List of Names & Information on Famous Hindu Temples in Ernakulam District

Here you can find list of names and information (like history, architecture & facts) on ancient / old Hindu temples in Ernakulam, India. These Famous temples in Ernakulam district are most visited and most sought after best tourist places. You can also find photos of Ernakulam temples / mandir.

The word Shiva itself means the Dead. Literally the word Shivam is a Sanskrit word equivalent to Shavam or the Dead. Hence he is the lord for the deceased peoples as per Hindu beliefs. The Karkada Vavu or the new moon day of the August month is an important day here. The shivarathri is also an important day to perform the special rituals for the deceased, where their relative of the deceased peoples flows away the Pinda's after performing a ceremony with a priest alongside the River Ghats of Periyar and flows away the Pinda into this holy river. In Hindi it is called as Tharpan karma.

The main deity or the presiding deity of this temple is Goddess Bhagwati who is worshipped in the form of Chottanikkara Devi. The Devi takes three forms which changes with the time of the day. In the morning she is draped in white and worshipped as Saraswati, at noon she is draped in crimson and worshipped as Lakshmi while in the evenings she is draped in blue and worshipped as Durga. The temple is visited by devotees from far and wide but it is especially visited by devotees whose ailments could not be cured by medicine.

Lord Shiva is the primary deity of this temple. It also has its sub deities like the Parvathi Devi and her son Lord Vinayaka kept in different complexes. The presence of Iyyappa and the Nagaraja idols are also worshipped here. Lord Shiva is worshiped by the Kochi Hindus as the Gowri Shankara. He is in the Linga form. One of the Linga apart from the main Linga is known to be created by the Mahabharata legend Arjuna. It is made out of mud and known to be since here from the Thretha Yuga.

The temple is a highly revered one and is visited by people not only from the neighboring areas but all of Kerala. The deity worshipped here is a form of Vishnu known as Santhanagopala Murthy who is worshipped mainly by barren couples. It is believed that when childless couples who have been trying for years and failing will be blessed with children if they worship the principal deity of this temple.

The temple being one of the 108 Divya Desams adds a lot of importance to it religiously and historically. The temple is highly visited by people following Hinduism and is known to be a main centre of worship for the people living in Thrikkakara and nearby areas. The temple celebrates many Hindu festivals and observes numerous rituals however the one festival and ritual that is celebrated in a grand way is Onasadya or Onam. During the festival of Onam it is not only the Hindu people who throng the temple to see and attend its grand ceremony.