Lord Parashuram built the Chettikulangara Bhagavathy Temple, which is now a well-known place to visit in Kerala. The temple is in Mavelikara, which is in the district of Alleppey. It has been there for more than 1200 years. The temple is for Bhadrakali, Bhagavathy, or Jagadambika, and it is spread out over 13 God-chosen regions (Karas). It is in the middle of the first four Karas, which are Erezha South, Erezha North, Kaitha South, and Kaitha North. In this temple, you can see the Goddess Bhagavathy in three different ways: in the morning as Saraswathi Devi, in the afternoon as Lakshmi Devi, and in the evening as Bhadrakali Devi or Maa Durga.
The temple is now run by the Travancore Devaswom Board, which brings in the most money. The Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple comes in second, bringing in the second most money. Near the temple, there are a number of smaller gods, and a number of Prathishtas have been fixed or added in accordance with the Deva Prashnam.
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History
The legend says that when a few local chieftains went to see the yearly celebrations at the Koypallikarazhma Bhagvati Temple, they were attacked by the temple’s leaders. So they came up with the idea of building a temple at Chettikulangara. The Karanavars then agreed that it was their duty to do bhajan for 12 days and ask Goddess Kodungallur Bhagavathy to bless them. People say that Devi gave them “Swapna Darshanam” and the next day, they went back to Chettikulangara with a holy sword that the Velichappadu of the Kodungalur temple had given them. Another story says that Padmapadacharya, one of Adi Shankaracharya’s most important students, promised to build this temple on the Uthrittathi day of the Makara month in 823.
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Sub-Deities of the Temple
There are a number of sub-gods, or Upadevathas, near the temple. They are:
- Yakshini
- Ganapathi
- Nagarajav
- Balakan
- Muhurthi
- Naga Yakshi
- Thevara Moorthy
- Kannamballi Bhagavathi
- Reshas
- Vallyachan
There is also a small temple for Moolasthanam.
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Other aspects of the temple
The other part of the Chettikulangara Bhagavathy Temple is the Kuthuvilakku, a huge oil lamp. This lamp is made of rock and has a very large number of wicks. The temple is well-known for its events, which have drum music, bright colours, and traditional dances that are only done there.
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Fairs And Festivals
In February and March, there are a lot of big parties and gatherings. The first is Bharani, which happens during these months and brings the whole temple and big feasts to life. The second is the Kumbham event, which is a time of fun and merriment. During this event, a lot of tourists come to this place because it is known as the Kumbha Mela of the South. Kuthiyottam and Kettukazhcha are two well-known dances from this event. Kuthiyottam is performed as an offering to the god, and Kettukazhcha shows carved and decorated forms of six temple cars called “Kutiras” and five “Therus” with images of Hanuman and Bhima. Ethirelpu Ulsavam and Aswathy Ulsavam are two other events that happen in February and March.
So, if you go on vacation to Alleppey or Alappuzha, you should put this holy place on your list of things to do.
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