Chinakkathoor Devi Temple where the Festival begins with screaming of people

As per Indian Vastu (Ancient Indian Architectural Science) facing south direction is not advisable. Usually, those who believe in Vastu will never construct houses facing the south. In such a scenario, you will be shocked to know about a temple in Kerala which is south facing.

 Chinakkathoor Devi Temple, at Palappuram about 5 KM away from Ottappalam in the Palakkad district of Kerala is a south-facing temple dedicated to Goddess Devi. There are two shrines in this temple premises known as Melekkavu (Upper Shrine) and Thazhekkavu (Lower Shrine). The deity in the lower shrine is believed to be self-originated or Swayambhoo. The rituals at the upper shrine are being performed by the members of the Kulangara Nair family and the same in the lower shrine is by Brahmin Namboodiris.

Deities of Chinakkathoor lower shrine (left) and upper shrine(right

Another interesting feature of this temple is that the annual temple festival begins with the screaming of devotees. Devotees in large numbers will gather around the flag mast of the temple and started screaming “Ayyo…..”  Amidst the screaming, the chief priest will raise the temple flag announcing the beginning of the temple festival. The reason behind this totally strange ritual is related to the legend of the temple which goes to the period of Ramayana.

Lord Rama and Lakshamana reached Thirunelli on their way to Sri Lanka. Tired of walking all the way, Lord Rama asked Dharma Sastha and Goddess Devi who were accompanying him to find an ideal place to take rest. Both of them went in search of a place but did not return even after a long time. Lord Rama and his brother Lakshamana went in search of Devi and Dharmasastha.

Lord Rama became furious seeing both of them taking rest at a serene place at Vilwadri or Thiruvilwamala. He pushed Dharmasastha and sastha fell in a pit nearby. Even now the Sastha idol at Thiruvillwamala temple is in a pit and is called “Kundilayyappan”, Sastha or Ayyappan in a pit in the local language Malayalam.

Then Lord Rama slapped Goddess Devi on her face. With heavy pain, she screamed “Ayyo…” and ran away from there. She reached Palappuram and sat there. The screaming at the beginning of the festival is meant for commemorating this incident.

The annual temple festival is very famous in the state of Kerala and is known as “Chinakkathoor Pooram”. There is a legend behind this festival which also narrates how the temple became south faced.

Earlier, the idol in the temple was facing North direction. On those days, the Palappuram was under the regime of Zamorins or Samoodiris of Calicut. Kerala was divided into several feudal kingdoms on those days and they all were indulged in fighting with each other. Once, Samoodiri was moving southwards to fight a war with the King of the princely state of Cochin.

When he reached Palappuram, his palanquin bearers stopped moving. Although the tried their level best they could not move even an inch and stopped there as if their feet are chained. King alighted from the palanquin and enquired some locals about the reason. They told the king that he is on the backside of the Chinakkathoor Devi Temple and probably it is because of the divine power he is not able to move ahead.

King moved towards the temple and asked who is sitting there. Goddess Devi, who was sitting north faced turned back towards South to show her face to the king and told him that she was Kali. King worshiped her with great devotion and offered many offerings. Since then, the Devi is sitting facing south. King asked his subjects who gathered there to celebrate that occasion every year as a festival and thus started Chinakkathoor Pooram.

The Temple Where the Unsettled Soul of a Judge is Worshipped

Judge Ammavan (Uncle Judge) Temple is a sub temple of Cheruvally Sri Devi Temple but it is more popular than the main temple because of the specialty of the deity worshiped here.  The deity here is the soul of an old Judge who was really honest.

Justice Govinda Pillai was the Chief Justice of the Royal Court of Travancore. He enjoyed the reputation for his fairness and honest. Nothing had influenced him in making the verdicts. Once, he ordered one of his nephews’s to be hanged to death and the order has been carried out by the Royal Police.

Later he came to know that his nephew was innocent. This was really a shock to him and he could not sleep due to guilty consciousness. He approached the King and told the incident. Justice Govinda Pillai told the king that he committed a heinous crime by ordering an innocent to be killed and he should get the death penalty for this.

King was not in a mood to listen to Pillai as he was enjoying the reputation as an honest judge and the king was very pleased with him. King tried to console him saying mistakes can be happened as they all are simply human beings and not gods. But Pillai was adamant and was not ready to go back from the decision. Finally, the king told him that the duty of the king is to execute the orders and only a judge can pass orders. Then Govinda Pillai insisted that the case will be taken care of by himself.

He went back to his office and prepared an order. It was clearly mentioned in the order that the intensity of the crime will be more if the same has been conducted by those who are responsible for ensuring law and order. He ordered himself to be hanged to death. There is one more punishment he added in his order that the legs should be chopped off before hanging.

King has no other way but to execute the order. Later, the family members of Govinda Pillai experienced many tragedies and approached an astrologer who practices Kerala Astrology. He told them that the soul of Pillai has not yet settled and they should invoke it and consecrate in their family temple, Cheuvally Sri Devi Temple.  That is the legend behind this temple. Devotees used to offer a special type of offering called “Vellam Kudi” (offering beetle nuts) to the deity which is affectionately called as Judge Ammavan or Uncle Judge. Devotees are saying that there are many instances where many complicated legal cases have been cleared in favor of the devotees who offered Vellam Kudi to Judge Ammavan.

The Cheruvally Sri Devi Temple is also an ancient temple which is claimed to be constructed about 800 years before. The legend behind this temple is that the divine power of Goddess Devi appeared there as per the request of Saint Sankaracharya. Later the divine power left there ignored for centuries and a lady belongs to a lower cast found a stone bleeding when she rubbed her sickle on it to sharpen it.

It has been found to be the divine power of devi. Then a temple has been constructed there and the power has been invoked to a stone idol of Devi which is about four feet high.  History says that King Marthanda Varma came here when he was in a battle with his cousins over the control of Travancore and stayed at Vanchipuzha Madom (A monastery for Vedic Studies) in the hide. Later he became the king of Travancore and conquered the feudal kingdom of Chembakasseri, Cheruvalli came under his rule and he handed over the temple to Vanchipuzha madam. Now it is under the control of Travancore Devaswom Board.  

Duryodhana is Worshiped in Poruvazhiy Malanada Temple

The news about Mahishasura worship has stirred a hornet’s nest in the recent past and a lot of controversies have been come up about celebrating Onam in Kerala as a commemoration of Demon King Mahabali. All these havocs have been generated out of ignorance of Hinduism.

Hinduism is a broad religion that offers different methods and ways to attain salvation. It promotes diversified methods of worships and it provides the freedom to worship anyone and anything. Devotion and dedication are the two prime things needed in worship and all other things such as the rituals, hymns, etc are irrelevant. This fact is being undermined by a small temple at a small town in Kerala “Poruvazhy” which is very near to Karunagapally in the Kollam district. Here the presiding deity is none other than the eldest among the Kaurava brothers, Duryodhana.

Originally the temple belongs to a family “Kaduthasseri” who belongs to the “Kurava” cast which is a scheduled cast as per the cast system prevailing in Hinduism. The legend is that Duryodhana came to Poruvazhi in search of Pandavas when they were in exile. As he had to walk a long distance and as it was summer days, Duryodhana felt thirsty and became tired.

At that time an old man belongs to Kaduthasseri family came there and offered water and food to Duryodhana. The affection the old man shown towards him touched the heart of Duryodhana. Duryodhana came near the old man to hug him, but the scared man moved away from Duryodhana saying that he belongs to a lower cast and not supposed to touch a Kshatriya who belongs to a higher cast. Then Duryodhana came nearer him and hugged him tightly and told that who helps in critical conditions is always belonging to the higher cast. Before leaving, Duryodhana promised the old man that he will meet him once he accomplished his mission.

However, Duryodhana could not find Pandavas and later the great war of Maha Bharatha started. At the end of it, Duryodhana has been killed by Bhima, the second Pandava. Once out of the body, his soul remembered the promise given to the old man of Kaduthasseri family and it moved to meet him.

On that night the old man had a dream in which Duryodhana appeared. Duryodhana apologized to the old man for not visiting him. Duryodhana also mentioned that he did not breach the promise as he could not accomplish his mission. He further said that he cannot forget the affection of the old man extended towards him on that day and he will live with him and his family members forever.

Waking up from the dream, the old man saw a divine light just outside the home where there was a small banyan tree. The very next day morning he placed a small stool at that place and started worshipping Duryodhana.

Even now, the members of Kaduthasseri are performing rituals at this temple and there is no Brahmin priest. There is no idol and all the rituals are being performed in front of the stool beneath the banyan tree. Alcoholic liquor is used to cleanse the stool and then banana is offered as the main offering here. Kaduthasseri's family is following the matriarchal system and on the death of a priest, his nephew will become the next priest.

Later, by the then Diwan of Travancore, C. P. Ramaswamy Iyyer has allotted 108 acres in the hillock and 108 acres of paddy fields to the temple. The most interesting thing is that the documents proving the award of this land are in the name of Duryodhana and thus, even now Duryodhana possesses a piece of land on earth when none of his brothers or Pandavas has.

Procession on the festival day at Malanda

The annual temple festival is celebrated in the Malayalam Month of Meenam every year. On the first Friday of Meenam, the temple flag will be hoisted on the flag mast denoting the beginning of the festival. The main festival is on the second Friday of the month.

People from seven blocks (Kara) nearby the temple will gather in the paddy fields near the hillock where the temple is situated. They will be carrying huge models of houses built with wood and hay. The chief will come down and receive them to the temple. They all will move up to the temple in a procession carrying the huge models of horses and dancing to the tune of drum beats.

Earlier, there was the presence of all Kauravas in the vicinity. However, now only Dussala, the lonely sister of Kauravas is being worshiped in the temple apart from Duryodhana. Her place is on the northwest side of Duryodhana. There is a place where Dussasana the second Kaurava is worshiped is located very near to this temple at Ennasseri. Their Uncle, Sakuni is also consecrated in the vicinity. He is consecrated in Pavithreswaram hillock.

Duryodhana is worshiped in some parts of Himalayas too.

Nenmara Vallangi Vela and Nellikkulangara Devi Temple

Nenmara Vallangi vela is a famous event across the globe. Caparisoned elephant’s procession along with Melam (traditional drum beats) and vast fireworks add more attraction to the event. The event called “Vela” is being organized by two villages Nenmara and Vallnagi as a competition. Both the villages try their level best to gain supremacy in all areas including the melam and fireworks. This event is being organized on the premises of Nellikulangara Devi temple which is an ancient temple. The temple is located in the Palakkad district of Kerala.

Nellikulangara was a part of princely state “Parambikkulam” during the Sangha period, which has been ruled by the feudal lord “Pari”. In a yearlong battle, he has been defeated jointly by the kings of Chera, Chola, and Pandya dynasties. At that time, a Devi idol was kept at Nellikulathu Mana, a house of a Brahmin and the family members used to worship it.  After the defeat of Pari, the significance of Parambikulam and Nellikulam and along with the Mana, the Devi idol also left uncared. There is a mention of this Devi in the “Puram Kavithakal” written by Kapilar in the 14^th century.

Years have passed and the control of Chera kings over Nellikulam started diminishing. Parambikulam, which was a strong kingdom with more than 100 villages under it has got divided into several smaller regions ruled by feudal lords.

On those days, the feudal lord of Nellikulam heard about the Nellikulathu Mana and the Devi idol kept there. He took possession of the idol and consecrated near Pothakkulam. Although the idol has been worshiped as Goddess Devi by the family members of Nellikulathu Mana, while consecrating the same, the tantric did so but giving the form of Goddess Bhadrakali to the idol. At present, the deity is being worshiped as Goddess Bhadrakali. Later a new temple has been constructed in the present place and the idol has been consecrated. People belonging to Pappukkara Mana enjoy the tantric rights in this temple.

Every year on the 20^th of Malayalam month Meenam, Vela is being organized by two adjacent villages Nenmara and Vallangi. People from faraway places used to gather here. Caparisoned elephants’ procession will begin at noon and it will be over by the dusk. Fireworks start post-midnight and will last until dawn. 

Kottankulangara Devi Temple; Celebrating Femininity

Kottankulangara Temple is one of the famous temples in Kerala dedicated to Goddess Bhagavathy or Devi. It is located in the old seaport town Chavara in Kollam district. The temple is more famous with a not so common ritual during the temple festival when men and boys gather in large numbers in the disguise of damsels and the ritual is called “Chamaya Vilakku”.

The legend behind the origin of the temple goes like this. The area where the temple is located now was a forest in good old days with huge trees, creepers, and grass. There was a small pond called “Bhootha kulam” or the “Pond of Ghosts” was located on the northwest side of the plot and there was a large pond on the eastern side. Always filled with freshwater, this large pond kept the area fertile.

Cowherds used to visit this place with their cows. After letting the cows free, the boys used to get engaged in different games and jokes. During such funny moments, one boy climbed on a coconut tree in the vicinity and plucked down a coconut. In order to remove the husk, they hit the coconut on a stone that was there near the “Bhootha kulam”. To their utter shock, they saw blood oozes out from the stone.

Scared of this unnatural incident, the boys rushed to their village and narrated the entire incidents to the village elders. The elders accompanied the boys to the spot and saw the blood oozing out from the stone. They came to the conclusion that some divine power is there in the stone. Upon invitation by the elders, two astrologers came there and they confirmed the presence of the divine power of Goddess Devi in that stone.

As per the instruction of the astrologers, boys and the elders constructed a temporary temple immediately using poles, leaves, and tender leaves of coconut palm at the place where the stone was situated. Then the boys came in disguise of damsels wearing female costumes with a lamp as the tradition practiced on those days was the damsels to offer light and flower garlands in the family temples. Later a permanent temple has been constructed there and the tantric rituals are been awarded to Adimattam Mana. The most astonishing feature is that the Sanctum Sanctorum does not have a roof here.

The temple hit the headlines with its special rituals during the temple festival which falls in the Malayalam month of Meenam (March 15 to April 15).

Chamaya Vilakku

This is a unique ritual which will be held on 10^th and 11^th of Malayalam month every year. During this festival, male devotees throng to the temple wearing female attire. This is to commemorate the incident of cowherds offering light and flower garlands when they performed the rituals for the Devi idol for the first time. Usually, people will carry out this ritual as a thanksgiving for fulfilling any of their desires. It is believed that the Goddess Devi will fulfill all your desires if you offer to carry Chamaya Vilakku.

Chamaya Vilakku is a lamp fixed on a long wooden piece. These lamps will be available for rent in the nearby shops. At midnight, men and boys come in female attire carrying the lamp. During the festival, the temple authorities will arrange the facilities including make-up rooms. Professional make-up men also will be available. When boys and men carry the chamaya vilakku, their mothers and wives will accompany them till the temple. However, men and boys who are planning to dress up as a damsel should observe certain penance or vrutha for a period of one month.

Kuruthola Pandhal

This is another attraction during the temple festival.  In order to commemorate the origin of the temple, a model of the first built temple will be constructed every year with tender leaves of the coconut palm. This is called as “Kuruthola Pandhal”.  This is being built under a banyan tree called “Kunjalum moodu”. Hundreds of devotees line up from this point to the Arattu Kadavu, to see the procession of Devi. It is believed that Devi will be most happy at this moment as a sort of nostalgic feeling will be evoked in her after seeing the model of the first temple and whoever gathered there will be blessed by her.

Jeevatha Ezhunnellathu

Just like in many other temples, Jeevatha Ezhunnellathu has performed at Kottankulangara Temple also. Wearing traditional attires men will carry Jeevatha on their shoulders and dance to the rhythm of drums. Devotees offer materials such as paddy, rice, etc to the goddess at this time.

Legend of Kandiyoor Mahadeva Temple

An ancient temple dedicated to Lord Shiva is located on the banks of Achankovil River in Kandiyoor near Mavelikkara is considered one among the 108 Shiva temples consecrated by Lord Parasurama, the sixth incarnation of Lord Vishnu to protect the land of Kerala, which he had recovered from the sea.

There are many legends associated with the origin of this temple and the most popular one is of Saint Mrikandu, father of Markandeya. Once, the saint was taking in the holy rivers of Ganges and there he got an attractive idol of Lord Shiva in the form of Kiratha Murthy (As a tribal warrior). As he took hold of the idol, he heard a heavenly voice saying him to take the idol to a serene place and consecrate it.

Believing those words are from Lord Shiva, the Saint started his journey in search of a suitable place. Finally, he reached in Kerala, near the banks of Achankovil River, and the place found to be the ideal one. He consecrated the idol there. That being the best place among many places seen by him, it came to be known as “Kandathil Nall Ooru” which means the best place among the places seen in the local language Malayalam and later it became Kandiyoor.

Another legend says that it was the place where Lord Shiva beheaded Lord Brahma and hence the name “Kandiyu” came after one of the many names of Lord Shiva, “Sri Kandan”. Later, Lord Parasurama found the idol there and consecrated it after constructing the temple. It was he who gave the tantric rights to Tharananallur Illam.

A group of historians claims that the temple belonged to Hinayana sect of Buddhists and the King of Mavelikkara ordered to remove the Buddha from the temple and to consecrate Shiva idol there. They are of the opinion that the Buddha idol, which has been found in the nearby paddy fields years before and that has been installed near the temple was the original deity installed inside the temple.

Kandiyoor Temple is believed to be a Devadasi Temple. In other words, the Devadasi system has been practiced here. According to a 14th century Sanskrit Text "Shiva Vilasam", written by Damodara Chakyar, then king of Odanadu, Kerala Varma married a devadasi woman Cherukara Kuttathi, who used to reside in this temple. There are mentions of some other devadasis also in this text.

The temple has great significance in the history of Kerala. Before the present Malayalam calendar “Kollavarsham” has introduced it was Kandiyoorabdam was used in Kerala. This started from the date of the consecration of the idol in the temple.

Kandiyur was the capital of the erstwhile Odanadu dynasty. Later it has been conquered by the King of Kayamkulam. Later, it has been annexed to Travancore by Marthanda Varma. It is believed that the King of Kayamkulam visited the temple when he was defeated by Marthanda Varma and left his sword inside the sanctum sanctorum of the temple and left through the back door. The door has never opened since then.

The deity is called as Kandiyoorappan and is being worshiped in three forms or bhavas. In the morning the rituals will be conducted assuming the deity is Dakshina Murthy, in the noon the rituals will be for Lord Shiva in Umamaheswara Bhavam and in the evening it is as Kiratha Murthy.

Legend of Chettikulangara Devi Temple

Chettikulangara Devi Temple is one of the prominent temples in Kerala dedicated to Goddess Devi. The most astonishing feature of the deity here is that it has been worshiped as Goddess Saraswathi in the morning, Goddess Maha Lakshmi in the Noon and Goddess Durga in the evening. It is the number two temple under Travancore Devaswom Board in terms of collection. Sabarimala Sri Ayyappa Temple holds the number one position.

There are many legends behind the origin of the temple and the most popular one is as follows. Annual festivals in Temples of Kerala are of great significance and are being celebrated with great enthusiasm. Koyapallikarazhma Bhagavati Temple is another prominent temple in the nearby area and once the chieftains of Chettikulangara went there to enjoy the annual festival at that temple.

Temple authorities misbehaved with them and they felt humiliated by the insult meted out to them. The chieftains came back and decided to construct a temple there in Chettikulangara. They discussed the issue with each and every family in the village and all were of the same opinion. After taking the consent of the villagers, a few people went to Kodungallur Devi Temple to seek the blessings of Goddess Devi.

Kettukazhcha

They completed 12 days worship at the temple and on the 12^th night, Goddess Devi appeared in their dreams and asked them to go back to their village and construct a temple. She assured them that she will come there soon.

They reached Chettikulangara and started the construction of the temple. On one fine evening, the boatsman who used to ferry people across Karipuzha Rivulet was about to call it a day. He tied the boat to a tree on the shore and was about to leave. At that time an old lady came there and requested her to take her to the other side of the rivulet. She told him that she should reach Chettikulangara soon.

Being a good person, the boatsman took her to the other side. By then it was dark, so he decided to accompany the lady till Chettikulangara. On the way, they entered the house of a washerman family and had dinner there. By the time, the boatsman fell asleep. He woke up the next day early morning and the old lady was not there. Even the family members of the washerman family could not tell anything about the lady as they too fell asleep as soon as they finished their dinner.

The boatsman spread the news. In the very next day, there happened one more miracle which proved the presence of Goddess at Chettikulangara. Some repair works were going on in a Brahmin’s house in the nearby locality and during lunch, Brahmin’s wife called all labors for serving lunch. At that time a strange woman appeared. She had lunch from there and disappeared suddenly.

By that time, the chieftains have consulted a famous astrologer and he confirmed the presence of Goddess Devi there. In the very next auspicious time, the consecration of the idol has been performed by Padmapadacharya, a most prominent disciple of Shankaracharya.

Chettikulangara Kumbha Bharani

Kuthiyottam

Kumbha Bharani is the major festival at Chettikulangara and it falls on the Bharani Star day of Malayalam month Kumbha (Feb 15- Mar15). Kuthiyottam is a ritual art form that has been played by groups of boys. It is quite often offered to Goddess as an offering.

The devotees who are planning to offer Kuthiyottam will adopt boys under the age of 12 for a few days since the day of Shivaratri. Every need of these boys will be taken care of by the devotees who offer kuthiyottam, including food and accommodation. A miniature of a temple will be constructed at the house of devotees and special rituals will be performed there every day till Bharani. Boys will be trained in Kuthiyottam these days and whoever visits the houses of devotees who are planning to offer kuthiyottam will be provided food.

On the day of Bharani, these boys will be taken to the temple as a procession. 

Kettukazhcha is performed in the evening of Bharani Day. Huge procession with huge effigies of characters from Hindu epics such as Bheema, Arjuna, Ganapati, Draupadi, etc will be built and brought to the temple is well-decorated chariots in a procession.

There is an interesting fact about Kumbha Bharani. Usually, Hinduism favors vegetarianism and most of the Hindus will not have non-vegetarian food on auspicious days but it is just opposite on Kumbha Bharani day. Almost all households in and around Chettikulangara will prepare a special dish on this day with dried prawns and mangoes (Konchum Mangayum). This dish is an integral part of Bharani celebrations and there is a legend behind this too.

On one Bharani day, an old woman was preparing a curry with dried prawns and mangoes. When the cooking was half the way, she heard the drum beats of Kettukazhcha. She could not resist seeing the Kettukazhcha. She prayed to the Goddess Devi to take care of the curry and went out to participate in Kettukazhcha, leaving the stove on.

When she came back after a few hours, she saw to her astonishment that the dish is ready and the stove is off. There were enough wooden logs inside the stove which indicated that it has not gone off for want of logs and the dish was perfectly cooked. The news spread across the land and since that day, every household started preparing this dish on the auspicious day of Bharani believing that the Goddess Devi will visit their house to supervise the preparation.

It is believed that Goddess Devi will move to Kodungalloor to visit the goddess thereafter the kettukazhcha. Hence the temple will remain closed on the day following Bharani and will be opened only on the next day.

Meena Bharani

Just after one month from Kumbha Bharani, on the day of Bharani star in the Malayalam month of Meenam, Meena Bharani which is also known as Children's Bharani will be celebrated at the temple. There will be a children's kettukazhcha on that day which will have miniatures of effigies made on Kumbha Bharani day. These small effigies will be carried by children to the temple in a procession. 

Legend of Vaikom Mahdadeva Temple

Probably, Vaikom Mahadeva Temple may be the only temple devoted to Lord Shiva which has been equally revered by both Shaivaites and Vaishnavaite. It is one of the oldest temples in Kerala where the rituals have never been stopped since its inception.

Vaikom is a temple town located in the Kottayam District of Kerala and about 32 Km away from Ernakulam on the way to Sabarimala. The temple is one of the most popular and one of the largest temples too in Kerala. The legend behind the temple is mentioned in the ancient text Bhargava Purana and the Sanalkumar Samhita.

Kharasura (The Demon with the name Khara) was an ardent the devotee of Lord Shiva and he went to Chidambara to worship Lord Shiva after attaining Shaiva Vidya Upadesh from Saint Malyavan. He underwent a severe penance there and pleased with his devotion and dedication, Lord Shiva appeared in front of him.

The Lord gave all the boons asked by Kharasura and also gave three Shiva Lingas. Lord asked him to consecrate the lingas at suitable places and start worshiping them. He promised that he will appear in front of anybody who worship these lingas and eradicate the agony and troubles.  Happy with the boon, Kharasura started his journey with three llingas.

He held one linga in his left hand the other one in the right hand. The third one he kept on his neck. On the way, he felt tired and sat in a calm and serene place to take rest. After some time, he decided to start his journey. When he tried to pick up the idols, he realized to his utter shock that they have got fixed to the ground.

Saint Vyaghrapada was following him invisibly throughout the journey and at this juncture, he appeared in front of Kharasura and asked him to leave the lingas there and start worshipping there. The linga which he was carrying in his right hand is believed to be the one at Vaikom Temple. The one in the left hand is the idol at Ettumanur Temple and the one he was carrying on his neck is the one at Kaduthuruthi Temple.

The fact that the distances from Vaikom to Kaduthuruthi and Kaduthuruthi to Ettumanur is almost equal, gives this legend a high level of credibility. Besides, the belief is that praying at all these three temples in a single day is more auspicious.

Later Kharasura attained salvation and Vyaghrapada Maharshi remained there worshipping the idol installed with the right hand of Kharasura. On an Ashtami day of Malayalam Month Vrischikam, Lord Shiva along with his consort Parvathy appeared in front of the saint and blessed him. Lord told him that this place will soon be called Vyagrapadapuram and will attract a lot of pilgrims.

Years have passed and the Saint too got salvation. Once, Parasurama, the sixth incarnation of Lord Vishnu was moving by the sky, he experienced the presence of divine rays at a particular place on the earth. He came down and searched for the source of the rays and found it to be a Shiva Linga immersed in water.

He picks up the Linga and did rituals chanting many holy hymns. Pleased with this act, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathi appeared in front of him and asked him to construct a temple and consecrate the linga there. Lord told him that as the consecration was done by Parasurama, the Linga will have both the energies or Chaitanyas of Lord Shiva and Vishnu.

Parasurama constructed the temple and installed the linga. Then he called a Brahmin from a nearby village and handed over the temple to him. He instructed him on how to perform rituals and also taught him many holy hymns for performing rituals there. It is the same system that is being followed even today.

Closed Door at Vaikom Shiva Temple

There is a door in the western courtyard of the temple which always remains closed. Here is the legend behind that. Parasurama awarded the rights on the temple to one hundred and eight families. As time passed they got divided into two groups supporting and opposing the ruler. The quarrel between these two groups intensified day by day.

One day, one group was performing “Nivedyam” (Offering food to the deity) at the western side of Namaskara Mandapa when a prominent person belongs to the other group came there. He kept his apron (Melmundu) on the western door and went inside. He spat the beetle nut he was chewing into the offerings (Prasadam) prepared for the god and thus stopping the ritual he came out. When he took out the apron from the door, a highly poisonous snake appeared from beneath the apron and bit him.

He felled out of the door as if somebody has pushed him and died immediately. At the same time, the door closed automatically and a voice came from within the sanctum Sanctorum saying not to open that door anymore. Till then the door has not been opened and even now it is closed.

Legend of Kodungallur Devi and Kodungallur Bharani

Kodungallur is a small temple town located in the Thrissur District of Kerala. Although this small town houses many temples, most of them are dedicated to Lord Shiva, Kodungallur Sri Kurumba Temple or Kodungallur Devi Temple is the most famous one. It is believed that Kannaki of Tamil classic Chilapathikaram attained salvation here.

The mythology behind this temple goes back to the period of the creation of Kerala by Lord Parasurama, the sixth incarnation of Lord Vishnu. When he created Kerala and donated the land to many Brahmins to free from the curses of killing kshatriyas, a demon called Daruka came there. He started driving out people and they all approached Parasurama.

Parasurama underwent a penance to appease Lord Shiva to find a solution. Shiva appeared in front of Parasurama and asked him to construct a temple and consecrate an idol of Goddess Bhadrakali and start worshipping her. Parasurama did accordingly and the Goddess appeared in her most fierce form. She fought a long war with the demon and killed him.

When she came back, Parasurama pleaded her presence at that temple forever for the protection of the people. Pleased with the devotion of Parasurama, she agreed to do so. And the temple is believed to have the presence of Goddess Kali there.

Another legend says that Kannaki of Chilapathikaram came to Kodungallur after setting ablaze the entire Madhurai City and prayed to the goddess. After a few minutes of prayer, she got absorbed into the idol of Goddess.

Kodungallur Amma, as the deity is called quite often by the devotees, is the family goddess of the royal family of Kodungallur. Hence, the presence of the senior member of the family, who is referred to as Kodungallur Thampuran is necessary for all festivals related to the temple.

Kodungallur Bharani is the major festival in this temple. On that day there is a ritual called “Kozhikkal Moodal” which was originally the sacrificing of cocks and offering the blood. After the ritual performed, Kodungallur Thampuran will spread a red umbrella. This is called “Kavu Theendal” which is a symbolic way to give permission to people belonging to all casts to enter the temple. As soon as this is over, devotees, especially hundreds of oracles wearing red cloth will enter the temple and run three times around the temple holding sticks in their arms.

This ritual is to commemorate the return of Goddess Kali and her army after killing Daruka. The sticks in the arms of devotees represent weapons. After completing three rounds, they will enter the temple. In earlier days, the devotees used to air filthy languages against the Devi while they run around the temple. This ritual was based on a belief that the Goddess enjoyed the victory in the war with her soldiers who were shouting bad words out of joy. Later this ritual has been stopped.

Later, Adi Shankara installed five Sri Chakras in the temple and these chakras are believed to be a source of the power of the temple.   People belong to the Namboodiri community or Adiga communities have the right to perform rituals here in this temple. There is one more Sri Kurumba Temple in the Southern part of the town where the rituals are being performed by the people belonging to the Kudumbi community.