Hearitage

  The hills of Wayanad have many stories which are more of legends & beliefs among the people. The land is a place which has been the home of tribals & its their way of life that has made the place so habitable. There are many temples around this beautiful land which have some unique stories. One such temple is the Valliyoorkavu Devi temple which attracts a large population for its annual festival. The temple is in Mananthavady & stands in a large field with a simple structure similar to traditional Kerala houses. Though the structure is simple, the complex has the Sreekovil, Nadapanthal, Pathayapura . The temple also has two different Kavu within called the Mele kaavu & Kezhu kaavu. The architecture at one glance is a simple design & it is attributed to the thought that the temple was built by the tribals who believed in Bhakti & not the opulence of architecture.  The idol of the Goddess is a self manifested image & the temple worships the deity in three fo

The Jews were a persecuted group & they travelled to better lands but found none until they came to the old port of Muziris in Kerala. To their surprise the local people were quite welcoming though they were apprehensive about the ways of the Jews. The one thing that made people welcome the Jews was their understanding of trade. The Cochin Rajah gave the arriving Jews land to preach their religion & live their way of life. The Jews are said to have come to Kerala around the 12th century but they were recognised as two groups by the people of Kerala. The Cochin Jews who settled around the old port were termed as White Jews & those who moved north were called Malabari Jews or Black Jews. Though the two groups of Jews had a similar way of life their way of worship was a bit different. The small village of Chendamangalam or Chennamangalam as it was known earlier became a haven for the Black Jews. The Chendamangalam Synagogue is considered to be the oldest in India & still s

  The city of Trivandrum has many signature monuments & one among them is the grand Puthen Malika or Kuthiramalika as it is known commonly by all. The palace built next to the Padmanabhaswamy temple was envisaged as the official residence of the Travancore King & was constructed with opulence. The palace has some unique architectural features & the story of its construction makes a great story. The Travancore family had some great kings during its rule & one among them was Swathi Thirunal Balarama Varma who in many ways was the reason for the intellectual renaissance of Kerala. The king who was destined to be King even before his birth ruled for 17 years but the period is listed as the golden decade in Travancore history. The story of Swathi Thirunal is quite interesting as he was crowned King at the age of 16 but he assumed the role of the King from the time of his birth as he was given the title of Garbha Sreeman . The Travancore family did not have a male heir for ov

  In India there are many temples whose reverence is based on its origin or an event but not many temples are known for the prasadam received. The Ambalapuzha Sreekrishna Temple from the time of its origin has been known for the sweet rice porridge which is received by all devotees daily as prasadam. The temple for years has been considered to be one among the most important Vaishnava temples in Kerala. The temple is said to have been built in the 16th century by Pooradam Thirunal Devanarayanan Thampuran, the ruler of the erstwhile Chembakassery kingdom which was a small feudal authority around the backwaters. The King ruled over a large area of fertile land but there was always an agrarian crisis in his kingdom. The paddy crops would wither away just before harvest giving people only a limited amount of rice. The ruler was a staunch devotee of Lord Krishna & kept praying for his blessings. As per popular belief, Lord Krishna is said to have come to the court of the King disguised

  As per temple scriptures, the origin of a temple is based on a dedication to one among the countless deities in the Hindu religion but it is not quite common to find a temple whose reverence is based on another temple. One such temple which has been a place of divinity for over 7 centuries is the Ananthapadmanabha temple in Kasaragod, commonly known as the Ananthapura lake temple. The story of the temple is based on the existence of the Padmanabhaswamy temple in Trivandrum which is one of the divya desams as per Hindu beliefs.  The temple is considered to be the moolasthanam (original seat) of Padmanabhaswami & the relation between the two places is based on the life story of Vilwamangalam Swami who is considered to have lived for over 4 generations. As per legends, Vilwamangalam Swamiyar was a revered sage & was living around the temple conducting prayers to Lord Narayana. It so happened that one day he noticed a child roam around his hermitage, on enquiring he learnt that t

  As per Hindu beliefs there are 108 divya desams which are abodes of Lord Vishnu which is a belief in the Vaishnavite sect. According to the canonical work of Tamil Shaiva poets called Nayanmars in the 7th century there are in all 276 Shiva temples which have a divinity similar to the divya desams & these are listed in their work called Paadal Petra Sthalam. The Thiruvanchikulam Mahadeva temple is the only shrine that finds its place in this celebrated work. The temple is a place of beautiful architecture & has a story that is related to the uniqueness of the deity. The tutelary deity at the temple here is Lord Shiva in the most serene form called Sadashiv & is in the company of his beloved consort in the form of Umadevi. It is also said that the idol of the Lord is in the form of Umamaheswara . The earlier temple structure is said to have been built during the Chera rule & was completed by the most respected ruler Cheraman Perumal. The exact date of its construction

  The origin of the land of Kerala is a famous lore which is taken from mythology as a place that was pulled out from sea by Parasurama. The events that happened after the creation of this beautiful land is related to the Mannarasala Temple which in many ways is the oldest temple in Kerala. The story of its origin is not just based on myths, legends, folklore but also on strong beliefs & is still followed by people all around. The temple which is dedicated to the King of serpents Nagaraj has many unique dispositions which is important for all to know & revere. The temple is a Kavu which is not difficult to realise as the area is surrounded by dense vegetation, one which is a grove for the snakes & it has stayed so from the time of its origin. The groves themselves are sacred as they have been witness to many divine events. Tucked inside the grove is the temple of Nagaraj where he is on a pedestal along with his wife Sarpayakshi. Parasurama killed countless Kshatriya Kings i

  The Valapattanam river now seems quite calm with massive banks on both sides but it was actually the capital of the Kolathiri kings of the Mooshika dynasty. The name Valapattanam comes from the word Balyapattanam which it was called in the old days as it was the largest town along the most important trade route. The place was a venue for communal harmony & the Kakkulangara Masjid on one side of the Valapattanam town has stood witness to changing times. Today the mosque is just a pin on a corner of the road with new mosques coming around but its stature in history is one for all to revere. For any person who comes to the masjid there are two particular sights which stand out, the large minaret tower & a pond. It is believed that the masjid was constructed somewhere between the 8th & 9th century by a Kolathiri king who like Cheraman Perumal is said to have converted to Islam. In Kerala the spread of Islam is attributed to the arrival of Malik Deenar in Malabar who preached

  The spread of the Christianity to the east is credited to the work of the Apostles of Jesus who went to different parts of the world to preach the way of God. In India word of Jesus was spread by one of his most favourite apostle’s, St Thomas who came to the shores of Kodungallur in 52 AD. The Aruvithura St George Forane church is considered to have been built in 159 AD, long after St Thomas died but the importance of this divine land is that the apostle erected a stone cross at this place on his visit along the backwaters. The name of the place is said to have been given by the merchants from Tamil Nadu who traded along these backwaters bringing their goods from the western Ghats to the ports of Muziris. It is said that the Meenachil river canals seemed more like a sea & the banks formed a port for disembarking goods. The presence of a waterfall around the confluence of the rivers made the merchants name the place as Aruvi-thura (port made by river). It is also believed that the

Any visitor who comes to Fort Kochi apart from its colonial culture is also attracted to structures which have stood witness to the times of change & still bring out the beauty of how they were centuries back. One such structure in Fort Kochi is the beautiful Santa Cruz Cathedral which for centuries has served Catholics as a place of reverence towards the Lord. The story of its origin is also laced with many incidents of destruction & reconstruction. It is also to be known that the cathedral became the venue for many important events in history. The current church one sees is over a century old but its foundation is over 5 centuries old. The famous navigator from Portugal, Vasco Da Gama came to the shores of Kozhikode in 1498 opening the route for the Europeans to do trade. The arrival of Da Gama created an environment of distrust among the Zamorins resulting in the Portuguese moving south & finding the Cochin Raja suitable for their trade. After the first expedition, Vasco

It is true that the virtues of Lord Rama as being a Maryada Purushottam & the fact that his efforts in finding his wife Sita is the foundation of the most read mythology – Ramayana. The story of Lord Rama is incomplete without the mention of Hanuman who became his servant for life & his efforts resulted in Lord Rama winning the battle against Ravana. The most important part of Ramayana was the journey undertaken by Hanuman to Lanka by leaping over the vast sea after finding the whereabouts of Sita. This important event is celebrated at the Alathiyur Hanumankavu temple in the village of Triprangode near Tirur. The temple worships Lord Rama as the primary deity but it is the importance of Hanuman that is quite significant & the story behind its origin is one for all to know. As per myth, the vanaras formed different teams as per instructions of Lord Rama to find Sita & went to different parts of the peninsula. The group headed by Hanuman finally found the whereabouts of S