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
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.