The Pazhavangadi Maha Ganapathy temple () is situated at

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 ...

in the heart of

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 ...

City,

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 ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. The main Deity of the temple is Sri Mahaganapathy (

Ganesha 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 ...

). The main idol is installed in a seated posture with the right leg in a folded stance. The temple is situated in close proximity to the Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple. Other Deities worshiped at the temple include Dharmasasta,

Goddess Durga Durga (, ) is a major Hindu goddess, worshipped as a principal aspect of the mother goddess Mahadevi. She is associated with protection, strength, motherhood, destruction, and wars. Durga's legend centres around combating evils and demonic ...

and

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 ...

. The temple sculptures include 32 different forms of Lord Ganesha.

History

The original Idol was maintained by

The Nair Brigade The Nair Brigade was the army of the erstwhile kingdom of Travancore in India. Nairs were a Kshatriya, warrior community of the region. The personal bodyguard of the king Marthanda Varma (1706–1758) was also called ''Thiruvithamkoor Nair Pat ...

initially at

Padmanabhapuram Padmanabhapuram () is a town and a municipality near Thuckalay in Kanyakumari district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. As of 2011, the town had a population of 21,342. Padmanabhapuram was the capital of Travancore state in the past. In 17 ...

and later when they were shifted to

they installed the Idol and the current temple came into being. After the integration of the Travancore army with the Indian Forces, the temple is being maintained by the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

Offerings

The main Vazhipadu (Offering) is the breaking of coconuts at the temple. Other offerings associated with Lord Ganesha like Ganapathy Homam, Appam, Modakam etc. are also performed here.

Major Festivals

Some of the major festivals celebrated at the temple are

Vinayaka Chathurthi Ganesh Chaturthi (ISO: ), also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi () or Vinayaka Chavithi () or Vinayagar Chaturthi (), is a Hindu festival celebrating the birthday of Hindu deity Ganesh. The festival is marked with the installation of Ganesha's ''mu ...

(Ganesh Jayanthi), Virad Chathurthi and Sankashti Chathurthi. Special Poojas are also performed on the occasion of Thiruvonam,

Deepavali Diwali (), also called Deepavali (IAST: ''Dīpāvalī'') or Deepawali (IAST: ''Dīpāwalī''), is the Hindu festival of lights, with variations celebrated in other Indian religions such as Jainism and Sikhism. It symbolises the spiritual ...

Vijayadashami Vijayadashami (), more commonly known as Dassahra in Hindi, and also known as Dashāhra or Dashain in Bhojpuri, Maithili and Nepali, is a major Hindu festival celebrated every year at the end of Durga Puja and Navaratri, Navarahtri. It is ob ...

Vishu Vishu (Malayalam: വിഷു) is a Hindu festival celebrating the Malayali New Year in Kerala, Tulu Nadu, and Mahe of India. Vishu falls on the first day of the month of ''Medam'', the first month of the Solar calendar used in Malabar of ...

, etc.

Temple dress code

As with many prominent temples in Kerala, in order to enter the main temple complex of the temple men need to be wearing a

mundu The mundu (Malayalam: ; ) is a garment worn around the waist in the Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, the Lakshadweep archipelago, and the Indian Ocean island nation of Maldives. It is closely related to sarongs like dhotis and lungis ...

and no upper body clothing. Women are required to wear traditional attire like a

sari A sari (also called sharee, saree or sadi)The name of the garment in various regional languages include: * * * * * * * * * * * * * * is a drape (cloth) and a women's garment in the Indian subcontinent. It consists of an un-sti ...

How to get there

The temple is located 0.5 km from the

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 ...

railway station and the central bus station. The nearest city bus stand is at

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 ...

is about 8 kilometers away from the temple.

References

External links

GeoHack - Pazhavangadi Ganapathy Temple
{{Commons category, Pazhavangadi Ganapathi Temple
Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple
(Official Website) Ganesha temples Hindu temples in Thiruvananthapuram district Hindu temples in Thiruvananthapuram