Treasure!

The treasure at the Padmanabha Swamy Temple in South India evoked a debate on Arnab's show on Times now yesterday. Should it be used for the good of the poor in the country they asked. Should it be used to pay off loans that the state carries they debated. If the money in Swiss should be brought back and used for the nation, shouldn't this too be used similarly they questioned. Wouldn't service to man be the greatest service to the LORD - was one of the questions we heard.

One of the participants on the debate said, it's assets, it's not wealth. I fully subscribe to this viewpoint. This is a treasure, treat it like a treasure; treasure it! I would rather keep it in a museum to showcase the grandeur that was part of India's history. You will earn much more from the value it brings as a result of tourist interest, than the mere sale of this treasure! I know it will need tons of security measures; but why can't we provide that security for something we value and treasure, when we have the courage to spend tons of money to host someone who took so many of our countrymen's lives on one fateful day in the business capital of our country?

Yes, I know you would say, well, why do you only want to treasure history, look at the present situation, there is poverty everywhere in the country. My only question is, even in the smallest household, do we ever sell away souveniers passed over from generations in the household to make instant money? That's treated like treasure, it's not sold until you reach a dire state where you absolutely need to use it; to survive! In fact, the value of these things is higher until they are held; the value is lost the moment you sell! Has our country reached that state of dire need to sell this historic asset?

Take the scenario when you sell it - do you really think the money will be used for a worthy cause in our country of today? Our politicians will swallow it and you wouldn't even know where it disappeared. It will join all the money in Swiss we are trying so hard to recover! And the idol will join a museum outside India like the Kohinoor, perhaps! If this was how it worked then, the Kohinoor would not be in the museum in UK today, it would have been sold off to someone long ago. Not only that, all temples will have to give up all their golden assets in favour of the bigger cause of service to mankind. Not only temples, even individuals should not hold any assets for emotional or historic reasons. Let's do all this, and then think about selling such invaluable historic treasure!

I am sure historians will have a lot of interest to uncover history here; let's do that.
Let's do anything; but sell this. It's a treasure, let's treasure it!!!