The vegetarian crocodile of the Anantapur Lake temple

Swapna

The vegetarian crocodile of the Anantapur Lake temple

The temples in India have been displaying their splendor for ages. Sometimes, they impress people with their excellent and impressive artwork, sometimes because of their miraculous occurrences. One such temple is the Anantapur Lake Temple, which houses a vegetarian crocodile. It is the tale of God’s crocodile in God’s own country.

The beautiful Anantapur Lake temple amidst the lake, Image source- Kerala Tourism

At the northern tip of Kerala lies a village named Anantapur, which is famous for its lake temple. The orange-shaded temple amidst the emerald green water in the rectangular lake looks heavenly. Built during the 9th century in the Kasaragod district, this is the only lake temple that is believed to be the Moolasthanam (original place) of Ananthapadmanabha Swamy.

Even though the origin of the temple is obscure, its architecture continues to amaze people. The first structural wonder is the simple fact that the temple stands at the heart of a 302-foot lake. The ruins of a temple are all around the lake, which solidifies the fact that it was a large temple complex in the past.

Unlike any other temple, the sanctum sanctorum of this temple is composed of a unique mixture of 70 materials known as "kadu-sharkara-yogam." The idol of Lord Vishnu is depicted as seated over a five-hooded serpent. The temple welcomes all guests and attracts a lot of tourists. Beautiful wood sculptures that depict scenes from the Dasaavatara stories adorn the mandapam ceilings.

However, this is not the only factor that makes this location popular among travellers. This lake temple made headlines when it was revealed that it was home to a vegetarian crocodile, Babiya. Since then, people have been drawn toward the miraculous animal and the marvellous place.

On a Tuesday evening, the temple priest encountered a strange visitor. It was a large, yet calm crocodile. She has been inhabiting the temple pond for 70 years. But Babiya had never before set foot inside the temple. Being absolutely undisturbed and quiet, she spent some time in the temple and made her way back to the emerald water after chief priest Chandraprakash Nambisan asked her to go.

However, according to experts, Babiya is a mugger crocodile whose diet includes fish and small mammals. If given a choice, she would return to her original diet. They say that the crocs are primarily feeding on fish and consuming rice as supplements. But, as these crocodiles eat late at night and early in the morning, no one has seen her eating fish.

Anirban Chaudhuri, a crocodile expert, explains that crocodiles have excellent learning abilities. Actually, training a croc is easier than training a dog. It is very normal for it to develop a bond with the person who provides it with food. It only strikes when it perceives a threat.

Some believe in the scientific explanation while some simply regard this as a miracle. The exact phenomenon of Babiya’s behavior is unknown, but the temple is no less than a wonder. If you ever get the chance, do not afford to miss the meeting with God's own crocodile, Babiya.

The news spread like wildfire on news channels and social media, making Babiya famous. People from around the country came to know about the crocodile and started rushing to visit the place.

Babiya has consistently been a temple member, yet no one is sure how she ended up on the lake. Since she is a vegetarian, the priest feeds her with the prasad. Once the worship is over, the priest calls for Babiya and feeds her with rice balls. They share an amazing bond.

Locals say that not only does Babiya never attack any humans, but she never even attacks any fish. Even though the lake has enough fish for her food, she still depends on the prasad. The priest says he has been feeding Babiya for ten years.

She lives inside a cave in the water. According to temple priests, she spends most of her time inside the cave and comes out only at noon. They claim that she guards the cave into which the lord disappeared.