| Vadakkumnathan Temple | |
|---|---|
വടക്കുംനാഥൻ ക്ഷേത്രം - Vadakkumnāthan Kshētram | |
 South Nada entrance of the temple | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Hinduism |
| District | Thrissur |
| Deity | Shiva Parvati Shankaranarayana Vishnu (AsRama) Ganesha |
| Festivals | Thrissur Pooram Maha Shivaratri Navaratri Thiruvathira |
| Location | |
| Location | Thrissur |
| State | Kerala |
| Country | India |
  Location in Kerala Show map of Kerala Vadakkunnathan Temple (India) Show map of India | |
| Coordinates | 10°31′28″N76°12′52″E / 10.52444°N 76.21444°E /10.52444; 76.21444 |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Traditional Kerala style |
| Creator | Parashurama |
| Completed | Unknown |
| Specifications | |
| Temple | 3 |
| Monument | 1 |
| Website | |
| sreewadakkunathantemple | |
TheVadakkumnathan Temple is an ancientHindu temple dedicated toShiva inThrissur, in theThrissur district ofKerala, India. The temple is a classical example of thearchitectural style of Kerala and has onemonumental tower on each of the four sides in addition to akoothambalam. Mural paintings depicting various scenes from theMahabharata can be seen inside the temple.[1][2][3] Theshrines and theKuttambalam display vignettes carved in wood. The temple, along with the mural paintings, has been declared as a National Monument by India under theAMASR Act.[4] According to popular local lore, this is the first temple built byParashurama, the sixthavatar ofVishnu.Thekkinkadu Maidan, encircling the Vadakkumnathan Temple, is the main venue of the renownedThrissur Pooram festival.[1][2]
In 2012, theArchaeological Survey of India (ASI) has recommended 14 sites, including Vadakkumnathan Temple and palaces, from Kerala to include in the list ofUNESCOWorld Heritage Sites.[5] The temple is also the first one among the108 Shiva Temples in ancient Kerala, established by Parashurama, and is mentioned in the Shiva Temple Stotra asShrimad-Dakshina Kailasam, meaning 'Mt. Kailash of the South'.
Legends regarding the origins of the Vadakkumnathan Temple are briefly narrated in theBrahmanda Purana and these legends are referenced in some other works as well.[6] Though these accounts differ with respect to certain details, they are all in agreement regarding the central theme that the temple was founded byParashurama. According to lore, Parashurama requested the Lord of oceansVaruna to bring forth a new piece of land from the waters. Varuna complied and the land created became Kerala.
Parashurama now wanted to consecrate this new land. So he went toMount Kailasa to hisguru, the godShiva and requested him to take abode in Kerala and thereby bless the region. Shiva accompanied by his wifeParvati, his sonsGanesha andSubrahmanya and his routinue went along with Parashurama, to oblige his disciple. Shiva stopped at a spot, which is nowThrissur, for his seat. Later he and his party disappeared and Parashurama saw a bright and radiantLingam (non-anthropomorphic icon of Shiva) at the foot of a hugebanyan tree. This place where Shiva manifested his presence as a lingam is known inSanskrit as theSri Moola Sthana.
For sometime, the lingam remained atSri Moola Sthana at the foot of a huge banyan tree. The ruler ofCochin Kingdom then decided to shift the lingam to a more appropriate place and construct a temple around it. Arrangements were soon made for the new installation. But there was an initial difficulty. The lingam could not be removed without cutting off a large part of the banyan tree. This created the risk of damaging the lingam due to falling branches. As the ruler remained confounded, the Yogatirippadu came forward with a solution. He lay over the lingam so as to cover it completely with his body and asked the men to cut the tree. The cutting began and to everyone's astonishment, not a single branch of the tree fell anywhere near the deity. The deity was moved according to prescribed rituals and installed in the new place where it remains to this day. Subsequently, a temple was built around the deity, according to the rules specified in theShastras.[7][8][9]
The temple was built at the time ofPerumthachan fromParayi petta panthirukulam.[10] It is said that Perumthachan lived during the second century; so theKoothambalam may be more than 1,600 years old. According toMalayalam historianV. V. K. Valath, the temple was a pre-DravidianKavu (shrine). In the early days,ParamekkavuBhagavathi shrine was also situated inside the Vadakkunnathan temple. Subsequently, a new temple was built outside and the idol of the goddess was moved to that location. For comparison,Koodalmanikyam Temple,Kodungallur Bhagavathy Temple andAmmathiruvadi Temple,Urakam are older than the Vadakkunnathan temple, according to temple documents.[11]Some suggest that there have also been influences from Buddhist and Jain temples.
TheNambudiris who were entrusted with looking after temple affairs were called Yogiatiripppads. When Nambudiris gained control of the region, the temple also came under their domain. The Yogiatiripppads were elected from Thrissur desam. Prior toSakthan Thampuran's reign, the Yogiatiripppad system declined. Later, theMaharaja of Cochin gained presiding authority over the temple.
Adi Shankara is believed to have been born (509 BC) to Shivaguru and Aryamba ofKalady consequent to their prayers to Lord Vadakkumnathan, asamsavatara of Shiva. The couple devoutly prayed for 41 days at the temple. Legend has it that Shiva appeared to the couple in their dreams and offered them a choice. They could have either a mediocre son who would live a long life or an extraordinary son who would die early. Both Shivaguru and Aryamba chose the latter. In honour of Shiva, they named their son Shankara.[12][13] According to legend, Adi Shankara attainedvideha mukti ("freedom from embodiment") at the Vadakkunnathan temple. One narrative as expounded by theKeraliya Shankaravijaya, identifies the temple as his place of death.[14] He also established four Mutts at Thrissur, famously known asEdayil Madhom,Naduvil Madhom,Thekke Madhom andVadakke Madhom
During the invasion ofTipu Sultan, the temple was not attacked by Tipu's Army.[15] Even though Tipu Sultan destroyed many temples inThrissur district at that time, he never touched Vadakkumnathan Temple. According to historical accounts, when Tipu Sultan was marching towards theTravancore lines, known locally asNedumkotta, he had a short stay atThrissur city from 14 to 29 December 1789. In order to feed his Army, he had borrowed cooking vessels from Vadakkumnathan Temple. Before leaving Thrissur city, he not only returned the vessels, but presented the temple with a large bronze lamp.[16]
During 1750 to 1762, the temple affairs were conducted byZamorin of Calicut who attacked Thrissur and took control of the temple and the city. In 1762 with the help ofKingdom of Travancore,Maharaja of Cochin regained control over Thrissur and the temple.
WhenSakthan Thampuran, ascended the throne ofKingdom of Cochin, he changed the capital ofKingdom of Cochin fromThripunithura to Thrissur as the King had a personal relationship with Vadakkumnathan Temple. He later cleared the teak forest around the temple and introduced the famousThrissur Pooram festival. The King's personal interest in the temple also changed the fortune of the city.
The temple is situated on an elevated hillock in the centre ofThrissur City and is surrounded by a stone wall enclosing an area of nearly 9 acres (36,000 m2). Inside this fortification, there are fourgopurams facing four cardinal directions. Between the inner temple and the outer walls, there is a spacious compound, the entrance to which is through gopurams. Of these, the gopurams on the south and north are not open to the public. The public enter either through the east or west gopuram. The inner temple is separated from the outer temple by a broad circular granite wall enclosing a broad corridor calledChuttambalam. Entrance into the inner temple is through a passage through the corridor.
In the northern side, the main sanctum is a circular structure with main deity of the templeShiva facing west and behind him, his consortParvati facing east, denoting their combined formArdhanarishvara. Shiva, is worshipped in thesanctum as a 16-foot-high (4.9 m)lingam, which is covered entirely by a mound ofghee, formed by the dailyabhishekam (ablution) with ghee over the years. The lingam is embellished with thirteen cascading crescents of gold and three serpent hoods on top. According to traditional belief, the ghee-covered lingam represents the snow-cladMount Kailash, the abode of Shiva. This is the only temple where the lingam is not visible.[citation needed] It is said that the ghee offered here for centuries does not have any foul odour and it does not melt even during summer. But even then, it breaks in parts during some periods. Such periods are considered to be beneficial or harmful depending upon the part and area of the breaking.
Located on the verandah of theNalambalam is a large white bullNandikeswara, Shiva'svehicle. The two-storied rectangular shrine of the godRama facing west is located in the south. Between these two sanctums (srikovils) stands a third one, circular and double-storied in shape, which is dedicated toShankaranarayana, the combined form of Shiva andVishnu, facing west. There aremukhamandapams (halls) in front of all the three central shrines.[17] It is said thatHanuman resides in the mandapam in front of Rama's sanctum.
The two important murals – which are more than 350 years old – in the temple,Vasukisayana (reclining Shiva) andNrithanatha (20-armedNataraja), are worshipped daily.[18] The temple also houses a museum of ancient wall paintings, wood carvings and art pieces of ancient times.[18]
Ganesha shrine is positioned facing the temple kitchen. The offering ofAppam (sweetened rice cake fried in ghee) to him is one of the most important offerings at the temple. Propitiating him here is believed to be a path to prosperity and wealth.
In the outer temple, there are shrines forKrishna (Gosala Krishna or Gopala Krishna; Krishna as a cowherd), Nandikeswara, Parashurama, Simhodara (Shiva'sgana),Ayyappa (Shiva and Vishnu's son, especially venerated in Kerala), Vettekkaran (Shiva as a hunter),Serpent deities andAdi Shankara. Also, there are places here to worshipKashi Vishwanatha, Nataraja,Ramanathaswamy, GoddessBhadrakali (ofKodungallur Temple),Bharata (of theKoodalmanikyam Temple) and GoddessDurga (ofAmmathiruvadi Temple).
Outside the main temple, there are shrines for the two sons of Shiva and Parvati –Subrahmanya (Kartikeya) and Ganapathi (Ganesha). Both these temples are of much recent origin, having built only in 1940's. Both are located beneath two giantbanyan trees, namelyManikantan Aal andNaduvil Aal. The Subrahmanya Temple under Manikantan Aal, which is located at the south-western side of Vadakkumnathan Temple, was built by some local devotees who were furious by the continuous speeches of political leaders duringIndian Independence Movement happening under Manikantan Aal. The idol here represents Lord Subrahmanya with his two consorts –Valli andDevasena, sitting over apeacock. He is installed facing east. Palabhishekam (Pouring milk over the idol) andPanchamrutham are the main offerings of the temple.Thaipooyam is the main festival here. Along that,Shashti days important for Lord Subrahmanya. The Ganapathi temple under Naduvil Aal, located exactly to the west of Vadakkumnathan Temple, is actually just a small setup, without any sanctum or other traditional temple features. The main deity, Lord Ganapathi, is installed facing west, in a mode of welcoming those entering the city from the western side.Vinayaka Chathurthi is the main festival in the temple.
The temple theatre, known asKoothambalam, has four magnificent gateways calledGopurams and the lofty masonry wall around the temple quadrangle are imposing pieces of craftsmanship and skill. The Koothambalam is used for stagingKoothu,Nangyar Koothu andKoodiyattam, an ancient ritualistic art forms of CentralKerala. According to folk lore, before the new Koothambalam was built, there used to be an old and dilapidated structure. Then DiwanT. Sankunni Menon ordered to demolish the structure and construct a new Koothambalam. He gave this task to VelanezhyNambudiri, a famousThachushasthranjan or master craftsman, who built the structure.Velanezhy Illom is in Venganellur Gramam,Chelakkara town.
Maha Shivaratri is the main festival which is celebrated in the temple.[19] Cultural and musical programmes are held in the temple premises. Around onelakh temple lamps are lighted in the festival. On this day, there is the continuousabhishekam on the lingam withghee and tendercoconut. The temple is not closed in the night, and there will be special poojas with abhishekam on the day.
TheAanayoottu of feeding of elephants, is the second biggest festival held in the temple. The devotees refer to elephants as the elephant-headed godGanesha's incarnation. The festival falls on the first day of the month of Karkkidakam of theMalayalam calendar (July). It has been the regular annual practice at the temple for the last 20 years to conduct a large-scaleAshta Dravya Maha Ganapathy Havana andAanayoottu on the first day of the Karkidakom month of theMalayalam calendar. It involves a number of unadorned elephants being positioned amid a multitude of people for being worshipped and fed. A large number of people throng the temple to feed the elephants.Gajapooja also is conducted once every four years.
Thrissur Pooram is called the mother of all Poorams in Kerala. In Malayalam it is called "poorangalude pooram". This is conducted in the Malayalam month of Medam. The deities from Parmekavu and Thiruvambady temple along with other small poorams come engage in festivities in front of Vadakkumanathan. It is a 36 long hour festival which attracts thousands of devotees and tourists. The main attractions of Pooram are Madathilavaravu panchavadhyam, Elanjithara melam, Kudamattam and Vedikettu.
A comprehensive conservation/ restoration of the temple adhering to the traditional architectural principles of Kerala was completed in 2015. The main Temple enclosure including the sanctum, the Naalambalam, Vilakkumaadam, outer shrines and the landscape was restored in the project, whereas the work on theGopurams is ongoing as of 2025. Stakeholders includeCochin Devaswom Board,Archaeological Survey of India, VGKT – Vengugopalaswamy Kanikaryam Trust (corporate Social Responsible Project ofTVS Motor Company), dd Architects – the local project coordinator, and Kanippayur Krishnan Namboodirippad,Vastu shastra Consultant. As a functioning religious space and a protected monument, the project was proposed by balancing conservation principles and traditional practices. After a detailed decay analysis, it was decided to follow the traditional systems of building and ritualistic conservation of Jeernodharana (Deliverance from Decay) as per the local treaties and traditions. The works were carried out by following non-destructive methods and by preserving the authenticity of the existing structures. Indigenous knowledge systems have been utilized, thereby reviving age-old construction and conservation techniques. A deliberate revival of the tangible and the intangible took place when the ancient techniques and planning principles were reused in the project to work with traditional materials that were prepared using authentic and historical methods. All stages of the project kick-started with appropriate rituals connected to the temple. Local units of measurement and principles as explained inVastu shastra and Thachusastra were implemented. Traditional lime plastering and masonry techniques and carpentry were efficiently utilised with the help of 300-plus skilled craftsmen. The Project received theUNESCO Asia Pacific Award of Excellence for Cultural Heritage Conservation in 2015.[20][21][22]
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