Vennimala is a small village located in Puthuppally Grama Panchayath of the

Kottayam district Kottayam () is one of List of districts of Kerala, 14 districts in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. Kottayam district comprises six municipal towns: Kottayam, Changanassery, Pala, Kerala, Pala, Erattupetta, Ettu ...

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 ...

. Vennimala is east of

Kottayam Kottayam () is a city in the Kottayam district of Kerala, India. It is the district headquarters of the district and is located about north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. As per the 2011 Indian census, Kottayam has a population of ...

. It lies between the towns of Western Kerala and the mountains of the Western Ghats. Vennimala was once a dense forest. In Hindu mythology, Lord

Rama Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda' ...

and Lakshman visited this place in

Treta Yuga ''Treta Yuga'' (IAST: ''Tretā-yuga'') (Devanagari: त्रेतायुग), in Hinduism, is the second and second-best of the four '' yugas'' (world ages) in a '' Yuga Cycle'', preceded by '' Krita (Satya) Yuga'' and followed by '' Dvapara ...

and, Lakshman killed many demons (asuras) who threatened and harassed the local sages. Laxman's victory was celebrated in the village's name Vijayadri (successful place in Sanskrit) (Vennimala in Malayalam). There is a temple on the hill built by

Bhaskaravarman Bhaskarvarman (600–650 CE) was the king of Kamarupa and the last king of the Varman dynasty. After being captured by the king of Gauda during his father's reign, he re-established the rule of the Varmans. Bhaskarvarman formed political a ...

. The present building may be of a later date, but the temple is believed to be about 1,000 years old. The main idol is Lakshmana Perumal. The state of Kerala has declared Vennimala in the Sri Rama-Lakshmana Swamy temple as a protected monument. Vennimala is the initial headquarters of the

Thekkumkur The Kingdom of Thekkumkur () (also transliterated as ''Thekkumkoor'' or ''Thekkumcore'') was an independent kingdom in the southern part of Kerala in India from 1103 CE until 1750 CE.P. Shungoonny Menon - A HISTORY OF TRAVANCORE - First edition ...

dynasty

History

Unnuneli Sandesam, famous sandesa kavyam (message poem), in 14th century CE is describes the capital cities of

, Vennimala and

Manikandapuram Manikandapuram was the capital of the Thekkumkur, Kingdom of Thekkumkur (now part of India). Manikandapuram is a part of Vakathanam, Vakathanam Gramam in the Changanassery, Changanassery Taluk of Kottayam district, Kottayam District. At the begi ...

. The poem also talk about the Thekkumkur king Raja and developments in the country. Humans settled here about 1,000 years ago.

References

{{Kottayam district Kingdom of Thekkumkur Changanassery History of Kottayam district Geography of Kottayam district