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
Bhadrakali
In the Devi Mahatmya tradition the Goddess manifests as Bhadrakali to slay the asura Darika, whose boon made him invulnerable to all male beings. Kerala retells the Darika Vadham i...
Muthappan
Tradition tells of a boy found and raised by a humble couple who was later recognised as the presence of Shiva and Vishnu. He wandered as a hunter and ascetic with his dogs, breaki...
Nagaraja
The serpents Ananta, Vasuki and Takshaka belong to the race of Nagas who dwell in Patala and serve as the couch of Vishnu. In Kerala the Naga deities are believed to guard ancestra...
Vishnumaya Kuttichathan
Tradition holds that Vishnumaya was born to Shiva and Parvati and took the form of a child to defeat the asura Bhrugasura through illusion, or maya. In northern Malabar he is linke...
Mariamman
Mariamman is honoured as the goddess who cools the heat of summer and wards off epidemics. Her shrines stand at the edge of the village, where she guards the settlement, and her fe...
Chamundi
When the asuras Chanda and Munda attacked the Goddess, she manifested from her brow as Kali and destroyed them, earning the name Chamundi. In Kerala her shrines often stand on hill...
Vettakkorumakan
When Shiva assumed the form of a Kirata, a hunter, and Parvati joined him in the forest, their son Vettakkorumakan was born. Shiva gave him a churika, the curved sword, and sent hi...
Yakshi
In Kerala folklore Yakshis are otherworldly beings who dwell in banyan and pala trees. A Yakshi honoured with lamps and offerings becomes a benevolent guardian; neglected, she is f...
Muchilottu Bhagavathi
Muchilottu Bhagavathi is remembered as a learned girl of Perinchellur who was humiliated in a challenge of scholarship and later revealed as divine. She is the tutelary goddess of...
Temple histories
Lokanarkavu Temple
Lokanarkavu Temple at Memunda near Vatakara enshrines Durga and takes its name from Lokamalayarkavu — the grove of the world-mountain. It is closely associated with the ballads of...
Tali Shiva Temple, Kozhikode
Tali Shiva Temple, or Tali Mahakshetram, stands at the heart of Kozhikode and is among the city's oldest shrines. Tradition holds that its linga was installed by Parashurama at the...
Thirunavaya Navamukunda Temple
Thirunavaya Navamukunda Temple on the Bharatappuzha in Malappuram district is dedicated to Vishnu as Navamukundan and is praised in the Divya Prabandha. The name comes from nine yo...
Thirumandhamkunnu Bhagavathy Temple
Thirumandhamkunnu Temple at Angadipuram in Malappuram district was the family deity of the Valluvanad rajas. Its name and festival traditions are tied to the old kingdom and to the...
Meenkulathi Bhagavathy Temple
Meenkulathi Temple at Pallassena in Palakkad district is the oldest shrine of the village, dedicated to the goddess worshipped as Meenakshi. Tradition says three Veerashaiva Mannad...
Panniyur Sree Varahamurthy Temple
Panniyur Sri Varahamurthy Temple at Kumbidi in Palakkad district is believed to be the first temple consecrated by Parashurama in Kerala. The deity is Varaha, Vishnu's boar avatar,...
Kalpathy Viswanatha Swamy Temple
Kalpathy, in Palakkad, is home to the Visalakshi Sametha Viswanatha Swamy Temple, known as Kasi Viswanathaswamy and locally as Kundukovil. It stands on the bank of the Kalpathy riv...
Uthralikavu Bhagavathy Temple
Uthralikavu, at Wadakkanchery in Thrissur district, is the shrine of Rudhira Mahakali and is famed for its annual pooram, one of the largest in central Kerala.The festival brings t...
Triprayar Sree Rama Temple
Thriprayar Shree Ramaswami Temple in Thrissur district enshrines Rama with four arms holding a conch, discus, bow and garland, standing on the bank of the Thirupurayar river. It is...