EVOORMAJOR SRI KRISHNASWAMY TEMPLE,NEAR HARIPAD, ALLEPPY DISTRICT- KERALA-COMPILED
Dear friends, Srikrishna swamy temple in Evoor is near Haripad in the AlleppeyDistrict of Kerala. It is a major temple under Travancore Devaswam board. Thetemple is said to have originated fivemillennium ago following Khandava Dahanam in Dwapara Yuga. Temple in itscurrent form was built by Travancore king Sri Moolam Thirunal. Today my posting is about this temple. Tomorrow beingJanmashtami, it must be more appropriateof this posting on Lord Krishna today. Hope a divine reading. Gopalakrishnan 15-08-2025 Introduction The origin of the temple is connected with Khandava VanaDahanam an important episode in the famous Indian epic Mahabharata. This temple has some unique identifications from other MahaVishnu (Sree Krishna) temples. This is the onlytemple where Lord Sree Krishna presides over in the furious form.The deity is the unique Prayoga Chakra Prathishta. The idol of the deity isthat of Chathurbahu (four armed) Maha Vishnu holding Sankhu and Chakra in twohands and butter in third hand. One hand is held on hip as 'Mani Bandham'. As the deity is in furious form Raktha Pushpanjali isoffered to the deity which is not performed elsewhere in other Sree Krishnatemples. Prana Prathishta (consecration of the idol) was done by LordKrishna himself upon the request of Agni and the first worship was performed byArjuna the third brother among the Pandavas. Evoor Srikrishna Swami Temple, also known as Onattukara'sGuruvayoor is one of the major Krishna temples in Kerala. Legend(Mahabharata ) Agni, after devouring clarified butter uninterrupted fortwelve years from Swetaki's Yagja, suffered a stomach ailment. Lord Brahma advised him to consume the Khandava forest.The forest was abode toTakshaka, the Naga leader and friend of Indra. Whenever Agni tried toconsume the forest Indra, with his thundershowers, stopped him. Agni turned toArjuna and Krishna for assistance. Agni armed Arjuna with the mighty bowGandiva which rivalled Pinaka, the bow of Lord Shiva himself. When Arjuna and Krishna arrived atKhandava forest Kanva Maharishi approached them with a request to spare hisArca moorthy (a four handed idol of Vishnu) Krishna granted the request. Arjuna constructed a Sarakoodam to shelter Agni. Under theSarakoodam Agni consumed the forest and was cured of the ailment. Grateful, Agni, expressed his wishto install Arca moorthy in a new temple there to facilitate worship. Asinstructed by Sri Krishna, Arjuna fired an arrow to determine an auspiciouslocation for the proposed temple. The place where the arrowlanded was used to construct the new temple. Evoor is a corrupt form of Eythoor(place where arrow was shot). Krishna performed Prana-Pratishtha and Arjuna performed thefirst pooja. Bhoothanathaswamy( Kiratha Murthy form of Lord Shiva) and YakshiAmma ( Devi Parvathy) were consecrated as the Sub Deities. Yakshiamma is adisguised form of Devi Parvathy. Sreebhoothanatha Swamy deity. Arjuna was praying in the KhandavaForest for the boon(s), and to test him Shiva-Parvathy appeared before Arjunanas primitive folks. As Arjun could not identify Shiva-Parvathy, he fought withLord Shiva. The arrows of Arjuna became leaves and flowers on the body of Shivaand later on Arjuna realised that the primitive folks were none other thanShiva-Parvathy. To remindus in this Kali Kalam that “Lord Shiva is the body of Panchabhootha”, he stillblesses the devotees as Upadevatha- Sreebhoothanatha Swamy at Evoor Temple. History About one and a half century ago the temple burnt when thesanctum Santorum caught fire. The idol was recovered from the burning temple.The then King Moolam Thirunal who was visiting Kashi had a vision in his dreamasking him to reconstruct the temple. He returned right away and constructed anew temple. Deities Main Deity-Lord Sri Krishna Other Deities-Bhoothanathaswamy (Avatar of Lord Siva), YakshiAmma Poojas Morning Palliyunarthal - 04:45 AM Nada Thurappu - 04:50 AM Nirmalyam - 05:00 AM Usha Pooja - 07:00 AM Pantheeradi Pooja - 08:00 AM Kalabha Charthu - 10:30 AM Ucha Pooja - 11:00 AM Nadayadappu - 11:30 AM Evening Nada Thurappu - 05:00 PM Deeparadhana - 06:30 PM Athazha Pooja - 07:30 PM Nadayadappu - 08:00 PM Summary- Daily Poojas: 05(Usha Pooja, Ethritha Pooja,Pantheeradi Pooja, Ucha Pooja, Athazha Pooja) Sreebali: 3 times Special Poojakal(Festival time): Navakam, Anchupooja,Sreebhoothabali, Ultsavabali Festivals The 10-day annual festival is held in the Malayalam month ofMakaram (January). Makara Utsavam starts with the hoisting of the Garudaprinted flag and following various rituals and cultural events is pulled downafter the Aarattu ceremony as the Lord proceeds for Pallikkuruppu (Holy Sleep).The ulsava of days 7, 8, and 9 are sponsored by three karas one at a time. Onthe ninth day there is Kala-kettu (decorated effigies of Bulls. Karakal conductingannual festival Evoor South, Evoor North and Evoor North West are thekarakal. 7th day of thiru ulsavam conducted by Evoor South kara.8th day of thiru ulsavam conducted by Evoor North kara. 9th day of thiruulsavam conducted by Evoor North West kara. Evoor “Utsavam” lasts for ten days.Beginning is on the first day of ‘Makaram’ (January). It ends after the“Aaaraattu” (Holy Bath). All ten days, the place wears a festive look, streetsdressed up with arches, festoons, etc. Every building is tastefully decoratedwith lights, plantain trunks, bunches of coconut and areca nuts. It starts with“Kotiyettam ” (Flag Hoisting) by the Tantri. The events of first five days are sponsored jointly by Travancore Devaswom board and specific groups ofdevotees. Three ‘Karas’ (villages) namely Evoor South, Evoor North andEvoor North-West conduct the events of days 7 , 8 and 9 respectively. Each‘Kara’ competes with others to make own “ Utsavam” the best. The Utsavam endson the tenth day with a lot of rituals. Evoor Vishu Darshanam Conducting every year by "ANUSTANAM" - KshtrakalaSamskarika Samithi(Temple Cultural Organisation) in the first day of Malayalammonth 'Medam'. The Vishu Darsanam today is a result of a revelation to amember of Karazhma family. He dreamt that a small boy, with coins in a bronzevessel, came out from the Sanctum of the temple and distributes the coins tothe devotees. On describing the dream to his father who was the eldest in the family,the member got to know some more such experiences. Kathakali-Kathakali is a stylized classicalIndian dance-drama noted for the attractive make-up of characters, elaboratecostumes, detailed gestures and well-defined read more Velakali-Velakali is originated from themartial arts in Kerala. Velakali is considered as a leisure art. It isperformed by men in some of the temples like Ambalapuzha, Takazhi etc. My note- Velakali on theevening sreebali on 7th,8th days of festival in my nativeLord Krishna temple also Other FestivalsAssociated with Evoor Temple Evoor Vishu Darshanam, Aiyalyam Makam, Shankaranthi VallamKali, Tiruvonam Ulsavam, Ashtami Rohini, Kuchela dinam, etc . There was a tradition of giving coins on the Vishu day to thedevotees by the temple priest. Later on, along with coins the Trimaduram (banana mixed with Honey, jiggery, Sugar and Ghee) was also distributed to thedevotees. It has been believed that Trimaduram got medicinal value due toLord’s offering. Later on, withpassage of time, Devaswam has stopped this custom and they started charging forsuch offering. After some years this custom was totally stopped. Gradually the custom has come to effect though the threemembers who have relentlessly worked for this had to face a lot of hardships.But they overcome all these with the blessings of Lord and their testimoniesprove that. Later on, many devotees have come forward for this cause andoffered their whole hearted help. Thus, Evoor Vishu Darsanam is now worldfamous. Major Boat Races in Keralaare: a. Champakulam Moolam Boat Race b. Aranmula Uthrattadi Vallamkali c. Payippad Jalotsavam d. Nehru Trophy Boat Race Every year the boat race is being organized by people livingin Evoor north, south and north west on karkadaka sankrama day (first day ofmalayalam month 'Karkkidakam'). The boat with the garland given from temple sanctum sanctorum will moveto Pathiyoor Devi temple with the accompaniments of vadya melam and vanchipattu.At the Pathiyoor Devi temple, they will be welcomed by thambulam (betal leaf),karikku (tender coconut) and vazhakkula (banana). After giving their offeringsto temple, people will return to Evoor. Later there will be saynapradakshinom(is done in a lying posture the devotees have eight parts of their bodiestouching the ground) at Arattu kottaram. After the vazhipadu vallasadhya (feast), boats and kalivallams containing the idol of Sreekrishna will move in a procession toKannamangalam temple for darshan. The sankrama festival will end by thekarikku function to be held in front of sribudhanatha sannidhi of templepremise. Velakali is consideredas a leisure art. It is performed by men in some of the temples likeAmbalapuzha, Takazhi Sree Dharmashasta Temple, Evoor Sreekrishna Swami Temple.The dancers clad in traditional clothes and colourful headgear of the medievalNair soldiers, engage in dynamic movements and expert sword play. There aremany legends related to the origin of Velakali and the important one is that once Lord Krishna wasplaying with his friends in a pond full of lotus flowers. Later on they havecome on the bank with lotus leaves and buds and were playing. That time Narada, who was coming that, way has seen this and he waspleased by this. Narada has advised Villvamangalam who ardently wanted thekeralties to be Krishna Devotees, to start this play at all Vishnu Temples. After that while praying to Lord Krishna, Villvamangalamhad seen Lord Krishna played with his friends. With this Villavamangalam campaigned for this play at allVishnu temples in Kerala. They have adopted the Sword and shield in place ofLotus Buds and leaves. The martial arts of Kerala has influenced this form alot and Velakali is still being performed in the present form in many templeslocated in South Kerala with great vigour. Offerings in thetemple Raktha Pushpanjali. Chathushatha Nivedyam,Thrikkaivenna Trimaduram ,Aaalvilakku Thelikkal Bhagavatha Parayanam,Vallasadya Udayasthamana Pooja,Pushpabhishekam Lakshmi Narayana pooja,Akandanama Japama Paalpayasam,Pushpanjali Muzhukkappu and Chuttuvilakku Kathakali,Vishnu Pooja Vishnu Sahasranama Archana For Sree Bhuthanathan Dhara,Vettila and Pappadam Parathal,Neeranjanam Vellanivedyam, Avilpanthirazhi For Sree Yekshiyamma Varapodi, Therali Nivedyam and Thettimala Specialty It is pertinent to mention that Shiva as sub-deity in aVaishanava Temple is rarest and only seen in Evoor Temple. It is placed at theNorth-East portion of the main temple the deity is of Lord Shiva’s ‘KirathaBhavam’. The ancient Sri Krishnaswamy temple which formed in thepresence of Bhagavan Sri Krishna himself and it is among the important 26 Mahavishnu shrines. Fire andRe-construction The temple was destroyed in a fire about 125 years. Manypeople tried to remove the deity when the “Sreekovil” caught fire, but allefforts were in vain. Finally, an old Brahmana devotee who was residing next tothe temple, after taking a dip in the temple pond, walked through the engulfingflames and brought out the deity unharmed.The then King of Travancore, SriMoolam Thirunal had a dream when he was in Kasi. Lord Krishna disguised as aBrahmana boy asked the Kind to re-build the Evoor Temple. Soon, on his arrival from Kasi, the King re-built the presenttemple with palatial amenities such as security trenches atop the roof allaround and underground drainage network to drain the ‘abhisheka water’ from‘Sreekovil’ to the adjacent temple tank. In this temple tank only Arattu isperformed. Head priest The renowned ‘Tharananalloor Tantri‘ (whose ancestors werebrought to Kerala by Sri Parashurama) was appointed as the hereditary ‘Tantri ’or priest of this temple. Anushtanam In memory of Evoor Sankara Rama Iyer, the doyen in the fieldof ashtapathy rendering, Sankara Rama Iyer with his dep voice and mellifluousrendering of the padams from Jayadevas 'Githa Govindam', raised this ritual tothe levels of a classical art form. Anushtanam launched on 04th ay 1997 hasestablished itself in the cultural map of Kerala with host of performances ofKoodiyattom, Kathakali, Chakyarkoothu and Concerts, in addition to seminars onthe various aspects of different art forms. Sreekrishna GeethaSamithi Established on 1120 - Malayalam year, take care the libraryon Hindu religious books. Conducting religious study centre-Geetha Classes anddiscussion on every Sunday, Akhanda Nama Japam –on 1st of Every MalayalamMonth. Recitation of Bhagavatham- Every Rohini Star day of Malayalam Months.Malayalam Month Chingam-Ashtami Rohini-Saptaham Yajnjam, Procession fromRamapuram Goddess’ Temple and Kathakali. Also conducting Vaisakha Ekadasi andDaily Vedanta study Evoor SapthahayenjaSamithi Established on 1992. Conducting Sreemad Sapthahayenjam whichcomes to and end on Mandalakala Samapanam (41) SreekrishnaNarayaneeya Samithi Conducting the study and parayanam of Narayaneeyam in thetemple. Coordinating the Moola Bhagavatha Sapthahaynjam in the month of Thulammalayalam year. Also conducting narayaneeya parayanavum in other important daysin temple. Annadana Samithi Established on 1995, this organisation arranging the kanjisadya to the childrens of mathapadashala(school for studying religiousthoughts). Now kanjisadya(Poridge) isconducted every Sunday. Vishnu Vinayaka AanaPremi Sangam Recently formed an organisation, they conducting 'Gajamela'in the time of temple annual festival. How To Reach By Air: Trivandrum International Airport is 111 KM from theTemple. By Rail: Kayamkulam Junction Railway Station is 8.3 KM fromthe Temple. By Road: Harippad KSRTC Bus Station is 7.3 KM from theTemple. Address and phonenumber Evoor Sree Krishna Swamy Temple Cheppad Railway Station Road Cheppad – 690507 Contact: Cheppad Grama Panchayat Phone: +91-479-2412264 Website: www.evoortemple.org Phone: 1800 425 4747 Temple timings Open 4 .50 AM⋅ Closes 11 am ⋅Reopens 5 pm Closes 8 PM Indian Independence Day might affect these hours Location Evoor temple is situated near the Cheppad Railway station(Between Kayamkulam and Harippad) and on NH-47. It is on the coastal railwayroute. You can get down at Cheppad Junction and go by an auto-rickshaw to Evoortemple. Nearest bus stations are Kayamkulam (7km north) and Harippad(5km south). One can get down at the Evoor Temple bus stop ( south of Cheppadand north of Ramapuram Devi temple ) on NH-47 and walk up to the temple whichis about 1 km east of NH-47. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/2026547005.103619.1755241403714%40mail.yahoo.com.
