Thursday, December 31, 2015

Tiruvanchikulam Mahadeva temple

Tiruvanchikulam Mahadeva temple

Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander



    Tiruvanchikulam  temple   is located 2 km away  Kodungallore  town in Kerala. This is a very unique Siva temple in Kerala   on three counts.

1.It is the only   temple in Kerala   sung by the Saivaite saints of  Tamil Nadu  called Nayanmar   and is termed as   a” Padal PethaShiva sthalam”.  The great saivite saint  Sundaramurthy  Nayanar has sung about this temple.

2.This temple has the largest number of upadevathas   among all the temples of Kerala. The upadevathas are   Ganapathy  , Lord Subramanya  , Palliyara  Sivan,Dakshinamurthy  , SAndhyavelakkal Sivan,  Parameshwara ,   SAkthi Panchakshari Bhagwathi  , Goddess  Parvathi  ,Goddess Durga  , Goddess  Ganga , Goddess  Varahi , Goddess  Indrani  , God Veerabhadra  Pradosha  nrithya saptha mathas  , Ayyppa, Hanuman  , Nagaraja, Nagayakshi  ,Sundarmurthy Nayanar, Cheraman Perumal    and so on. It is interesting to note that  there  is no temple for Lord Vishnu   in side this great temple.The main lIngam is  having a  scar mark  on its left side.  It is supposed to be caused   by  the  arrow of Arjuna when Lord Shiva as a hunter   attacked him. Kani KOnna  (Indian Labrnum) is the temple tree. This is also one of the four Tali temples of Kodungallore.

3.It is perhaps the  only temple in Kerala with two Thidapllies, where Naivedyams are  prepared to the God  .One Thidapalli is used for Naivedyams   of the forenoon worship and the other for the afternoon worships.

      It  is believed that  this temple is located   in the  old capital city  of the Cheras    which was called  as Mahodhayapuram.  Cheran Senguttuvan was the most famous king   who ruled from this city  .He was also called   as Cheraman Perumal . It was his brother Ilango Adigal   who wrote the great Tamil epic Silappadikaram.  It was he who built the temple    for Kannagi  , the heroine of Silapadikaram in Kodungallore. This temple was completely destroyed both by the Dutch as well as Tipu Sultan  and the present temple  is believed to have been reconstructed  in 1801 by Paliath Achan  of Kochi  kingdom . It is believed that  both Sundara Murethy Nayanar  riding on an elephant  and Cheran Senguttuvan riding on a blue  horse   ascended    to the heaven from this temple  and on the way to heaven, Sundaramurthy Nayanar   sang about this temple   and sent the song back  to this temple,.It is believed that  the Siva Linga   which is consecrated  in this temple   was brought  from Chidambaram.

    It is believed that A Nambudiri Brahmin took away  the serpent Vasuki guarding Mahadeva  in his  Palm leaf Umbrella. Then onwards  , his house became famous as Pambumekkattil Mana, which is about 6 km from this temple    and is  visited by  all people who want to worship  the serpent. It is also believed that sage Parasurama did penance at this temple   to get rid of the sins associated   with following of Marumakka Thayam (the properties go from uncle to nephew)   in Kerala

      One of the major   worship of the temple  is Dampathi Pooja where the  Lord is worshipped along with   Goddess  Uma. Sankabishekam , that is  anointing the  Linga using a conch is also an important form of worship.Daily there are five  poojas in the temple  .” Five poojas and three shribalis are the routine. The day starts with Palliyunarthal (waking up of the lord) at 3.00 a.m., escorting the lord and his consort from Palliyara to Mukhamandapa, changing of Nirmalyam, Abhishekam (ablutions), and leading them to the Moolasthana, Usha pooja, Dhaara to the accompaniment of Rudram, Pantheeradi pooja, Navakam, Panchagavyam, Uchapooja and closing of temple for noon at 11.30 a.m. The sanctum opens again at 5.00 p.m., changing of Nirmalyam followed by Abhisheka, Deeparaadhana, Athazha pooja, escorting the lord and consort to Palliyara and conducting Palliyara pooja (Dampathi pooja).”
The pooja of Palliyara   Sivan is believed to help in  early marriage  .There is an eight day festival in the temple in the month of Kumbam   which is believed to commemorate   the ascending of heaven by king Seran Senguttuvan.

      The nearest railway station is Irinjalakuda and the nearest air port is Cochin airport(35 km) .   There are frequent buses from Trichur to this temple. The temple is open 4.30 Am to 10.30 Am   and 3.30 Pm to  8.30 PM.


Thursday, December 17, 2015

Pachalloor Bhadra Kali temple, Trivandrum

Pachalloor Bhadra Kali  temple, Trivandrum

Complied by
P.R.Ramachander



      This is a famous  BHadrakali temple situated 7 km from Trivandrum on the  Trivandrum-0Kovalam route. It is also referred to as Pachalloor CHudukadu (cremation ground)  Bhadrakali. It is supposed to be a very ancient temple and  is included in the list of   64  Shaiva holy places  in Vizhinjam.   But there is an interesting story about it. There  was a learned Acharya , who was the head of    the famous Valiya Vila family    which was located  in this area.  One day when he was returning home  he saw two old and tired ladies sitting   in the shade  of the banyan tree .When the gentleman enquired with them, they tld him that they are   from Kodungallore .Seeing that they are very worn out he offered them Tender coconut, Puffed rice and  banana   fruit. When he reached his home he saw one of those old ladies   sitting in the pooja room of his house. But next day morning she had disappeared but  in the place where she was sitting , there was a glowing lamp filled with ghee . The Goddess     from then on used to give  Darsan to   the head of that family once in a while from then on. And that house was later  made in to the temple of Pachalloor . There is also a story that  after Bhadra Kali killed  Dharikan , she   was greatly angry    and no one could pacify her .Lord Shiva who was  her creator pacified her    and made   her to stay  in Pachalloor so that  she could take care  of her devotees.  There  is also a belief that  the old lady from Kodungallore who became goddess  there  is Kannagi herself .During festivals the story of Kannagi is sung at this temple.

      In the temple the Goddess has a peaceful form and  faces north., There are temples of Ganesa, Sastha   nd Nagar(serpents) in the temple compound. There is also a temple for Kanda karnan   below the banyan   tree    in the temple.  He  is believed to be the brother of the Goddess  There is daily worship in the evening.Tuesdays, Fridays and  Sundays are more important.  Tender coconuts , Puffed rice and fruits are generally offered to the Goddess. Kadum Payasam (Very sweet jiggery kheer)  is another important offering. The temple   opens at 12 noon, closes at 2 P.M and again opens   at 5,30 Pm and is open upto 8.30 PM  There is Deeparadhana at 1.30 PM, &.30 PM   and 8 Pm. On every first day of the Malayalam month   the temple is open from 5.30 Am in the morning .

    One of the important  forms of worship of the Goddess  is Nercha thookkam.This consists  of  Devi Dasans  hanging on a bow   carrying a child   and  doing  a round of the temple. There are no restrictions of caste , religion or creed for this form of worship.The web site of the temple says,
“There are many unique features about the customs and pooja rites followed in this temple for years. The poojari (priest) is from the ‘Kolla’ community. The heavy rope for the ‘Nercha Thookka Villu’ comes from a family from the Ezhava community and the ‘Katcha’ comes from the ‘Mannar’ community. Carpenters from the ‘Aasari’community make the ‘Thookka villu’. The ‘Chanam’ is brought by a family from the ‘Araya’ community. The ‘Parikarmi’ are people from the ‘Thattaar’ community before whom ‘Panam’ (cash) is offered on the ‘Pallippalaka’ on the first day of festival. The drums (Chenda) accompanying Devi are played by people from ‘Paanar’ community and people mainly from the ‘Thandaar’ community are the Devidaasas.
When the human race distances itself by building boundaries in the name of caste and religion, people become members of one family in front of the ‘Boon-giver’Pachallooramma. They are devotees, children of Pachallooramma.”

    This ritual is   on the seventh day of the festival of the temple  which starts on the Makeeram day of the  month of Kumbha. The people who offer themselves to the ritual  starts penance  from the first day of festival itself. The devotee is hung by the bow  , while he would be carrying a child  and villu would take one round  of the temple .Several children would be waiting for their turn and would continue   till the next day morning as people believe that once their baby  undergoes nercha thookkal, their future is secure On the eight day the ladies around the temple offer Pongala to the Goddess  The festival   comes to an end with Kuruthi Tharppanam  on the ninth day when Thatta nevedhyam is offered to the Goddess. There  is a you tube video on the temple festival –
You can see  large number of photos of the temple  in  https://www.facebook.com/pachallooramma/photos


   The temple can be contacted in e mail id  pachallooramma@gmail.com . The administration of the temple is looked after   by Nair Service Society , Pachalloor, Trivandrum -27.




Thursday, December 3, 2015

Legend of Mazhoor Sri Balarama Temple (Dharmi Kulangara temple)

Legend of Mazhoor Sri Balarama Temple (Dharmi Kulangara  temple)
By
Ravi Kumar Ambadi



Balarama, the elder brother of Sri Krishna is regarded as an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Out of the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu, only the Sri Krishna incarnation is the complete one, while the rests are partial ones (Amsha Avatharas). Some others believe him to be the manifestation of Serpentine Anantha (Anatha Naga) who is quite identified with Lord Vishnu. However, there are a few temples dedicated to him and there are very few devotees worship him. One such temple is there in the Kannur District of Kerala which is located about eight kilometers from Thrichambaram Sri Krishna Temple. (Near  Thaliparamba  town) This  temple   is also called  Dharmi Kulangara  Balarama temple .Three more temples dedicated to Balarama are there  in  Kerala  located in  Aluva  ,Nenmini   and Aranmula.
     Balarama is the first peasant king in our world. He was a king who was very particular about the prosperous of his country and its subjects. At a time, when Vrindavan hit with severe draught, he requested River Kalindi to change her path and provide water to the farmers of Vrindavan, but she did not listen to his words. Furious Balarama, digged the sides of the river with his mighty plough and took the river water to the Vrindavan. Although he has been depicted as a savior of peasants in the epics, it is quite astonishing that there are very few devotees for him in a country which mainly depends on agriculture for revenue.
Anyway, now let us talk about Mazhoor Sri Balarama Temple. You might have read legend behind Thrichambaram Sri Krishna Temple, which has been published in this blog. We have mentioned there that Sage Narada presented two idols, one of Sri Krishna and other is of Balarama for that temple. That idol of Balarama has been brought here and consecrated in this temple.
Puthukkudi Perumthatta Illam was one of the prominent families in that area who had several rights on Thrichambaram Sri Krishna Temple. Once, a person was there in that family who was an ardent devotee of Lord Sri Krishna. He used to visit Thrichambaram Temple daily to worship god. As the time passed he became old and weak. He could not go such a long distance by walk. The fact that he had to stop his temple visit made him sad and depressed. He prayed to god for a solution.

One night in his dream, Lord Sri Krishna came and told him that the next day morning he could see the calf with the name Dharmi near his house. The place where she put cow dung should be dug and there he will get a Salagramam (a holy stone which is believed to have divine powers). Further, Sri Krishna insisted him to dig a pond at that place and keep the salagramam inside it. He asked the devotee to consecrate an idol of his elder brother near the pond and start worshipping.
The very next day, the man saw the calf Dharmi near his house and followed the instructions of Lord Krishna. He took out the Salagrama first and then dug a pond there and kept the holy rock inside it. Then he brought the idol of Balarama from Thrichambaram Temple, which has been presented by Sage Narada and consecrated near the pond after constructing a temple.
In the beginning we told you the story of Balarama, changing the route of Kalindi. That is told in Maha Bhagavatham. Almost similar incident happened at Mazhoor also. Once, Mazhoor experienced severe draught as experienced by the people at Vrindavan. There was no rain and the crops have been destroyed due to the lack of proper watering. Entire village suffered a lot due to this. Then head of the Puthukudi Perumthtta Illam family got touched with the miseries of his fellow villagers. He went to the Balarama Temple and shouted at the deity.
Can’t you see people suffering from drought? Why are you holding the plough in your hands? That is a weapon for farming and not a decorative piece. If you cannot help us, then what is the point in calling you the Peasant King?

Once the shouting is over, the man got repented. He thought that he did a wrong thing by calling the lord with such words. Then he consoled himself that the lord can understand his agony and will forgive him. Yes, the Lord Balarama not only forgave the devotee, but blessed him too with lot of showers. The very same night Mazhoor experienced heavy rain. 
     Balarama  of this temple visits  Thrichammaresan  temple near by   and the brothers have a walk together   and this is called  Pookothu Nada during  an annual festival  held in  month of march,..A  very unique dance called THidambu nrutham is held   at that time  (see write up of Trichamaresan temple) , The address and telephone number   of the temple  is 

Sri dharmikulangara balabhadra swami seva samithi
Mazoor,Taliparamba-Kannur
Ph: 94950 04205, 0460 2203057, 0460 2203236



Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Thiruvallam Parasurama temple

Thiruvallam Parasurama Temple

Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander



         The only temple dedicated to Lord Parsurama, the creator of Kerala and a major Avathar  of Lord Vishnu   is lovated in Thiruvallam in Trivandrum town. It is about 6 km  from the Trivandrum station. People believe that the temple is very ancient . Even the present day g historians believe   that is about 1000   year old.
      Lord Parasurama, the 6th incarnation of Maha Vishnu   is considered as a Chiranjeebvi (that is a person   who does not have death)  .The Temple   due to its ancient nature   is a protewcted monument.The temple is located  in the triveni Sangamam of three small rivers Karamana , killi and Parvathiputhanar..It is believed that  when Vilvamangalathu SAmiyar came in serach of the Padmanabha SWamy temple , He saw a huge idol of Padmanabha   , with his head in Thiruvallam and feet   in THirupappur.The saint was awe struck and prayed the God to reduce g his size and the God did to the present form which is consecrated in   Ananthapadmanabha swami temple  .Devotees believe that   their pilgrimage   to Trivandrum would be complete only if the visit the  Three temples of located in east fort (padmanabha swamy)  , Thiruvallanm and Thirupappur in the same day.
      Apart from the main temple of Parasurama , the temple also has sub temples for Lord Shiva as well as Lord Brahma. There is also the feet   print of the God , worshipped by  Parasurama , which was  consecrated and  worshipped by ASwathama  , the disciple  of Parasurama, The temple  of Parasurama with an axe    and separate trimurthy temples    as sub temples in the temple, which are believed to be consecrated by Lord Parasurama  himself. There is also a shrine for Veda Vyasa in side the temple , where students come and pray   for getting good results in the examinations.
      Devotees believe that Adhi Sankara performed the Bali for his mother at this temple after her death. Because of this Pithru Tharpanam  performed at this temple is considered   as special. On the new moon day(Amavasya)  of the month of Karkidaga(July –august)    very large number  of   devotees visit the temple to give Bali to their ancestors. Similarly the Amavasya day   of month of Makara(January-February )  is  also considered important for this purpose.Parasurama Jayanthi also   celebrated  in the temple  in a grand scale.

    The temple is open   from 5 AM to 11 Am   and 4 PM to  7 PM.  The telephone number of the temple is  0471-2380706.

Sunday, November 15, 2015

Thenari Madhyaranya shiva temple

Thenari  Madhyaranya  shiva   temple

Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander

       This is one of   very  important  Shiva temples of Kerala  ,It is believed that Once Lord Parsurama   did great penance addressing  Lord Shiva and when  he came before him, Lord Parasurama wanted the God to come to Kerala , the land he reclaimed from the sea. The very pleased Lord Shiva gave him 108 Shiva Lingas and requested him to consecrate them all over Kerala  .This temple is believed  to be one of those   temples.  Another legend about this temple is interesting. It seems once Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma   quarreled with each other  claiming superiority   over each other,. At that  time Lord Shiva appeared before them in a luminous form and wanted them to  find out his head and feet. Lord Vishnu took the form of a boar and went on digging but could not find the feet of Lord Shiva and came back and   accepted defeat. But Lord Brahma came back and told a lie that  he has been able to see  the head of Lord Shiva.  The infuriated Lord Shiva  cursed him  and  Lord Brahma  lost his power of creation.  When all the world  of devas went and appealed to Lord Shiva, He directed Lord Brahma to this temple  . He told Lord Brahma that  whosoever worships him in this temple  will be purified of sins committed by him in several births .Lord Brahma along with Indra, Goddess  Saraswathi and  the eight guardians  of directions went  to this temple , did penance and got back his power of creation.,The Eight guardians of directions were asked to consecrate   a shiva Linga in their  name in eight directions of this temple.These are called Indresan, Yamesan  , Nirutheesan , Varunesan ,Maruthesan  ,Thanathesan    and Eesanesan.All these  lingas are within one of half  km from this main temple of Mahyarayeswara. There is a small well inside the temple called  Agnikundam
       There is another story connecting this temple with Lord Sri Rama  ,It seems from  Rameswaram on their way back to Ayodhya  , Sri Rama, Lakshmana   and Siita  took rest at Theneri  .They took rested  in a rocky area   which is now called Shangu chakra para. On these  rocks even today   big and small pits on the rock  .People  believe that these are the places where   the huge monkeys took rest and the depressions are created by their buttocks.  While here it seems Goddess Sita    felt thirsty  .When Lakshmana sent an arrow on the land  only mud water came out and when Rama send an arrow pure dinkable water came out. Devotees believe   that Ganges river came like a spring there.  There is a stone in the Madhyaranya temple on which Gayathri manthra is inscribed ,Devotees believe that Rama sat on this stone to worship Lord Shiva. There is also a  well preserved Rama  Temple     in Theneri village where the spring created by Rama called Sri Ganga Theertha is preserved,
   It seems  during the conquest of  Tipu Sultan , this temple was destroyed and this linga was cut by his sword. Even today the cut mark could be seen on the main Linga. The local people  of Thenari   repaired and rebuilt the temple and the consecration   was done again in 2005.Apart from the  main Linga, the temple also has sub temples dedicated  to Lord Subrahmanya, Thirukumuzhi ammanand Saptha Mathas., Kasi Viswanatha, Ganesa, Lord Ayyappa with Porna and Pushkala and Lord Maha Vishnu.The door of the Saptha Mathas temple is opened only once in a year on the deepavali  day  and poojas performed. Out side the temple there is a SArpa Kavu(serpent temple) and a temple tank  called  Brahma Kundam . Arudra Darsanam and Maha Shivarathri are   celebrated in this temple besides special poojas on Pradosham day.
         The temple is  15 km from Palakkad town   and is  near Elapulli  on the  palakkad –Pollachi road.  The buses  from Palghat to Kozhinjampara  touches  this temple  . The temple is open  from 6 Am to 12 non   and 5 Pm to 7.30 Pm  . the temple phone number is  0491-2584321

      

Monday, August 10, 2015

Pavithreswaram Temple of Shakuni

Pavithreswaram Temple of Shakuni

Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander


  The only temple of Shakuni the uncle of Duryodhana  is situated  in Pavithreswaram  which is  near   the temple of Duryodhana at POuvazhi in Kerala ,In side this temple is a very  artistic  stone throne of Shakuni. The temple has a  story of its own. It seems  before the Mahabharatha  war , all the Kauravas came here  and  divided the weapons among themselves. Because they  shared the weapons  , this place was called Pakutheeswaram which over time  came to be called  Pavithreswaram.It seems,  and  after the battle Shakuni returned here  and did penance to Lord Shiva and attained Moksha. There are no idols of Shakuni   in  this temple nor are poojas   or worship  or thanthric  rituals  are offered  to Shakuni.Tender coconut , silk asnd toddy are offered by devotees to please the God Shakuni here. THere are other  upa devathas  at this temple   which  include Bhuvaneswari  devi , Kiratha Murthi   and Nagaraja There are  two  groups of functionaries of the templr  called  OOralis  and  Piniyalis   .They have  a  main role in the famous  Malakkuda Mahothsavam   conducted at  this temple   which starts  on the 28th day of  Makaram month 

Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Pattazhy Durga Bhagawathi temple (Kottarakkara)

Pattazhy  Durga Bhagawathi temple (Kottarakkara)

Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander

Pattazhy is a small  village in O Pathanapuram Taluq   near KOttarakkara  , The very famous Pattazhy   Devi temple is located  there,There are  few stories about that  temple . It seems there was an Asura called Daruka who was troubling all the  three worlds . All the devas  requested  Lord  Shiva   to  help them. Then fire came out pf his eyes and from  that fire  A very black and ferocious Kali arose. And fought with Daruka for twenty days  and killed him. She had become so ferocious that  several tricks were  tried to pacify her. Sage Narada drew a picyutre  of Kali using several colour powders and this pacified her. This procedure is called Kalamezhuthu  .Lord Shiva asked her  to go and live in any sacred temple  of her  choice. Kali came to this world and decided to stay in Pattazhi.,
   There is one more  story.  The still angry Kali ran towards Pattazhy  . The  nine planets were scared and followed her in the form of children. Seeing  those children Kali got pity and  when she decided to live in Pattazhy, she   decided to give a place   from there. But these   are only spiritually present there  and there are no idols for them in that temple.
  There is a story about how the  temple was built there, .Once  the  head of the Kadiyam thuruthiyil   Keezhe Veedu  a noble family in those parts  , One day when he was walking  in their fields, he saw a very pretty lady apparition wearing   white cloths..When he went near the lady , that  form disappeared. That noble man did not get scared but devotion came to his mind. Suddenly   a well appeared before him..A stone slanb had closed the half part of the well, and   over that   the well was closed with a red silk cloth(Pattu in Malayalam) .When he saw in side the well  through the silk cloth, he found waves , IN consultations with great [people and astrologers   he decided to build a temple for  the goddess there.Since the well used to becalled Azhi and it was covered by silk(Pattu), that temple   was called Pattazhi, Seeing the very powerful presence of Goddess there , they   made a plank of jack wood tree and covered it with silver and  that was consecrated  in the   temple. Though these indicate  that  it is an ancient temple  , it appears to be only  one thousand years old. There are several copper plate records about this temple   which are kept inside the temple., The family of the person  who gave the land   and the Namboodiri family who formalized  the worship procedures have a right  in administration of the temple, apart from that  there are elected representatives of Two Karas(Nair villages) had  also a  role in the administration. After a long time a Man with divine  strength and power arose from these Karais.He was very powerful and took over the administration  of the temple on himself. Various stories of this great  Kambithan are  prevalent in Pattazhi and Kottarakkara.. It was this time  the great Marthanda Verma   was fighting with  kings of the northern sides to expand  his kingdom.  He had lot of problems in the fight with the Kayamkulam  king. At that time Kambithan advised Marthanda verma    to make offerings to  Pattazhi  Amma and start the war. Marthandaverma was  able    to win over Kayamkulam.After the death of Marthanda verma his son is supposed   gave a huge area  of land to the temple,Kambithan received  the land on behalf of the temple,. THirumala Naikan the king who was ruling   the Pandya country   wanted to present two   gold anklets to the goddess  and announced that  it would be handed over  only to the  representative of the gOddess. When Kambithan reached there he refused to give  the anklets., ,It seems he had a severe small pox attack and after  entrusting the ornament to Kambithan he got cured. One queen from Kottarakkara has presented the temple with golden hairs. This is invaluable  and is taken out and worn to the Goddess  only once in a year.The prayer room of Kamithan , has an idol of the Goddess  and is now  sub temple of the main temple
     The Pattazhy   Durga Bhagwathy faces the north..There is a temple tank which is considered  very  sacred by the  devotees.. there are also many small temples for different gods  in the temple compound..tHe temple compound also has Samadhis of two Kambithans who  played a major role in the history of the temple..When you  see in the sanctum , you can only see, two hairs  of the BHagwathy on a wooden plank. tHis wooden plank is kept over a well. But for this there  is no idol there..There is a practice of going nine times  round  the sanctum with the  belief that  the nine planets would get  pleased by that.
  The first of every month, Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays are important days   for the temple.oN the Ayilyam day of the Month of Kanni there is a special worship to The Naga Raja,On Maha Navami day the Goddess is made to wear a golden apparel  and is taken out of the temple.The Kalamezhuthu,  songs and festival(Called Chirappu in these parts) start from the first of Vruschigam and extends up to  the eleventh day   of Dhanu., The powder from the Kalam is distributed as Prasada   during these days and it is believed that  it has medicinal properties,On the  last Sunday of the Makara  month , the ladies assemble  in the temple and prepare Pongala. The five day festival of the temple starts on the Thiruvadira day of Kumbha masam(which is the birthday of the Goddess, There is also a festival of Malakkuda when the eighteen mountains   around the temple are worshipped on the fourth day  of the festival,A hill called Puli Kunnu is worshipped as a representative of all the 18 hills. Lot of tribal people  participate  in this festival.,On the fifth day of the festival there is a war between the Goddess  and Darukan,The Shivarathri day and the the THiruvadira of Meena month which happens   to be the  birth star of Kambithan are   also  celebrated. The festival is known for Kambam (fire works), Aalpindi Vilakku Ezhunnallathu (Procession of small structure made out of plantain kernel and germinating leaves of coconut tree with numerous lamps on it), Ponnin Thirumudi (Devi's idol carved out of pure gold and rare precious stones) Ezhunnallathu
  The temple can be contacted at
Pattazhy Devi Kshethram,
Pattazhy P.O,
Pattazhy, Kollam
kerala
Pincode:691522
Phone:0475 2398421, 0475 2399421
Email: info@pattazhydevitemple.org



Monday, July 6, 2015

Pandalam Valia Koikkal Dharma Sastha temple

Pandalam Valia Koikkal  Dharma Sastha   temple

Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander

Pandalam  is a small town  about 13 km from Chengannur town of Kerala.  Lord Ayyappa    was  brought up by the king Raja Sekara   who was at that  time ruling over Pandalam. King Raja Sekara wanted to crown Lord Ayyappan is the  junior king of Pandalam but   his queen was reluctant  ,She feigned a head ache and the doctor  was  deputed by a cunning minister  said that she needed Tiger to get cured.Lord Ayyappa went to the forest and brought   a huge flock of she tigers to the Palace. The queen realized   her mistake and requested  Lord Ayyappa to accept the post of Yuva Raja. Then Lord Ayyappa   told his parents but who he is and requested them to build a temple in Sabari Mala . They agreed but were sad. Then Lord Ayyappa told them that  the ornaments that  he was wearing would be kept in Pandalam palace   and every year  before the Sughting  of Makara  Jyothi , the king or his representative should bring them  to Sabari Mala for him to wear. He also told that the next day he would   give a Private Darsan to  the king of Pandalam,.

      After the departure of Lord Ayyappa   to Sabari mala, the pandalam royal family built a  private  hall of worship for the members  of the Pandalam Royal family  .  This  temple located in the big palace (.. Valia Koyikkal)  of Pandalam was later  opened to the public also. This small prayer hall in the compound of the palace faces east and has only two rooms.One of them is where Lord Dharma Sastha is consecrated and the other  is the place   for devotees  to sit..There are no decorations to this very ancient prayer room , except a few paintings  on  its walls..There is no idol of Ayyappa in this temple but   a Salagrama  stone representing Lord Ayyappa.,Whenever any member of the Pandalam royal family dies, since Lord Ayyappan belongs to the family, the temple is closed  for sixteen  daya and there  is no worship here  in this prayer room at that time. Since it is only a prayer room of the palace there   are no festivals associated   with this temple . On the last day of Mandala period,(!1th day of Dhanu month)  there   are some special worship practices in this temple. Durind Mandala Pooja  The Ayyappa  is taken out on a elephant to a Banyan tree  called Manikandanal.. There is a small temple of Lord Ayyappa below that banyan tree ,At that time a cewlebration called” Nayattu vili(hunter’s call)” is celebrated  in that   temple ..Hunter songs , people miming the  animal sounds  etc are a part of this small festival.Another  important day  in the temple is  the twenty eighth day  of the month of Dhanu  when the  huge group  of People go as a profession from this temple to  Sabari mala  carrying Lord yypaan’s ornaments . The king(eldest member of the royal family of Pandalam gives  his sword  to his representative and tells him, “Safely go and see  our son and return.” Lord Ayyappa’s birthday is on Uthram star  of Kumbham  month . That  day the Salagrama  is decorated .. On the Vishu day , the Ornament box is brought out of the temple   for the devotees to see. The temple would be a  sea of devotees during the Mandala kalam of Ayyappa. 

Sunday, July 5, 2015

Mavelikkara Kandiyur Madeva temple

Mavelikkara  Kandiyur Madeva temple

Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander

One of the very famous temples  of Lord Shiva is the Kandiyur Mahadeva  temple which is near Mavelikkara.It is considered as one of the great 108 temples of  Shiva in the world   and is called Dakshina kasi (the Benares of the south.) .There are two old  stories about the temple.One of them is about Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu  trying to find the head and feet of Lord Shjiva respectively.lOrd Vishnu  agreed that he had failed but Lord Brahma told a lie that  he had found out the head of Lord Shiva and the Thazham poo(pandanus flower) stood false witness this. The enraged Lord Shiva cut off one of the five heads ofd Lord Brahma  .It seems this head  struck to his hand.It seems as per the advice of Lord  Vishnu, Lord Shiva  created  a sacred water and take bath in it . It seems the head  of Brahma got detached from hands of Lord Shiva. Because of this Lord Shiva got the name  Sri Kanta  and this temple was named after him. Kandiyur has the pond  where Lord Shiva made and got  rid of his problem..There is yet  another  story. It seems  that once when sage Mrukandu the father  of Markandeya    was taking bath oin Ganges, he got an idol of  Lord Shiva.It seems he was worshipping it for a long timr and that  Idol consecrated in Kandiyur    .It is believed that two years before the start of Kollamandu(AD 823)  , a new year system called Kandiyur Abdham was started in Kandiyur  as it was a capital of a dynasty  in Travancore.and later  it fell in to disuse because  Kollamandu became more popular. It is believed that the temple was built in 823 AD by  Cheraman Perumal Nayanar also called as  Rajaseskara Varman  who was ruling from Tiruvanchikulam as capital. The worship of the  temple  was being done by Tarananallor  Namboodiri at  that  time.They are still  continuing as priests   of the temple. It seems that area after  a long time was ruled by  the Kayamkulam kings .It seems once the Kayamkulamn king was defeated by Venattu kings and at that time the  Ruling Kayamkulam king escaped through the western   door cloing it after him and till to date that  western gate of the temple has never been opened..There are several carvings in Tamil vattezhuthu in the temple..iN that there is a reference that  the temple was renovated  in 1217-1218 Ad.

   The temple is in a six acre compound which is surrounded by a huge compound wall..People believe that  the entire compound was  built within  a night by  Bhootha Ganas of Lord Shiva. Apart from the main temple   the compound has  eleven other  sub temples as well as a Naga(serpent) prathishta,.These temples are  the temple of Lord Vishnu, Pradosha Shiva, Sastha, Gosala Krishna, Annapurneswari , SAnikaranSubrahmanyan, Brahma Rakshas   Vadakum nadha and so on . The following Poojas are daily  performed at the temple, Usha pooja 05:45 to 07:00 Am Sree Bali 07:30 Am Panthiradi Pooja 08:30 Am Mrithyunjaya Homam 09:30 Am Navakam Kalasha Pooja 10:00 Am Ucha Pooja 10:30 Am Nada Adakunna Samayam 11:00 Am Vaaikittu Nada Thurakunna Samayam 05:00 Pm Deeparadhana 06:30 to 07:00 Pm Athazha Pooja 07:30 Pm Sree Bali(Nada Adaykkunu) 07:45 Pm. The temple has a ten day festival in the Dhanu month   and Aarattu during Thiruvadira.

Saturday, July 4, 2015

Poonjar Dharma Sastha temple or Kattunel Kavu

Poonjar Dharma Sastha temple  or Kattunel Kavu

Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander

Poonjar ia slightly big village  in the Meechil Taluq  of Kottayam district of Kerala. It seems this was being troubled greatly by a dacoit called  Udayanan.   Ayyappan  was the prince of Pandalam at that time  .At that time a pandya  king called Mana Vikrama Raja   arrived there   from Madurai.He decided to put down Udayanan. AT that time an old divine man  met Mana Vikraman and gave him  an elephant a goad   and  a hook to control the  elephants and also tols him how  to suppress  Udayana.A per the instruction Mana Vikrama Raja fought with Udhayana    and  suppressed him.Later that Pandya king opurchaesed that area  and wanted to build a temple to ayyappan as he could easily understand that  the old man who helped him was  lord Ayyappan himself. One day when the king went to take   bath in the river  , he kept his umbrella made of palm leaf    and went to take bath, Butwhen he came back he was not able to move that  umbrella at all. Understanding that the God wanted to  have temple there itself he started building the temple(History says that  the temple was built in  1165 ad).  Employing architects  and arists from Madurai and Kerala. The temple thiough small is very artistic, The entire Kirtharjuneeyam   story  has been sculpted  on the  outer walls of the temple. This temple is also known as “ Kattunel Kavu”
     The  Saastha statue of the temple is  made  of black stne.Lord Ayyappa is  is   made in such a way   that it  appears   to be teaching the third Pada  of  Gayathri Manthra with open book of Veda in his hand , which is resting on his knee.

     In the month of Makaram there  is a Kodiyettu festival   for eight   days.. The procession of the God on the elephant daily goes out at night with lots of burning light .On the first six days the goes round five times . Before the God takes bath  on the eighth day  , the God visits the Poonjar palace.There  takes rest in the Lord Krishna temple  in the palace  and later he would go round the Madhuai Meenakshi  which is on the way to the river and he goes take a dip in Meenachil  river and goes back to his temple , On the Mahanavami day there is a festival called Varam when all visitors are   fed by the  palace .During the Mandala time in Sabari Malai ,  very large number  of pilgrims going to Sabari Malai  c visit this temple on their way.On those days daily there  is a function called Kalamezhuthu and Pattu . It is intereting to know that the priests of this temple from   Thazhaman family which also   does worship in Sabari Mala temple..This temple is still the control of POonjar royal family,The temple can be reached   from Kottayam via Pala  , Erattupetta    and Panachipara , 

Thuravoor Ugra Narasimha Morthy and Sudarasana temple

Thuravoor  Ugra Narasimha Morthy and Sudarasana temple 
Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander
  Thurvaoor  ins located by the side of NH47 , 25 km south of   the city of cochin .This temple has two ancient temples within it. One is that of Maha Sudarsana Moorthy  , believed to be 1300 years old and athe Ugra Narasimha Murthy might have been built   in the 7th centuary Ad. Nothing much is known about the origin of  the sudarshana temple   but there  is interesting story about the Ugra Narasimhamoorthy temple . It seems  there was a king called Keralendra   belonging to the Chera dynasty, His Guru was a great savant called Mutingottu adigal. Once when Adikal  was participating in a fuction to worship ancestors  , he realized that  he would soon die and be born as a dog. He instructed the king to protect him  when he is born  as a dog from doing  evil acts. The king agreed and he saw his Guru was born as a  dog  .He was taking care of it but one day he was forced   to kill the Dog. The sin of killing his Guru fell on him. To get rid of that , he consecrated a Lakshmi Narayana   temple near Angamali in a place called Naya thottam(Dog’s garden) . The Namboodiri who conducted the function told the king that  he would take his fees after  returning from his Kasi pilgrimage  . While in Kasi, A huge flame of light  appeared and told that , it would lead him to a place where an idol of Lord Narasimha  lay buried. It wanted to him to consecrate  that statue near a Sudarshana   temple. Then the light took him to a place  near Thuravoor. When he dug there, the Statute of Lord Vishnu  came out from there.With the money given by the king  , that Nambudiri built a temple in the compound of the Sudarshana temple itself.. There is a belief that  this place has very many temples and in ancient  days it was called  Surapuri..The King Brought  five  Brahmin families from THulu Nadu and settled them there.There is a peculiar practice in this temple regarding priests.  .Every two years, the chief priest (mesanthi)   would become assistant priest(Keezgh santhi)   and the assistant  priest become the chief priest. This is because the Chief priest should not leave the temple, should observe celibacy .
     The temple of Lord Narasimha   moorthy  is built in a very grand scale with lot of sculptures and paintings. The Sudashana temple has  an   idol has  four hands holding conch, wheel , mace and  the lotus flower. Unlike other Sudarshana temples , inside  it there is no Vishnu temple , which  is separate temple in the same compound. However the well  for both temples are shared with each  other. Though called Ugra Nasimha murthy  , the idol is that  of a standing Lord Vishnu. There is also small temples of Lord Ganapathi, Lord Shiva, Sastha, Nagas and BHagawathi  in the compound of the temple. The temples observe several festivals. The most important is the nine day festival   in the month of Thulam. There is a grand Palli Vetta festival   in Medam month . The Konkani Brahmins attend this festival in very large numbers.On Deepavali day  there is a festival called Valiya Vilakku.Ashtami Rohini. On pathamudayam day the  Gods are taken out for a procession outside. The temple is open from  3am  to 11 Am and then from   5,20 Pm to 7,30 Pm. Big gun like crackers (Vedi) are burst in the temple as the offering to gOds, because it seems when the Narasimhamurthy came out of the earth, it made that type of  sound.

     Though the temple’s land belonged to  Cochin state  , due to political reasons it was managed by Travancore kings under a condition that  when the Travancore king steps in to the temple, the temple would be transferred   to Cochin, It seems after  independence that last Travancore  king came to this temple but walked only on  carpets spread inside the temple .

Aroor Sri Karthyayani temple

Aroor Sri Karthyayani temple

Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander

Aroor is a  big village in   the  border  of  the kingdom of Travancore and Cocin of the olden stays situated near NH 47. It is about  22 km away from Alappuzha town.  There is a belief its earlier name was Athiroor(The village near the border). It is believed   that Vilavangalthu Samiyar was returning from   Trivandrum to Guruvayur and happened to take rest below a huge tree. Suddenly he could see the presence of Goddess  there .By his wisdom he understood that   it was Karthyayani devi and built a temple for her. It  seems he stayed there for some time   worshipping the Goddess  and later entrusted the management of that  temple  to various Nambudiri families. There is also a mention that  it was one of the 108 devi temples which was consecrated by Parasurama   all over Kerala and this place was called “Kattil Pisharam”
    During the march of Tippu Sultan   through Kerala people believe that   he broke  the stattue of Goddess  Karthyayani  ,Later the temple fell in to disuse    for several years. It is believed   that  seven Nayar families  settled here ,They are believed to have  repaired the temple   and  got made a new idol of Karthyayani and consecrated  her here. In those families there was a  very great man called  Kannam kulangara  kaimal .  A thought occurred to him that  the power of this great temple was getting reduced and he felt because of the prosperity  of  the families of the families who have settled in the village   also would diminish.One day he happened to see  the goddess in person  looking very famished and tired .Kaimal  realized that  it was the Goddess. He told her to take rest and promised her , he would bring a tender coconut for her. He requested her to wait till then . He then went  to his home and committed suicide by hanging. ThE goddess  remembering his words waited for him for some time and  later   went in to the sanctorum. The Soul of   Kaimal  who committed  became a spirit   and started wandering here   and there and at that  time the prosperity of the temple further   reduced. The Soul of Kaimal stated living in a Palmyra tree    to the south of the Aroor temple.People  started liking this spirit and started calling him “Aru kola Ammavan (Uncle who faced bad death).”   As they found  the spirit was helping them a lot.Later this temple management was taken over by the Travacore  kings. Thorough repair was done to the temple by Ayilyam Thirunal king who lived between 1860-1880. And today it is one of the  important temple under Travancore DEvaswam board.. The temple is a small one and faces east..The idol of the Goddess is made  using black stone and has four hands.Statutes of Lord Shiva, Lord Ganapathi , Naga devathas  and  Arukola(the spirit of the Kaimal who committed suicide)  are found in side this small temple .Below a Branyan tree  a Brahma Rakshas and Yakshi have also been consecrated, . The templke does not have any carvings or paintings .

YThe temple has a grand festival for eight days in the  month of Meenam   ending in Uthram  star. The Last three days of the Mandala time is celebrated as Thalapoli. Several  devotees have felt the greatness of the Goddess  as she used  to solve  their problems without fail..Let her also bless   all those who read  this compilation. 

Mannar Kurathikadu Pattambalam

Mannar  Kurathikadu Pattambalam
Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander
(Most of the material is from the web site  of the temple -http://www.pattambalam.org/ . My grateful acknowledgement to them.)
    The goddess Pattamalathilamma   has a  temple in Kurattikadu Pattambalam   is situated in mannar  which is near Kayamkulam  and is 11 km from Mavelikkara  Railway   station .This place is 130 km from Cochin air port.Here the Hoddess BHavaneswari one of the Dasa Maha Vidhyas is  consecrated  ,She is generally referred as  “Valia Amma” (great mother) .Along with her , there are temples    for BHadra, Ganapathi and Krishna  in the temple Her devotees   take permission from her to buy property, build a house  , celebrate the first  rice food for the baby  etc. They  wear  new cloths  or  first attend school or join in their  first job. .They start a journey after   lighting a lamp  before her .Her devotees believe that she is the daughter of Panayannarkavu Bhagawathi whose temple can be reached only after  crossing river Pampa. Once in a  year  the festival called  Anpoli  areepara Mahothsavam  which is celebrated from Medam 10th to 27th .Daily the Valia Amma visits the homes of her devotees in different villages. She is received by them with great fan fare .The procession everyday returns to the temple at 12  noon.   On Medam 13th the Goddess  starts her journey to her mothers house. .All her devotees including the  members and president of  her temple  line up  on the  shore of the Pampa river not allowing the Godess   to cross  the Pampa river. This is done because they are afraid that once she goes to her mother’s house    she may  not return.On Medam 15th Amma   goes to the CHangayil house and collects  , One Para(14 litres) of paddy from that house and goes to other houses. But she again returns   to Changayil house to collect  and colled five more measures of paddy  , as promised  by one of the lady ancestors of the family .Then only she gives blessings to the family and go back to the temple  .This  is called  Changayil ottam.On  24th Medam the Ama receives the  offerings from Harijans in the form of harvested paddy.A para is not insisted because  , they were considered poor .Now many of them offer the Para to the goddess
I   am quoting in extensor from the web site of the temple about this great festival called “Anpoli areepara  Mahothsavam


    Anpoli Areeppara is the most important event of our temple. It is the annual temple festival of 18 days from Medam 10th to 27th. On these days our mother visited her people at their doorsteps to receive their offerings as Paras and to bless them in person. Early in the morning Her Highness is brought out from the sanctum sanctorum with royal gaiety and drums in the Holy Jeevatha embedded with the Moolabimbam and is royally placed on the peetha. To receive two Anpoli Paras everyday. A customary rhythmic dance of the priest shouldering the Jeevatha is followed along with the special Poojas in the Seva Panthal. Then the Holy procession sets off.
          Every household , cleaned and decorated await eagerly for the farbound sounds of Her procession reaching their door. Amma is welcomed with fireworks and vaikuravas and offerings of flowers, paddy,fruits ,aval, malar in the form of para are offered. The accompanying crowd is treated everywhere with fruits, feast and pleasantries. The process goes on uninterrupted until late night and at about 12’o clock the procession returns to the temple and then the daily ritualistic ‘poojas’ and ‘nivedyams’ are offered in the presence of a huge crowd. After this, Amma is once again ritually brought out accompanied by royal drum beats and ‘vaikuravas’ to perform the Anpoli at the zero hours and in most cases in the early hours.
         ‘Anpoli panthal’ which is considered as a temporary temple is already erected to the north of ‘Elanjithara’ and an ‘Anpoli Kalam’ decorated with divine ritual drawings and fragrant flowers is kept in purity and lighted with Nilavilakku is there in front of the Anpoli Panthal. The rhythmic ritual dance of the shouldering priest in tune to the royal drum beats, come out of the Mathilkettu after 3 rounds around the temple, slowly approaches the Anpoli kalam in ritual steps. Large crowds follow and vaikuravas and fire crackers resounds through out the night. Amma mount in the Jeevatha on the shoulders of the priest ritually dancing on their steps, slowly awakened in this high concentration of dance, music, vaikuravas and the fire crackers. All of a sudden enters the Anpoli Kalam in the dense forest of light and oil lamps, and performs her own divine dance revelation. The priest becomes unconscious, faints and falls. Great fire works follows. Offerings there are distributed as prasadams to crowds of devotees thronging there and dakshinas are given. Amma is brought back to the SreeKovil. The process is to begin early morning next day   The temple is also running  a school in the village   called Bhuvaneswari  Higher secondary school..




Friday, June 26, 2015

Chelamattom Sri Krishna swamy temple

Chelamattom Sri Krishna swamy temple 
Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander

    This  is a famous temple dedicated to Lord Krishna on the road connecting Kalady  and Perumbavoor, through the main central road. This temple has the distinction of having Lord Krishna, Lord Narasimha and Lord Vamana  and Durga Devi in another adjacent temple ,Lord Krishna and Lord Narasimha are in the meditation pose.The periyar  river  here flows from west to east near the temple and so it is called Dakshina Kasi   and is considered sacrosanct for worship of our manes(Pithrus) , On the  new moon days(amavasya) very large number of people   gather for doing pithru  karmas.A thila Havanam (Thila homam) to please the PIthrus   is performed in this temple on the day by the chief priest himself.

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Malamakkavu Ayyappan temple

Malamakkavu Ayyappan temple
Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander
     This Ayyappan temple  is called as Mala mel Kavu  or Malayil Kavu  in the Anakkara  Panchayath in Palakkad district  . Though the name indicates that  it is on the mountain, it is only situated  in the plains.One of the specialties  of the temple  is that a  rare flower called CHenkazhuneer poovu is   found in the temple tank.

It is believed  that  that hundreds of years   earlier one low caste woman  went to the  forest  around  here for grazing cattle  When she was sharpening her knife  on a rock  , it started  bleeding .They immediately the nearby village , who  through Prasnam found that  rock was  lord Ayyappa.. They immediately built a sanctum and sanctified that rock  as Lord Ayyappa.This happened about 300  years  ago.Along with the Ayyappan temple  there are also idols oh Goddess BHagawathi and Lord Shiva in the temple . There are also  Rudiramaha Kali, Vettakorumugan   and Nagas consecrated in the temple  .It has been recognized as one of the 108 temples of Dharma Sastha  in Kerala and it is managed by a the Padinjarepat nambiar family . ADa is the main offering at the temple .The Ayyappan idol  faces  the east .The main festival of the temple is a THalappoli   celebrated  on the last   Saturday of the month of Dhanu .The pond of the temple is situated in the temple  premises itself. It is believed that  if a devotee offers a Chenkazhuneer flower  at the feet  of Dharma Sastha with great devotion  , a blue lotus(Neela Thamara)  would bloom in the  next day   in the temple pond.A film based on this legend called “Neelathamara”  has been produced in Malayalam.This temple can be reached from Guruvayur within an hour by driving.,

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Anchumana temple , Padivattam, Edapalli

Anchumana temple  , Padivattam, Edapalli
Compiled by
P.R.Ramachander
     This temple is sitauated near edapally town of kerala which is near Ernakulam city near the Cochin bypass road. This temple has   temples   for three goddesses  Bhvanesawri, Annapoorna and Bhadrakali .Goddess .While Goddess BHuvaneswari grants prosperity and mental peace  , Goddess Annapurna blesses with long  and happy married life  and BHadrakali removes all problems caused by evil spirits.There are also several other Gods consecrated in this temple. They are Lord Ganapathi  , Lord Ayyappa,  , Lord Subrahmanya  , Nagadevathas, Lord Guru  ,Hidimba swamy  , Lord Hanuman  , Brahma Rakshas , Kandakarna swamy  and Arukola, the last three being folk gods. This temple was initially managed by  A nambuydiri family but  since they found it difficult , it is now managed by  Viswakarma  Dharmosharana samajam.(Viswakarmas are skilled artisans like carpenter, goldsmith, mason, black smith etc)

  Every Monday Vivaha sooktha pushpanjali is offered to Goddess Annapurna. iT is believed that those who participate would get married quickly.Guruthi Pushpanjali (also called Raktha Pushpanjali0 is offered to the Goddess   on Sundays, tuedays and Wednesdays, which is expected to solve all the day to day problem of the devotees.Nirapara with dasapushpam (ten flowers) and Samrudha vriksha leaves are offered  on the first of Chingam month  for getting prosperity ,Mass prayer is offered to Goddess BHuvaneswari   on all Friday evenings.After Usha pooja(morning pooja)   on Tuesdays and Fridays , devotees chant Lalitha Sahasranama. The chief thanththri of the temple performs a Thanthri pooja at   the temple   on the last Tuesday of every Malayalam month.During Navarathri Goddess BHuvaneswari is dressed up like Goddess Saraswathi and Visdhyarambham for tiny tots is conducted ,From first of Vruscigam there is a long festival at the temple for 41 days.On the first five days there is THalapoli and on all days the Goddess BHuvaneswari visits all villages round her   accompanied by  five elephants. On the last 7 days of this festival the temple is closed. The worship afterwards is resumed with the worship of Kandakarna swamy . During the month of Kumbham “Anguruthy” festival to Goddess Bhuvaneswari is celebrated .Thai poosam festival is celebrated in the Subramanya swami temple  .Special pooja for the Guru Swamy is conducted   by the chief Thanthri on the last day of Thulam month .The temple is open from 5 Am to 8 PM,This temple is sitauated 22 km from Amritha hospitals in Cochin.

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Kirathamurthy temple ,Pallasanna

TEMPLE OF KIRATHAMOORTHY, PALLASSANA

by
RADHAKRISHNAN PALLASSANA

Probably many people knows only MEEN KULATHTHI  KAVU(TEMPLE) of Pallassana because of it is made famous by Tamilians and others who goes to the temple especially to ward off enemies, frequently. However the are many more temples in the small and less famous place of PALLASSANA in Palghat District of KERALA STATE For example there is one temple called PUTHIYA KAVU mostly frequented by NAIR CASTE people, LORD SHIVA TEMPLE of KIZHAKKE GRAMAM ( EAST VILLAGE ) , LORD SANTHANA GOPALA KRISHNA SWAMY TEMPLE OF PATINHERE GHRAMAM (West Village) , both manned by Tamil Brahmins where NATTI AMMAN is also placed. As far as NAATTI AMMAN is concerned, I do not know about the origin. I feel it  was worshipped by original inhabitants of PALLASSANA who worshipped  this deity which brahmins also worshipped due to fear or they brought this deity after proper AAVAAHANA of their family deity (KULA DAIVAM) who must be MOOKAAMBIKA or some other deity. I leave it to experts on the subject. There is also a famous temple called KIRATHA MURTHY TEMPLE which is mostly frequented by NAIRS of the locality on whom  I am writing this essay.  KIRATHA MURTHY IS BLACK IN colour which form is only black of LORD SHIVA. The story can be seen IN KIRAATHAARJUNEEYAM in MAHABHARATHA.  In this one will find LORD SHIVA taking the AVATHAARA of a hunter and blessing Lord ARJUNA with PAASUPATHA who became the devotee of SHIVA . The Idol is facing towards east and thrikala Pooja (3 times Pooja) is conducted. At this temple.    There is a common belief that if we are successful in getting a work done 1200 coconuts are broken to KIRATHA MURTHY, The UPADEVATHAS are VIGNESWARA and KAATTIL BHAGAVATHI i.e. NANDA DURGHA  There is  peculiar  custom in this temple. The children who attain 5 years old on THIRUONAM day are brought to the temple and made to stand before the deity and made to beat each other ones which will be witnessed by the MOOSAD who is the PALLASSANA’S HEAD at 2 O’clock in the afternoon. The festival  of the temple starts on the month of MESHA months 10th day.The PALAKKADs famous KNYAR KALI is performed. On first 4 days it is performed in the house of PATHYYATTIL MOOSAD’ S ILLAM (HOUSE). This temple was once  owned by eight caste people. They are CHERUMAN, ANDI , KURAVAN, MANNAN, POOSHAARI,CHAKKILIAN, VALLON(MALAYAN), and PARAYAN . Now there are 99 Nair families and Moosad’s house around the temple which is nearby PUTHTHJEN KAVU which is  owned by the NAIRS. This BHAGAVATHI is said to be related to KOTUNGALLUR BHAGAVATHY. 
Regards to one and all,