Sreekanteshwaram temple, Trivandrum, Kerala

Sreekanteshwaram, is an ancient temple  right in the heart of the city.  This  is also very close to  Sri Anantha Padmanabha Swamy temple. The temple is quite  small, constructed in typical Kerala style and wood work here is artistically done  and visible in the images displayed below. This is visited by locals everyday.

Siva  is the main deity here and Lord Vishnu is also worshipped here.

The Sivalinga here, is believed to be a Swayambhu ( self manifestation) and there are sub shrines for Ganesha and Ayyapa.

Please check this link for more details. http://sreekanteswaramtemple.com/

Pazhavangadi Sree Mahaganapathy temple- Trivandrum, Kerala

Sree Maha Ganapathy- Vigneshwara, the remover of all obstacles is the presiding deity of Pazhvangadi temple.  This God grants all the wishes of his devotees and in return coconuts are offered by devotees . Devotees break coconuts in front of this temple and one can hear the continuous cracking sound of coconuts as if fire crackers are being burst. There is small tank in front for breaking coconuts and sack full of coconuts get broken here.

There are two images of Ganesha inside the sanctum -One  made of Granite other  made of gold. Though the temple is very small, there are also shrines for Sasthavu, Bhagavathy and Nagas. A temple, I never miss during my Trivandrum visits and breaking a few coconuts also a routine I follow here.
The temple is situated in East fort and only about 200 meters from Sri Anantha Padmanabha Swamy temple.
How to reach- this temple is situated just a kilometer from the Central railway station , Trivandrum.

I wish all my friends a Happy New Year !!

Sree Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Temple - Trivandrum - kerala

Trivandrum, the State capital of Kerala is known as Thiru Anantha puri, it takes its name from Lord Anantha Padmanabha- Lord Vishnu ,the presiding deity of the famous temple there. Vishnu is known as Anantha Padmananbha as he is reclining here on serpent Anantha and there is a lotus emerging from his naabhi( Navel) with Brahma sitting inside. This idol is around 23 feet long and one has to have a darshan of this huge idol through  three dwaras( doors) the head portion , the abdomen and the Legs. The idol is made of a special combination of herbs and is centuries old.

This temple is also one of the 108 divya desams of Vishnu known as Tirupathis

This temple  buzzes with a steady stream of pilgrims. This temple was constructed by the erstwhile rulers of Travancore .  This temple was very much in news recently when treasure worth millions stacked away in the cellars were discovered .   A few cellars remains unopened. Presently  the temple is heavily guarded with a posse of  police personnel round the clock and the security check up has been beefed up. Pilgrims are not allowed to carry mobile phones and cameras. 

The temple has a huge image of Hanuman statue at the entrance.Everything in this temple is divine, be it a blade of grass or a grain of sand.

  A temple dedicated to Lord Narasimha is seen near the sanctum of the main shrine. People first pay obeisance to the Lord Narasimha before worshiping the main deity.

There are also shrines for Kodhanda Rama and Vishwaksenar just outside sanctum of Lord Padmanabha.

The sprawling temple grounds also houses two more shrines one of Lord Krishna and other for Sasthavu.

The temple tower is modelled like we see in Tamil nadu.

There is a  museum outside the temple and an old clock with goats hitting a  demon/butcher every time the clock chimes  is worth watching.

This temple attracts lot of tourists from all over the world.

Dress code- Only Dhoti and Angavastram for men. Pants and Chudidhars are not allowed.

There is a stall outside the temple for lending dhotis.

A temple worth visiting.

How to reach- Being the State capital of Kerala the city is well coneected by road, rail and air.

There are some  more temple in the vicinity which I will be posting shortly.

A few pictures I could gather.