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
Irumkulangara Durga Devi Temple
Irumkulangara Durga Bhagavathi Temple is one of the principal Devi shrines within Thiruvananthapuram city and is known for its Navagraha worship.
Anikkattilammakshethram
Jagat Pita and Jagat Mata share one sreekovil here, a rare arrangement in Kerala temple architecture. The shrine is an important family-deity temple for central Travancore.
Kilimarathukavu Temple
The temple also houses images of Dharma Sastha and Ayyappan. It was taken over by the Travancore Devaswom Board under a government order and is maintained as a major local shrine.
Sasthamcotta Sree Dharma Sastha Temple
The shrine is surrounded on three sides by Kerala's largest freshwater lake. Its monkeys are considered sacred and are fed by devotees, a tradition that has made the temple widely...
Pisharikavu Temple
Pisharikavu is a well-known Devi shrine of the Koyilandy coast and its annual festival draws devotees from across Malabar.
Pattupurakkal Bhagavathi Temple Kattambak
Also known as Kattampack Kizhakkum Bhagam Pattupurackal Bhagavathy temple, it is the only shrine in Njeezhoor with Bhadrakali as presiding deity and is known for its namaskaram off...
Sri Chakrapani Kshethram
Chakrapani, the discus-bearing form of Vishnu, is the presiding deity of this old temple in the northernmost district of Kerala.
Vayalil Thrikkovil Mahavishnu Temple
The Lakshmi Narayana pooja is held here twice a month. Ashtami Rohini Maholsavam and Bhagavatha Sapthaham are the temple's main annual observances.
Thrikkavu Temple
Thrikkavu Sri Durga Bhagavathy Temple is one of the oldest shrines of Ponnani and is associated with the region's early temple tradition.