Interesting Facts about Guruvayur Temple
The southern state of Kerala is well-known for many things, including being home to a plethora of magnificent temples. While some became famous for their architectural beauty, others became popular for their richness and intriguing history.
The famous Guruvayur temple located in the culture-rich Thrissur district is one such temple that is famous for its historical significance. Also referred to as the ‘Dwaraka (birth place of Lord Krishna) of the South’, there are a number of interesting legends associated with this temple too. Here is a look at some interesting facts about the Guruvayur temple:
1. You cannot talk about Kerala’s history without mentioning this temple too. Also known as Guruvayur Sree Krishna Temple, it is dedicated to the worship of Lord Vishnu and the young form of Lord Krishna. Amongst the many myths and documented historical events is the famous myth related to Lord Krishna. He is believed to have set his charioteer, Udhava, on a mission to save the idol of Lord Vishnu worshipped by him in Dwaraka. Udhava took the help of the ‘Guru’ of Gods and ‘Vayu’, the Lord of Winds and took the idol to far-away Kerala and installed it there. The place has since been known as ‘Guru-Vayu-ur’. It is also believed to have been known as the temple of the savior of mankind during troubled times.
2. Various art forms are celebrated in this temple. This includes the Sanskrit drama Krishnanttam. It is unique to this temple and depicts the life of Lord Krishna in eight episodes. It’s a combination of traditional music and pantomime with masked demons and other characters with painted faces. It’s a true representation of the region’s cultural heritage.
3. The Guruvayur temple is famous for its temple elephant festival when large crowds gather including foreign and domestic tourists. The elephants are dressed magnificently and paraded for various performances by their mahouts. The Guruvayur temple is famous for being home to a large population of captive male Asian elephants. These pachyderms live at the Punnathur Kotta elephant sanctuary which includes around 56 elephants. This sanctuary is located just around a couple of kilometers away from the most revered Guruvayur temple in Thrissur district. Tourists regularly flock to this sanctuary to visit the captive elephants. Some of these elephants have their own interesting legends attached to them!
4. Interestingly, even though the Guruvayur temple is one of the most-visited temples in Kerala and an important pilgrimage spot for Hindus, it wasn’t open to the lower caste Hindus till the early 1930’s. Even the streets around the temple were considered sacred with the lower caste Hindus not allowed anywhere near them! It took a Satyagraha (inspired by Gandhiji’s movement) when political greats took to leadership to fight for the rights of the lower caste Hindus. In spite of various compromises reached, it was only after independence that Guruvayur temple finally opened its doors to all classes of Hindus.
5. Every great event in history has been recorded extensively in writing or in storytelling. According to ancient texts, the main shrine of Guruvayur temple was rebuilt in 1630s after having been repeatedly plundered by the Dutch and Tipu Sultan. All this changed when the temple came under the administration of the Zamorin of Calicut in 1298. Since then, the temple has been flourishing with many well-known devotees writing extensively in Malayalam about the many miracles that have taken place here. Manaveda, the Zamorin of Calicut even authored a drama in Sanskrit to bring devotees closer to their God.
If you are intrigued and want to visit the Guruvayur temple, plan on spending the whole day. Getting here is easy as there are many trains plying to-and-fro from Guruvayur to Thrissur and further onwards. The closest airport is in Kochi.
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What’s more, every Vishraam home is constructed responsibly, without harming the environment. Do have a look at them.
