Kanya kumari, a tragic love story

Hinduism, in its essence, says that the divine power is very much within us. The philosophy of “Thut Twam Asi” or “That is You” is saying it clearly. All the rituals and other related formalities are being designed to help one to find this divine power sleeping inside.

It is not very easy for common people to understand the high-end philosophy and hence various Puranas and Ithihas have been introduced. Here the ancestors are passing great knowledge to the coming generations through simple stories. Each and every myth prevailing in Kerala too perform the same function. When the genius forefathers gave human shapes and figures to various gods to narrate the story in a simple way, many virtues and vices of human beings also added to make the characters shine more and to pass the real message in an interesting way. Here is one such story where the Goddess, the almighty falls in love.

Kanyakumari or the Cape Comarin as it used to know once was not a part of Kerala now. It is in the state of Tamil Nadu. Even then, once it was a part of Kerala and the many myths and legends about the land are related to Kerala. According to the mythology, when Lord Parasurama created the land of Kerala by throwing his ax into the ocean, Kanyakumari was the southern end. This cape is being considered a serene place because here the three oceans, Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea, and the Bay of Bengal join together. Moreover, it was the place preferred by the great Indian Guru Swami Vivekananda to undergo meditation. The Vivekananda Rock, which is the memorial of that great saint is being visited by thousands of people every day. Apart from that, the temple of Kanyakumari is another attraction. Although there are many legends about the temple the most popular one is related to Goddess Adiparashakthi.

Once a demon called Bana underwent rigorous penance to please Lord Brahma. Pleased with his devotion and dedication, Brahma appeared in front of him. Bana asked the lord that he should be blessed with a boon that only a virgin can kill him. With the power of that boon, he started troubling saints and other people. When his atrocities went out of the way, gods and saints approached Lord Brahma, the creator, and asked to find out a solution. He told them that only Goddess Adiparashakthi can help them. Then they prayed Goddess and she appeared. Accepting their request, she agreed to take birth on the earth.

Everything went according to the plan until she met Thanumalaya Perumal of Sucheendram. When she met him, she fell for him and they decided to get married. This decision created a lot of havoc among the gods. Goddess Adiparashakthi cannot kill the demon once she married Perumal and lost her virginity. They burned a lot of midnight oil to find out a solution. The muhurta or the auspicious time for the wedding was at midnight. Perumal started his journey to the bride’s place on that day. Seeing this, Lord Indra came there in disguise of a cock and howled as a cock. Hearing this, Perumal thought the midnight is over. As he could not reach the place on time, he returned.

Meanwhile, Goddess was waiting for her love. She had prepared a variety of dishes for the groom and his companions. Her waiting went in vain as Perumal did not turn up. All her dreams failed and she got despair. She threw all the dishes on the beach along with the cooked rice. It is believed that this is the reason for the unique sand seen here. Sand with different colors and in the shape of rice is a unique feature of this place.

Then she went to the seashore and underwent a penance. The demon Bana came to know about this incident and he came there. Seeing the beauty of Goddess, Bana fell for her and requested her to marry him. She ignored the request and went on with her meditation. This angered Bana, he caught hold of her hand and pulled her towards him. First of all, she was totally in a desperate mood with the happenings and when Bana tried to pull her she became ferocious. She started fighting with Bana and at the end of it, she killed him.

At that time all gods and saints appeared there and praised her action and pacified her. Then she decided to sit there itself and that is today’s temple.

Once, the main entrance to the temple was through the main gate on the eastern side. It is said that the light emitting from the diamonds of the jewelry in the idol reaches till the middle of the sea. Many ships have come near the shore mistaking this light as the one from a lighthouse. They all got wrecked too. Hence the entrance has closed for always and now the devotees are entering through another entrance.