Pazhanchira Devi Temple is a

Hindu temple A Hindu temple, also known as Mandir, Devasthanam, Pura, or Kovil, is a sacred place where Hindus worship and show their devotion to Hindu deities, deities through worship, sacrifice, and prayers. It is considered the house of the god to who ...

situated between Ambalathara and Paravankunnu in

Thiruvananthapuram district Thiruvananthapuram District () is the List of districts of Kerala, southernmost district in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. The district was created in 1949, with its headquarters in the city of Thiruvananth ...

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

state, India. It is about to the south of Padmanabhaswamy temple in

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the Capital city, capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. As of 2011, the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation had a population of 957,730 over an area of 214.86 sq. km, making it the ...

. The temple is from

Kovalam Kovalam is a beach and seaside resort in the city of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, India. Kovalam is located southeast of the city center. The beaches around Kovalam are popular vacation destinations for both domestic and international travelle ...

beach, from

Trivandrum International Airport Thiruvananthapuram International Airport is an international airport that serves Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala, India. Established in 1932, it is the first airport in the state of Kerala and the fifth international airport of ...

, from Thiruvananthapuram, from Attukal temple and from Thiruvallam Parasurama temple. This heritage structure is placed under the list of monuments of national importance.

Synopsis

The abode of Sree Pazhanchira Devi Temple is one of the most ancient temple, almost 700 years old and was installed by a '

Siddha ''Siddha'' (Sanskrit: '; "perfected one") is a term that is used widely in Indian religions and culture. It means "one who is accomplished." It refers to perfected masters who have achieved a high degree of perfection of the intellect as we ...

yogi A yogi is a practitioner of Yoga, including a sannyasin or practitioner of meditation in Indian religions.A. K. Banerjea (2014), ''Philosophy of Gorakhnath with Goraksha-Vacana-Sangraha'', Motilal Banarsidass, , pp. xxiii, 297–299, 331 ...

' who worshipped the Devi. Gradually this place was converted into a temple and there a place was given to the Yogi on the western side of the Sree Kovil. A kavu (small forest patch) which houses the serpent Gods is common in Travancore, which preserves the beauty and atmosphere gifted by nature. The temple has been recently renovated with a new chuttambalam which is an excellent example of Kerala Vasthu Vidya and temple architecture in the new age.

Deities and sub-deities

The Goddess

devi ''Devī'' (; ) is the Sanskrit word for 'goddess'; the masculine form is Deva (Hinduism), ''deva''. ''Devi'' and ''deva'' mean 'heavenly, divine, anything of excellence', and are also gender-specific terms for a deity in Hinduism. The concept ...

is the main deity in this temple. One important aspect of the temple is that the deity appears as an avatar of AdiParasakthi. Makayiram is considered as the star of the deity. There are many upadevathas (sub-deities) adjacent to the temple, and it has remanded, according to the Deva Prashnam by expert astrologers. The main upadevathas on the premises are #

Yogi A yogi is a practitioner of Yoga, including a sannyasin or practitioner of meditation in Indian religions.A. K. Banerjea (2014), ''Philosophy of Gorakhnath with Goraksha-Vacana-Sangraha'', Motilal Banarsidass, , pp. xxiii, 297–299, 331 ...

shwaran #

Lord Ganesh Ganesha or Ganesh (, , ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped Deva (Hinduism), deities in the Hindu deities, Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in the Ganapatya sect. His depictions ...

# Rektha

Chamundi Chamunda (, ), also known as Chamundeshwari, Chamundi or Charchika, is a fearsome form of Chandi, the Hindu mother goddess, Mahadevi and is one of the seven Matrikas.Wangu p.72 She is also one of the chief Yoginis, a group of sixty-four or ei ...

Nagaraja A Nagaraja ( ', ) is a king of the various races of the nāga, the divine or semi-divine, half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld ( Patala), and can occasionally take human form. Rituals devoted to these supernatural being ...

# Brahm Rakshas # Madan Thampuran #

Navagraha The navagraha are nine heavenly bodies and deities that influence human life on Earth according to Hinduism and Hindu mythology. The term is derived from ''nava'' ( "nine") and ''graha'' ( "planet, seizing, laying hold of, holding"). The nine part ...

Darshan

* Morning - 5.30 to 10.00 * Evening - 5.00 to 8.00

Festivals

The festival of the temple is on the Malayalam month of 'Meenam' and starts on the day of 'Makayiram'. Makayiram is considered as the star of the deity. On every full moon day a special pooja known as 'Aiswarya Mahalakshmi Pooja' is conducted here. The pooja begins at 5 in the evening and ends at 6 p.m. * Samooha Laksharchana * Mandala Vratham — Festival in connection with the annual Utsavam of Sabarimala. * Vinayaka Chathurthi — Pooja to the Lord Ganapathy. * Pooja Vaypu — Identical to Dussera festival (Saraswathy Pooja and Vidyarambham). * Ayilya Pooja — Milk, flowers etc. offered to serpent god and special rites. Monthly Pooja in Ayilyam day except in the months of Mithunam and Karkidakom. * Ayilyolsavam — Nagaroottu and Sarpabali in the month of Thulam * Ramayana Parayanam and BhagavathiSeva — All days of Karkidakom (evening).

Location

Paravankunnuhttp://wikimapia.org/19686870/Paravankunnu is 3.2 km from the city centre. Privately owned and KSRTC buses plying in the

route from

East Fort Kizhakke Kotta, also known by its English name East Fort, is a busy commercial street located at the heart of the central business district of Thiruvananthapuram city in Kerala. Since Thiruvananthapuram was the capital of the kingdom of Travan ...

pass through Ambalathara. A bypass of

National Highway 47 The following highways are numbered 47: International * Asian Highway 47 * European route E47 Australia East West Link (proposed) Canada * Alberta Highway 47 * Ontario Highway 47 * Saskatchewan Highway 47 France * A47 autoroute India ...

passes 2 km to the west of Paravankunnu. Nearest railway station is

Thiruvananthapuram Central Thiruvananthapuram Central (station code: TVC,) is an NSG–2 category railway station in Thiruvananthapuram railway division of Southern Railway zone. It is a major railway station that serves the city of Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of ...

, around 4 km away. Nearest airport is

Thiruvananthapuram International Airport Thiruvananthapuram International Airport is an international airport that serves Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala, India. Established in 1932, it is the first airport in the state of Kerala and the fifth international airport of ...

, around 6 km away. Paravankunnu is a bustling residential region situated on the way from East Fort to Thiruvallam, in Thiruvananthapuram. The famous Attukal Bhagavathi temple is 2 km away from pazhanchira and Sree Alukadu Devi Temple is 1.5 km away from here, The 2000-year-old Thiruvallam Sree Parasurama Temple at Thiruvallam is 1.6 km away from Paravankunnu.

References

External links

* * * {{Hindu temples in Kerala Hindu temples in Thiruvananthapuram district Devi temples in Kerala