Chottanikkara: The temple of Goddess Bhagawati

In South India & Kerala devotees who revere Goddess Bhagwathy recite the holy chant of Amme Narayana, Devi Narayana, Lakshmi Narayana, Bhadre Narayana in temples where the Goddess is the primary deity. This chant emanates from the temple of Chottanikkara which is one among the 108 Durga temples consecrated by Parasurama & in many ways is believed to be of great importance. The divinity of the temple is such that even the most important Bhagavathy temple in India at Mookambika awaits the opening of the Chottanikkara temple to conduct its daily pujas in the morning. The temple in the Ernakulam district of Kerala has for ages been the place of peace for not just the sane but also for the insane who came here to get healed from mental instabilities. The myths, legends, stories & rituals of the Chottanikkara Bhagavathy temple is one to know for all.

The temple is spread over a large area & the central shrine is called Melkavu where the principal deity resides while the Keezhukavu is where Bhadrakali is worshipped in her fiercest form. The Melkavu temple is where the deity is worshipped in three forms as per the time of the day, in the morning as Saraswati, in the afternoon as Mahalakshmi & in the evening as Durga. The idol of the deity in the sanctum is a rudraksha Shila with no features & thus there is a gold adornment which provides the features of the Goddess. The story of the temple stems from the presence of Lord Vishnu who is also present in the sanctum at the same pedestal, something not found anywhere & this is the reason why the goddess is praised along with the name Narayana. The idols in the sanctum are also revered based on the legend of its origin which comes from the story of a tribesman who lived in this part centuries ago. 

As per belief, the name of the man was Kannappan who was a devotee of Kali, the traditional deity of his people & in order to please the Goddess it was necessary to conduct animal sacrifice. Kannappan was the person responsible to conduct this ritual & on important days had to behead a buffalo. Kannappan out of devotion was cruel to all the animals which made him a person of no remorse. It so happened that one day he bought a buffalo which had a calf and his daughter played with the calf at their hut. After killing the buffalo for the next sacrifice there was a need for a calf & Kannappan placed this calf on the altar. As he was about to kill the calf his daughter held his legs & pleaded to spare her beloved pet. Kannappan though was cruel, loved his daughter & so spared the calf, he also took an oath to not conduct the ritual henceforth. This change of mind was welcomed by all in his village but in some days his daughter died under mysterious conditions. The whole village believed that Goddess Kali, upset with the decision to not perform sacrifice, caused the death of Kannappan’s daughter. The love of Kannappan was so much that he could not forgive himself & went into despair. One day as he was sleeping, a light in the cow shed made him worried & from far he saw a small child sitting in the shed looked upon by another person outside. Kannappan gripped in fear, hid in the house till daylight & in the morning went to the shed to find 2 stones stuck in the ground. The next day Goddess appeared in his dream saying that she was pleased with his devotion & was present in the stone. Kannappan from the day worshipped the idol till his death, villagers believed he had lost his insanity & ignored the shed. For a long time the area around was abandoned which resulted in growth of large trees and thick vegetation. One day a lady who was cutting grass came to this land and hit the stone with a sickle. She found blood on the weapon & worried that she killed some animal, looked for it but found only a stone covered in blood. When she wiped it, blood again oozed from the stone which made her worried & ran back to the village chief. The village chief along with others came to the place to see two stones under a Pavizhamalli tree. This tree is considered to be the one seen at the temple even today & was the earlier place where the idols were present. The story of the origin of the idols may be a myth but it is true that Parasurama did place the idols inside the sanctum & consecrated the temple for all to worship today as Lakshmi & Vishnu. It is also important to know that the Edattu Namboothiris were the first priests at the temple as upon finding the idols, the Namboothiri here performed the first pooja by offering puffed rice to the Goddess in a coconut shell. This ritual is still continued in the temple & the family still performs the pujas here as it is considered to be an hereditary obligation. 

It is also believed that the reverence to the Goddess Saraswathy is related to Adi Sankaracharya. Adi Sankaracharya wanted the Goddess to provide the virtue of knowledge to all & so he meditated in the himalayas to please her. Goddess Bhagwathy appeared & accepted his wish but warned the sage that she will follow him to anywhere he pleased but she would stop if he turned back. Adi Sankaracharya accepted this condition & led her to the south of the peninsula. Sankaracharya all along the path kept hearing the sound made by the anklets of the Goddess but as he descended the Kudajadri hills he could not hear the sound anymore. The sage worried by this out of desperation looked back & Goddess as per her promise stopped in her path turning into a stone idol. This place is today where one can find the Mookambika temple & Sankaracharya accepted the fate to worship Goddess. Adi Sankaracharya could not complete his initial mission & so he pleaded with the Goddess to complete the journey travelling further south. It is believed that Mookambika Devi after many efforts by the sage finally agreed to come to Chottanikkara. This belief is behind the unique ritual of opening the doors of the temple in Mookambika temple post the beginning of poojas at Chottanikkara giving importance to Goddess Saraswati before worshipping lokambika. This is also the reason why the deity at Chottanikkara is also called Rajarajeswari.

Though the devotion to Goddess as Saraswati, Lakshmi & Durga at the temple is why many come to the temple it is also necessary to know that the reverence of the temple spread around the lands due to the presence of the Keezukavu temple where Goddess is present in the fearsome form of Goddess Kali. It is believed that the temple can heal people who are possessed or have mental instability. The belief comes from another story attached to the temple where a Yakshi troubled all people around the temple. The Yakshi was cursed that her end would come if she entered the Chottanikkara temple. A namboothiri decided to end the menace of the yakshi & asked his friend to entice the Yakshi to the temple which he did & realising her mistake she grabbed the leg of the man who prayed to Goddess for help. Goddess Durga took the form of Kali & is said to have killed the Yakshi near the pond throwing her corpse under the tree while washing the blood in the pond. From that day it is believed by oracle’s that the tree or Palamaram at the temple is one which can rid a person who is possessed if prayed to Goddess Kali. The pond where Kali washed herself is called Rakthakulam. The idol of Kali inside the temple was placed by Vilwamangalam Swamiyar. One day while bathing in the pond,he was unable to come out as something was holding his leg. When he pulled the object, it was the idol of Goddess Kali & he consecrated this at the temple. The Keezukavu temple is where the most unique ritual of Guruthi is conducted in which during the olden times animal sacrifice was conducted & blood from the sacrifice ritual was used to cure the person who was possessed. Today after the new laws, no such sacrifice happens and the priests only provide the water coloured in Red to symbolise this age-old tradition. 

The Keezhukavu temple along with Guruthi is also a place which treats people who have mental instability. The affected come to the temple to pray to the Goddess for sanity & the priests conduct a long series of pujas which go on for weeks. The affected are not allowed to leave the premises of the temple & after days of prayers a strand of hair along with an iron nail is hammered onto the palamaram denoting the event of closure of the treatment. It is believed that many devotees have been treated and the palamaram not just rids people of trouble but also is a place where one can wish for any happiness in life like a child. The temple provides neem leaves to the cured while going home which is used to ward off evil spirits in future. All these are myths & beliefs but one that is still followed in the temple even today.

The temple is also the venue to celebrate one of the most beautiful events called Makamthuzhal which was initiated by Vilwamangalam Swamiyar. It is so believed that Swamiyar in the Mithuna lagna of Makam saw the Goddess in the most beautiful form dressed in all her divinity & this moment is still celebrated by all the devotees. On the auspicious day of MakamThuzhal the deity is taken for a bath in the pond & is brought back to the temple in a procession on caparisoned elephants accompanied by Lord Sastha who is present at the temple as a guard. The deity is kept inside the temple for rituals & after ucha puja the sanctum doors open exactly at the time when Swamiyar saw the Goddess for all to experience the same reverence. The idol of Goddess is decked with most glittering sari, fine jewellery & the four arms bearing varam (boon), abhayam (refuge), shank (conch) & chakram (disc) which symbolises to all fruits of both refuge & gift. It is believed that any person who witnesses the Goddess at the time of makamthuzhal is blessed to fulfil their desires & it is one of the most important festivals at the temple. 

The architecture of the temple is also of utmost importance here like it’s story. The temple is constructed on a large land and is in different levels as designed by Viswakarma himself. The temple was constructed by the sect called Vishwakarma Sthapathis who specialise in woodwork & exquisite carvings. This is clearly seen in the work done inside and outside the sanctum. 

The Chottanikkara temple in many ways is a symbol of the Kerala way of devotion where blessings of the Goddess is considered to be of utmost value. This ancient temple apart from its divine reverence has also been a place for social betterment, emotional enlightenment & spiritual upliftment.