Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Koodal Manikkam temple- Irinjalakuda, Kerala.

Koodal Manikkam temple, Irinjalakuda is dedicated to Lord Bharatha , Lord Sree Rama's brother. Here the deity,Bharata is also known as Lord Sangameshwara. This is the only temple in India dedicated to Lord Bharata. This temple is situated at a distance of 22 Kms from the Sree Rama temple, Triprayar. and forms parts of the Nalambala darisanam. 

The temple structure and its sprawling grounds are of exceptional beauty and one can see a huge  Koothambalam on the Southern side where the famous performing arts koodiyattam and koothu are conducted.  The porches on East and west side are huge and tall. It can accommodate up to 21 elephants during the temple festivals. The main towers on the East and West  are simple but they stand tall and magnificent. There are 2 ponds inside the temple and meenuttu , feeding fish is famous here too.

There is a dress code for men and women here for those who wish to go to inner most part of the temple to worship the God. 
For Men- Dhoti and angavastram and for women - sarees. 
Chudihars and pants, shirts  are not allowed. 

This is supposed to be a 9th century temple. More details can be found at this http://www.hindudevotionalblog.com/2009/05/koodalmanikyam-temple-irinjalakuda.html.

How to reach-How to reach- One can approach this temple either from Ernakulam or Thrissur.Both towns have excellent accommodation facilties as well as bus services to this place.

Pictures in this link 
https://photos.google.com/album/AF1QipOwKGUdtveuAcj2GZRtvwbQ0VhReojWXL743XbZ