----- Forwarded message ----- From: Gopala Krishnan <[email protected]>To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>; "[email protected]" <[email protected]>Sent: Monday 2 June, 2025 at 02:13:12 pm ISTSubject: [KeralaIyers] SHRI DHARMA SASTHA TEMPLE-SASTHAMKOTTA, QUION DISTRICT- KERALA SHRIDHARMA SASTHA TEMPLE-SASTHAMKOTTA, QUION DISTRICT- KERALA-COMPILED
Dear friends, Today my posting is about the famous Sri Dharma Sastha templeat Sasthamkotta in the Quilon District of Kerala. Here the deity is Grihastha withhis third wife Prabha andson Sathyaka. Other two wives are Poorna and Pushkala. The primary attraction of Sasthamcotta is its magnificent lake, the largestfreshwater lake in Kerala. Nostalgic memories come to me answeringit as a Question Answer in the primary school. Spanning an area of approximately 375 hectares, SasthamcottaLake is surrounded by lush greenery and hills, providing a stunning backdropfor visitors. Shri Dharma Sastha temple is surrounded three sides by thelargest fresh water lake of Kerala, Sasthamkotta lake. Sasthamkotta Lake is also known as the "Queen of Lakes".Sasthamkotta Lake is not directly on a river, but it is located in thedownstream side of the KalladaRiver basin and is separated from the Kallada River by an earthenembankment. The lake's mainwater sources are direct rainfall and underground recharge, with some wateralso flowing from the Kallada River into the rice fields that border the lake. Sasthamkotta Lake inKerala is a natural freshwater lake, not artificial. It is the largest freshwater lakein Kerala and a Ramsar site, meaning it is internationally recognized for itsecological importance. The lake is known for its high water purity, attributedto a unique larva that eliminates bacteria. Sasthamkotta is famous for the Sasthamkotta Lake, and for the ancient Sastha Temple located on itsbanks, making it a significant pilgrimage site. Additionally, Sasthamkotta isrecognized for its large monkey population, particularly around the temple,which are considered sacred. Hope a divine reading. Gopalakrishnan 2-6-2025 Introduction The Sasthamkotta Sree Dharmasastha temple is one of fiveancient Sastha temples located in Kerala. The scenic setting of the temple,located by the banks of the Sasthamkotta Lake, Kerala's largest freshwaterlake, makes it a beautiful sight. Legend has it that LordRama worshipped the swayambhu idol here while en route on his journey to findSita who was abducted by Ravana. The temple is one amongthe five ancient Sastha temples in Kerala - AchanKoil, Aryankavu, Kulathupuzha,Sabarimala and Sasthamcotta. Legend Once a prince of Pandalam married a princess from the royalfamily of Kayamkulam and settled there. The prince, who used to regularly prayto lord Ayyappa in Sabarimala found it difficult to continue his routinemonthly visits because of his close attachment with Princess of Kayamkulam andnot able to leave her for days. This displeased lord Ayyappa and the signs ofthe lord’s displeasure started showing within the royal family. The princerepented for the mistake, set out to Sabarimala and worshipped there for aperiod of twelve days. The worries about managing the Sabarimala darshan, disturbedhim all along. On the night of the 12th day of worship, lord Ayyappa appearedbefore him in his dream and suggested that he better continue to stay atKayamkulam itself. Instead of visiting Sabarimala, the lord asked to visitSasthamcotta and worship him where the same divine presence of Sabarimalaexisted. The lord also said that a youngster who comes to theforthcoming festival at Kayamkulam palace will help to locate the place. Assaid in the dream, a youngster who participated in the archery competition ofthe festival shot an arrow. A team, including the Prince and the youngster,started towards the eastern direction in search of the arrow to declare thewinner. Finally they reached the bank of this lake. They found that arrow on asmall island in that lake. Surprisingly, there was a small platform on which the idol oflord Ayyappa was being worshipped by a monkey clan. At that time the young mandisappeared. The Kayamkulam and Pandalam kings then renovated andbuilt the temple in its present form. The concept of Dharma Sastharepresents the unison of Vaishnava and Shaiva beliefs. The history of the idolwas based on the period of the Ramayana. It is believed that after thevictory over Ravana, lord Rama along with his wife Sita, brother Lakshmana andwhole monkey sena visited Sasthamcotta to pay their reverence to Dharma Sastha. On the banks of the Sasthamcotta, Sri Rama offered therites to ancestors which is supposed to be identical to Surya Raga Theertha ofManasarovar. Lord Rama then deputed the chief architect of his monkeyteam, Neelan to serve his host. That is the way the idol here got itssignificance. Legend about the present deity in Sasthamcotta temple is none other than theswayambhu idol worshipped by Lord Ram during his trip to Lanka (Sri Lanka) insearch of his consort, Sita. Rama then deputed Neelan, the chief architect ofthe army of monkeys to serve the Lord there. That is how the monkeys came to bethere. History The temple was built by a prince of Pandalam and Kayamkulam Royal families. Architecture The temple has a spectacular ambience with Kerala style ofarchitecture. Sanctum There is a self-originated big rock and a number of smallerrocks similar to Salagramam, in the sanctum that receives the adoration. The water poured during abhishekamdoes not flow out; it goes down and is believed to go to the lake. The rituals as well asastrological revelations show that the spot must have been the place of worshipfor the Shaiva, Vaishnava, Koula and Budha sects. The name of the place,Shasthamkotta (the fort of Shastha) is also associated with Dharma Shastha.Historically also the place must have been a forest. While the other animalsleft when the temple was built according to order of sastha, the monkeys alonepermitted to remain in the area. The monkeys remained there as there were enough trees andfruits for them to survive. Special provision is made for the food for themonkeys and devotees also contribute to it. Chief Deity The temple is dedicated to Lord Dharma sastha (Ayyappa). My note- According tocopper plate writings at Sreevallabha temple, the deity Lord Dharma Sastha and Ayyappa are thesame. The Lord at Sabarimala is Dharma sastha in his incarnation as Brahmachari. Pandalam royal family son was “ Mani khanta”, who got himself entered into Dharma sastha after tiger milk incident. Ref-Dr Sasi bhooshan,Historian,Kerala. The Dharmasastha (deity) here is said to have the same powers as that of Lord Ayyappain Sabarimala and the place derives the name from the deity, theformer name being Kotta. The ancient Sastha (Ayyappa, son of Shiva and Mohini [Vishnuin female form], according to legends) temple, which lends its name to thetown, is also dedicated to Lord Ganesha. The temple, though at the edge offorests and has hills on its side is also next to a small town that hasdeveloped next to it. Sub Deities: Sree Ganapathy, Lord Siva, Lord Madan Thampuran, Nagaraja,Nagayakshi, Yakshi, Rekshas, Yogeeswarans Offerings Ada 1 Koottu₹160 AravanaPayasam₹50 Ayilya Pooja₹35 Dhara- Jalam ( Continously)₹25 Ellu Paayasam₹55 GanapathyHomam₹60 Mrithyunjaya Havanam₹100 Nelpara₹120 Ottayappam₹50 Palpayasam₹40 Sooktha Pushpanjali₹30 TheraliNivedhyam₹60 Vara Nivedyam₹30 Entry is restricted toHindus. Offerings Ada 1 Koottu₹160 AravanaPayasam₹50 Ayilya Pooja₹35 Dhara- Jalam ( Continously)₹25 Ellu Paayasam₹55 GanapathyHomam₹60 Mrithyunjaya Havanam₹100 Nelpara₹120 Ottayappam₹50 Palpayasam₹40 Sooktha Pushpanjali₹30 TheraliNivedhyam₹60 Vara Nivedyam₹30 Entry is restricted toHindus. Festivals The highlight of this temple is the ten-day annual festival.During the festival, the colourful Kettukazhcha ritual procession, along withvarious folk arts such as Mayilattam, Kaala (bull motif), Kuthira (horsemotif), Ammankudam are performed. The festival concludes with the Arattu ceremony, fivecaparisoned elephants take part in a procession held at midnight. People going to the holy pilgrimageat Sabrimala, do comes here for Worship. Other important festivals are Mandala Maholsavam and MakaraSamkramam on Makaram, Navarathri, Sivarathri, Karkidaka vavu, Thiruvonal,Pathamudayam. Culture Sasthamcotta is a wellhistoric place where the Second World Religion Conference was held in 1971, inwhich the Global Religious Celebrities participated. Monkeys at Sasthamkotta The surroundings of the temple are covered by hills andforests. There are many monkeys inhabiting the premises, which are consideredholy. It is believed that LordHanuman at the time flying to Lanka in search of Goddess Sita, halted at thisplace also, and since then this Temple is a home for Monkeys. The monkeys are devotee-friendly,and the thousands of devotees visiting the temple take pleasure in feedingthese monkeys with nuts and fruits. Vanara Sadya This association is attributed to the temple having beenvisited by Lord Hanuman on his way to Lanka in search of Goddess Sita. Themonkeys here are honoured with offerings of a feast known as the Vanara Sadya. The feast is similar to that of theOnam sadya. Devotees who come to the temple also feed the monkeys fruitsand nuts. Feeding Monkeys atSasthamkotta Temple-addition One of the fascinating features of this temple is theabundance of monkeys that camp around. A few years ago, the monkeys began toface shortage of food and they began to snatch food from visitors to the templeand children going to nearby schools and colleges. The Courts then ordered the Devaswom (Temple) Board tomake arrangements to feed the monkeys of the temple adequately. The Board,being short of funds, sought support from well-wishers of the temple butadequate funds were not forthcoming. Mr Gopala B. Pillai, founder and presidentof Wild Republic, and a native of Sasthamkotta, heard about this dilemma and offered to set up a Trust Fundjointly with the Devaswom Board to ensure perpetual feeding of the monkeys. This was achieved in 1996 and since then the monkeys of thetemple have never been in want of food. On local festival days, when people feast at home, theTrust arranges a similar feast for the monkeys of the temple also. My note- In anearlier posting Mr Rajaram had stated, in his response that this statement is NOT TRUE about LordHanuman’s halt. On reading this also he may repeat the same, without any proof.I can only answer- These arelegends. No evidenceto show in Kaliyuga for an incidence happened in Thretha yuga. Temple Elephant -SasthamcottaNeelakandan Sasthamcotta Neelakandan is the elephant at SasthamcottaTemple . Neelakandan is the vital part of Sasthamcotta temple. He carries thedeity of the Lord Dharmasastha during annual festival processions andceremonial circumambulations in the temple. Nelakandan is donated by Sri. AjithKumar, who is a well known business man in the UAE, as his offering. Temple timings All days: 05:00 AM - 11:30 AM 05:00 PM - 08:00 PM How to Reach thetemple By Road-Kollam Bus Stand, about 29.2 km By Rail-Kollam Railway Station, about 28.9 km By Air-Thiruvananthapuram International Airport, about 83 km Administration The temple is under the administration of Travancore Devaswamboard. 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