5/5 Boini A. 1 year ago on Google
*
Guruvayur
Temple
is
a
Hindu
temple
dedicated
to
Guruvayurappan,
Sri
Krishna,
located
in
the
town
of
Guruvayur
in
Kerala,
India.
It
is
one
of
the
most
important
places
of
worship
for
Hindus
in
Kerala
and
Tamil
Nadu
and
is
often
referred
to
as
Bhuloka
Vaikunta
(Vaikuntha
in
the
earthly
realm).
*
According
to
legend, Janamejaya conducted
a
sacrifice
to
destroy
all
the
snakes
of
the
world
including Takshaka,
who
was
the
cause
of
his
father Parikshit's
death.
Hundreds
of
thousands
of
snakes
fell
into
the
sacrificial
fire
and
were
killed,
but
the
sacrifice
was
stopped
by
a
Brahmin
called
Astika,
before
Takshaka
was
killed.
Since Janamejaya was
responsible
for
the
death
of
millions
of
snakes,
he
was
afflicted
with leprosy.
He
lost
all
hope
of
a
cure.
One
day
Sage Atreya (son
of
Atri)
came
before
Janamejaya
and
told
him
to
take
refuge
under
the
feet
of
Krishna
at Guruvayur.
Atreya
told
him
that
in
the
temple
at
Guruvayur
the
effulgence
of Shri
Hari is
at
its
best
and Vishnu showers
his
blessings
on
all
devotees.
He
immediately
rushed
there
and
spent
the
next
ten
months
worshipping
the
god
of
Guruvayur.
At
the
end
of
ten
months,
he
returned
home
healthy
and
took
the astrologer to
task
for
making
a
false
prediction.
The
astrologer
told
him
that
he
would
find
the
mark
of
a
snakebite
on
his
left
leg.
He
had
escaped
death
only
because
he
was
at
that
time
in
a
temple
where Anantha (the
emperor
of
serpents)
was
present
and Anantha was
the
brother
to
the
God
at
Guruvayur
where
he
had
finished
worshipping.
The
king
then
decided
to
build
a
full-fledged
temple
at
Guruvayur.
In
time,
this
temple
came
to
be
downgraded
and
reduced
to
poverty
during
the
days
when Kerala was
ruled
by
the Perumals.
The
Perumal
rulers
were
mostly Shaivites and
did
not
extend
their
patronage
to Vaishnavite shrines.
The
Shiva
temple
at Mammiyur received
their
patronage
and
with
the
shift
of
royal
patronage,
the
worshippers
also
moved
to
the
Shiva
temple.
The
Guruvayur
temple
was
thus
reduced
to
utmost
poverty.
However,
one
day,
a
holy
man
went
to
the
Mammiyur
temple
for
food
and
hospitality
for
the
night.
Though
the
temple
was
affluent,
the
temple
authorities
pretended
they
had
nothing
and
scornfully
directed
him
to
the
neighbouring
Guruvayur
temple.
When
the
holy
man
entered
the
precincts
of
that
temple,
he
was
courteously
received
by
a Brahmin boy
and
sumptuously
fed.
The
holy
man
was
very
much
pleased
and
he
pronounced
a
blessing.
According
to
the
legend,
Mammiyur
Siva
temple
began
to
decline,
and
the
fortunes
of
Guruvayur
Vishnu
temple
progressed
from
strength
to
strength.
*
The
temple
tank
(pond)
on
the
northern
side
of
the
temple
is
called
Rudratheertham.
According
to
legend,
for
thousands
of
years,
Lord
Shiva
used
to
bath
on
the
southern
bank
of
this
pond.
Since
Shiva
is
also
known
by
the
name
'Rudra',
the
pond
came
to
be
known
as
Rudratheertham
*
Dress
code
:
Men
are
to
wear
mundu
around
their
waist,
without
any
dress
covering
their
chest.
Girls
and
women
are
not
allowed
to
wear
any
trouser
like
dresses
or
short
skirts.
Women
are
allowed
to
wear
sari
and
girls
are
to
wear
long
skirt
and
blouses
