Vadakkunnathan Temple and Thrissur Pooram

Vadakkunnathan Temple in Trichur (Presently Thrissur) is more famous for the festival associated with the temple, Trichur Pooram. Procession with caparisoned elephants accompanied by the traditional drumbeats is the most attractive among various rituals during Pooram. ‘Kudamatam’ or changing the decorative umbrellas placed on the elephants participating in the procession is another attraction. Fireworks in the early morning also attract many people to this temple during the Pooram day.

A scene from Trichur Pooram

The deity in this temple, Lord Shiva in the form of Linga is believed to have been installed by Parasurama. The legend goes back to the creation of Kerala from the ocean. Parasurama went around the Bharatha Khanda and exterminated the kshatriyas 21 times. To get rid of the sin of killing so many people he conducted a special yagna and at the end of it, he decided to donate some fresh land to the Brahmins who participated in the yagna. He asked Varuna, the God of the sea to part with some land for this purpose and he agreed. Varuna told Parasurama to throw his ax from the top of Gokarna Hills (presently in the state of Karnataka) into the sea which was touching the foot of Gokarna on those days. He promised that he will withdraw from place expanded until the point where the ax falls.

Accordingly, Parasurama threw his ax into the sea and it fell on the pint where the present-day Kanyakumari situates. Varuna withdrew from there thus forming a fresh piece of land which is now called Kerala. After creating the land, Parasurama went to Mount Kailash to visit Lord Shiva. Parashurama was an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva and Shiva too respected his devotee very much. When asked about his indention for coming, Parasurama narrated the entire story and requested him to come and take abode in the fresh piece of land created by throwing ax. Shiva cannot reject the plea of an ardent devotee along with Goddess Parvathy, Ganesha and Muruka followed Parasurama.

When they reach at the spot where the present-day Trichur situates, Lord Shiva stopped walking and disappeared. Then Parasurama saw a divine Shiva Linga beneath a huge banyan tree. He started worshiping the same and asked the Brahmins whom he donated the land to worship that linga for their well being.

The practice of worshipping the linga under the tree continued for several centuries. Later Kochi King, under whose jurisdiction Trichur came on those days decided to build a temple and to shift the linga to that temple. The temple, which is an excellent example of the architecture of ancient Kerala, is believed to have built by Perumthachan of Parayi Peta panthirukulam. After the construction of the temple, when the process for shifting the linga started, they faced a great hurdle.

Some parts of the huge banyan tree had to cut to remove the linga from the place where it existed. The chances of falling the branches on the linga were more which should not happen. At that time a Brahmin, who has been taking care of the rituals for the linga so far came out with a unique idea. He agreed to bend above the linga so that the branches will fall on his top only instead of falling on the linga. To the surprise of everyone present there, not a single piece of the branch fell on that Brahmin. The linga has been shifted to the temple and started worshiping as Vadakkunnathan.

Although there are many festivals being celebrated in this temple including Maha Shivarathri, Trichur Pooram is the major festival that attracts visitors from all over the world. When most of the other festivals have legends associated with the concerned gods, Trichur Pooram has nothing. It has been started as a festival of people by the then Kochi King Shakthan Thampuran.

The surroundings around the temple (which is now famous as Thekkinkadu Maithanam) was a dense forest mostly with teak wood. People used to fear to go around the temple as there were many wild animals inside the forest. Besides, many antisocial elements also used this dense forest as their den. Shakthan Thampuran ordered to cut all the trees and thus to clear the ground so that people can move without any fear.

A legend associated with this incident says that when he started cutting down the trees, the oracle of the nearby Paramekkavu Devi Temple came there are asked him to stop the work. The oracle, who is believed to have evoked the divine power of Devi told the king that the forest is her father’s beard and it should not be cut down. Shakthan Thampuran, who was a daring king asked the oracle where she and her father was when the Tipu came there and looted many temples. This made the oracle angry and he started striking his sword on the forehead, a usual practice of oracles to show that the divine power has entered in them. Then Shakthan Thampuran told the oracle that oracle’s word is not sharp and better use his sword. Saying this, the king put his sharp sword on the head of the oracle and cut him into two vertical pieces.

After clearing the forest, he asked the local people to celebrate the pooram once in a year and everyone should contribute to make it a big festival. He instructed many practices that are to be followed during Trichur Pooram. Now the festival has become a festival of people of Kerala and it is being celebrated every year from April 14^th to May 15^th.