Stories of gods and temples.
The origin stories of Kerala's deities and the histories of its temples — legends of creation and courage, of saints and rulers, and of the shrines that keep them alive.
Stories of the gods
Bhagavathi
Bhagavathi is the mother goddess honoured across Kerala in her many forms — Bhadrakali, Durga, Kali and the countless village deities who protect the land and its people. The word...
Parvati
Daughter of the mountain king Himavan, Parvati performed severe penance to win Shiva, who had withdrawn into grief after Sati. Their marriage is celebrated as the union of matter a...
Saraswati
Saraswati is the goddess of knowledge, speech, music and learning, seated on a white lotus with a veena in her hands. As the river Saraswati faded from the earth, the goddess withd...
Murugan
Born to Shiva and Parvati, Skanda was raised by the Krittikas and by the fire, and grew into the youthful commander of the divine army. With his vel, the spear of divine wisdom, he...
Ayyappa
Manikandan, the son of Shiva and Vishnu as Mohini, was adopted by the Pandala king and saved the kingdom from the demoness Mahishi. He then withdrew to Sabarimala, where he blesses...
Hanuman
Hanuman, the son of the wind, leapt the ocean to Lanka, found Sita, carried the Sanjivani mountain to save Lakshmana and served Rama with perfect devotion. His strength is always o...
Ganesha
Parvati created Ganesha from clay to guard her door. When Shiva returned and did not recognise the boy, he cut off his head in anger, then restored him with the head of an elephant...
Subrahmanya
Subrahmanya received the vel from his mother Parvati and led the divine army against Surapadma. The demon's defeat is celebrated in the Skanda Purana, and the spear remains the god...
Dattatreya
Anasuya, wife of the sage Atri, pleased the Trimurti by her devotion, and they were born to her as the single child Dattatreya. He grew up as a wandering avadhuta, and the traditio...
Temple histories
Sree Puthenkavu Bhagavathy Temple Elavoor
Puthenkavu Bhagavathy Temple is widely known for its annual festival and for the traditional art forms performed in its precincts.
Sree Narayanapuram Thrikkayil Temple
The idol represents the world-enchanting form of Krishna, holding the conch, discus, mace and lotus. The temple is a focal point of the Perissery villages.
Srinivasa Venkatachalapathy Temple
Also called Srinivasar Kovil, Perumal Kovil or Desikar Sannidhi, the temple follows the pooja traditions of Kerala's Namboodiri priests while serving a largely Tamil-speaking congr...
Neendoor Subrahmanya Swami Temple
Local tradition holds that the Pandavas and the sage Vyasa worshipped at this shrine. It is a historic temple that has long been a source of pride for the Neendoor area.
Keraladeshpuram Temple
Temple tradition links the shrine to a period roughly 3,000 years ago. Thanur was among the earliest settlements of the Malabar Coast, and the temple remains its ritual centre.
Chennamangalam Temple
Shiva, Ganesha, Vishnu and Annapurneshwari are also worshipped here. The temple is regarded as one of the oldest in Kerala and a major Ayyappa shrine of the Vatakara coast.
Abhimanyu Temple, Vayotthidam
Abhimanyu, the son of Arjuna, is the presiding deity here, making the shrine unique among Kerala temples linked to the Mahabharata.
Kozha Sree Narasimhaswami Temple
The temple is dedicated to Narasimha, the fourth incarnation of Vishnu, and serves the farming villages around Kuravilangad.
Kadamuri Narasimhaswamy Temple
The presiding deity is Narasimha, the man-lion avatar of Vishnu. The temple is a noted Narasimha shrine of central Travancore.