thamirabarani and created a destruction. But it was in vain and she surrendered to the Lord. Thus, the formation of the rivers made in a circle came to be known as Thiruvattaru. On 10 June 1741, Anizham Tirunal Marthanda Varma, the then ruler of Travancore, before going for the Battle of Colachel offered 908 panams, yataghan, and silk on the feet of Lord Adikesava and prayed for victory. Festivals and prasadhams Vaikunta Ekadesi is celebrated with pomp and glory. Paal Payasam (Milk Kheer), Aval and Appam are delicious prasadams at this temple. The pujas are done in the same manner as that of the Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple, Thiruvananthapuram. References Aswathi Thirunal Gouri Lakshmi Bayi (1995), Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Kulapati Munshi Marg, Mumbai. K.V. Ramachandran Nair (2011), Thiruvattar Adikesava Perumal Kshethra Mahathmiyam, Published by Author, Thiruvattar. Citations External links https://web.archive.org/web/20080117091347/http://www.sriadikesava.org/ http://www.srivari.com/malayalatirupathigal/thiruvattaru.htm Hindu temples in Kanyakumari district