Temple elephant

Temple elephants are a type of captive elephants that are kept in temples in Asian countries such as India and Sri Lanka.

Elephants generally play an important role in the Hinduism and Buddhism cultures of South and Southeast Asia and are considered sacred. Temple elephants are usually wild animals, poached from wild herds at a young age and then sold into captivity to temples. Temple elephants usually take part in religious rituals or processions; believers also allow themselves to be blessed by them. However, sometimes a temple owns several or many elephants that are not (all) used for rituals. At large religious festivals (e.g. in Thrissur Pooram), privately owned elephants which are considered particularly sacred due to their special physical characteristics are also used. In the literature these are also referred to as temple or ceremonial elephants.

In the early 21st century, experts and conservationists strongly criticised the keeping of captive elephants in temples, as the living conditions are usually problematic and the elephants have little opportunity to fulfil their natural needs, while others claim that elephants form a vital part of the socio-economic framework of many temple ceremonies and festivals in India, particularly in the South.