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
Kurumba Bhagavathi
The Kodungallur temple, linked in local tradition with the Chera capital and with Kannaki of the Silappathikaram, holds the goddess as Kurumba, the fierce mother. Her Bharani festi...
Karthyayani
Karthyayani is the form of Durga born to the sage Katyayana, invoked in the Devi Mahatmya as the slayer of the buffalo demon Mahisha. She is the sixth of the Navadurgas and is wors...
Bhuvaneshwari
As the fourth Mahavidya, Bhuvaneshwari is the cosmic mother whose form contains all the worlds. She is worshipped with the Sri Yantra and the sounds of the three bijas, and is hono...
Rajarajeshwari
As Lalita, the goddess arose from the fire of the churning of the ocean and defeated Bhandasura with her Sri Chakra army. At Chottanikkara she is worshipped in both her fierce and...
Mookambika
The Kollur temple tradition tells of the goddess who killed the demon Mookasura and who blessed Adi Shankara. She is worshipped as a form of Parvati and as the source of the arts a...
Vanadurga
In Kerala's kavu tradition, Durga is honoured in her forest form at groves that are left uncut and protected. She guards the boundary between the village and the wild, and her wors...
Karinkali
Karinkali is honoured as Bhadrakali in her darkest aspect. At Kannenkavu in Malappuram, the Karinkali Pooram gathers ritual dancers painted black, embodying the goddess's furious p...
Karuppaswamy
Karuppu is honoured as a warrior guardian who stands at the entrance of the village and the temple, armed with a sword and a whip. In the Tamil and Kerala border traditions he is o...
Vamana
When Mahabali's rule became too proud, Vishnu took birth as the dwarf Vamana and asked for three paces of land. With two steps he covered earth and heaven, and with the third he pr...
Temple histories
Sree Sundareshwara Temple
It is one of two prominent temples in Kannur district consecrated by Sree Narayana Guru, the other being the Jagannatha Temple at Thalassery. The shrine lies about two kilometres f...
Vadeshwaram Temple
The temple sits on a hill that resembles a mountain, which gives the shrine its local name. It is one of the better-known Shiva temples of north Kerala.
Sree Andalurkavu
Andalurkavu is a prominent Thiyya family shrine and ritual centre. Its main festival falls in the first week of the Malayalam month of Kumbham.
Puthoorppilli Sreekrishnaswami Temple
Puthoorppilly Sreekrishna Temple is a protected monument of the Kerala State Department of Archaeology, valued for its surviving wooden structure and mural work.
Oorpazhachi Kavu
The kavu is an important ritual space in the Edakkad grama panchayat, where theyyam performances keep the region's folk worship alive.
Madai Vadukunda Shiva Temple
Local tradition credits the Kolathiri kings with building the shrine in the Middle Ages. It stands on Madayipara, a plateau famous for its seasonal wildflowers and archaeological r...
Kunnathoor Padi
Kunnathoor Padi is regarded as the original Aroodam of Muthappan. The remote hill shrine is visited by pilgrims who trek through the Western Ghats forests, especially during the an...
Karivellur Mahadeva Temple
The temple was formerly under the Chitrakkal Kovilakam and remains a major shrine for the villages around Payyanur.
Karikkode Bhagavathy Temple
The shrine serves the farming villages of the Thodupuzha countryside and retains its traditional annual festival.