5/5 Jithin S. 2 years ago on Google
Iringole
Kavu
is
a
Durga
temple
inside
a
forest,
situated
in
Kunnathunad
Taluk
of
Ernakulam
district
in
Kerala.
Fifty
acres
of
forest,
myth,
belief
and
mystery,
canopies
of
trees
so
old
that
the
land
has
slept
in
their
shade
for
ages
and
a
beaming
Durga
temple
in
the
midst
of
it-
this
is
'Iringole
Kavu',
a
sacred
grove.
The
trees
here
are
Gods
and
the
undergrowth
here
houses
no
dangerous
animals
but
abundant
flora
and
fauna.
Inside,
there
are
three
main
pathways
and
several
smaller
ones
leading
to
the
temple.
The
forest
is
home
to
birds,
animals
and
flora
of
the
Western
Ghats
that
are
on
the
endangered
list.
The
stretch
has
rare
woods
like
the
'Kambakam'
or
Iron
wood
of
Malabar,
white
pine,
wild
jack
(Anjili),
teak
etc.
and
medicines
like
wild
pepper,
long
pepper
and
'pathari'.
There
are
44
species
of
birds
in
this
forest
including
parrots,
cuckoos
and
eagles.
Forty-nine
species
of
trees,
19
types
of
spiders,
four
species
of
amphibians
and
seven
species
of
reptiles
are
residents
of
Iringole.
With
most
of
the
residents
being
the
ones
under
extinction
threats,
Iringole
also
has
42
species
of
insects
and
5
species
of
mammals.
The
grove
is
kept
green
by
the
many
marshes
and
ponds
in
the
area
meshed
on
the
bottom
by
the
braids
of
roots
thousands
of
years
old.
The
'theerthakulam'
or
temple
pond
here
is
also
lush
throughout
the
year,
even
in
the
peak
summers.
The
temple
doors
are
open
to
believers
of
any
religion
who
are
ready
to
follow
the
rules
of
ritualistic
hygiene.
The
Goddess
changes
from
Saraswati
in
the
morning
to
Vanadurga
in
the
afternoon
and
later
in
the
evening
becomes
Bhadrakali.
The
chief
offerings
are
Sarkara
nivedyam,
neypayasam
and
Kadumpayasam.
Chathussatham,
Karthika
oottu,
thulabharam
and
koottupayasam
are
also
major
offerings.
The
major
pooram
happens
from
the
second
to
the
tenth
of
the
malayalam
month
of
Meenam.
Unlike
other
temples,
here
only
female
elephants
participate
in
the
festival.
Punaprathishta
day
and
thrikarthika
are
also
very
important
celebrations.
Currently,
the
temple
is
under
the
Travancore
Devaswom
Board.
During
the
olden
days
32
'manas'
were
in
charge
of
the
temple,
the
Naganchery
mana
which
is
very
close
by
being
one
of
them.
Today
this
mana
is
a
museum
run
by
the
Tourism
department
and
has
a
children’s
park.
There
is
also
a
star-forest
nearby.
The
tickets
for
an
adult
is
priced
at
Rs.
20
and
for
children
it
is
Rs.
10.
The
temple
is
easily
accessible
by
an
auto
(2.5
km)
from
the
Perumbavoor
bus
stop.
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