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
Gandharva
In the Puranas the Gandharvas are the heavenly singers who play for the gods. In Kerala's groves they are honoured as nature spirits, and shrines to Gandharva and Yakshi are found...
Bhairava
When Brahma's fifth head grew arrogant, Shiva cut it off and was afflicted with the sin of Brahmanahatya. He wandered as Bhairava until the sin was released in Kashi, where he beca...
Veerabhadra
When Sati immolated herself at Daksha's yajna, Shiva tore a lock from his hair and created Veerabhadra, who destroyed the sacrifice and subdued the gods assembled there. He is wors...
Andal
Kodhai, a foundling raised in Srivilliputhur, grew up in devotion to Ranganatha and insisted on marrying him. She merged with the deity and became Andal, she who ruled the Lord, an...
Duryodhana
Duryodhana was the eldest of the hundred Kauravas, the sons of the blind king Dhritarashtra and Queen Gandhari. His jealousy of his Pandava cousins shaped the rivalry that led to t...
Brahma
Brahma is the creator of the Trimurti, the trinity he shares with Vishnu the preserver and Shiva the dissolver. Puranic tradition describes him emerging from the golden egg Hiranya...
Gandhari Amman
Gandhari, princess of Gandhara, was married to the blind prince Dhritarashtra and blindfolded herself for life in solidarity with him. Through a boon she became the mother of a hun...
Bhoothanatha
Bhoothanatha means the lord of the bhootas, the hosts of spirits that attend Shiva. In Kerala the name is given to Shiva in his role as guardian of the sacred ground, and the deity...
Indilayappan
Indilayappan is the presiding deity of the ancient Avanavanchery temple near Attingal in Thiruvananthapuram district. Temple tradition identifies him with Shiva and Umamaheswara, a...
Temple histories
Pazhavangadi Ganapathy Temple
Pazhavangadi Maha Ganapathy Temple stands at East Fort in central Thiruvananthapuram, close to the Padmanabhaswamy Temple. The deity is Ganesha seated with one leg folded, and the...
Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple
Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram is one of the 108 Divya Desams, dedicated to Vishnu reclining on the serpent Anantha. The shrine is praised in the Divya Prabandha...
Ettumanoor Mahadeva Temple
Ettumanoor Mahadevar Temple in Kottayam is among Kerala's major Shiva temples, grouped in tradition with Vaikom and Kaduthuruthy. Its name is traced to a deer — 'man' — that is sai...
Sabarimala Sree Ayyappa Temple
Sabarimala Sree Dharma Sastha Temple in the Western Ghats is Kerala's greatest pilgrimage centre, where Ayyappa is worshipped as an eternal brahmachari, the son of Shiva and Mohini...
Guruvayur Sree Krishna Temple
Guruvayur Temple in Thrissur district enshrines Guruvayurappan, a form of Krishna-Vishnu, and is one of the most visited shrines in Kerala. The Gurupavanapura Mahatmya of the Narad...
Ananthapura Lake Temple
Ananthapura in Kasaragod is Kerala's only lake temple, set in the middle of a tank and dedicated to Anantha Padmanabhaswamy. Tradition holds that this was the original seat of the...
Arattupuzha Sree Sastha Temple
Arattupuzha Sastha Temple, near Thrissur, claims an antiquity of some three thousand years and is best known for its Devamela, a festival in which gods and goddesses are believed t...
Aluva Mahadeva Temple
Aluva Mahadeva Temple stands on the sandy manappuram of the Periyar river near Kochi, with Shiva facing east. It is counted among the 108 Shivalayas of Kerala, and folklore credits...
Chottanikkara Bhagavathy Temple
Chottanikkara Bhagavathy Temple, near Ernakulam, worships the Divine Mother as Rajarajeswari. She is adored in three moods through the day — as Saraswati in the morning, Lakshmi at...