Chittoor Sree Krishnaswamy Temple, located at

South Chittoor South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

in the city of

Kochi Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, is a temple dedicated to

Lord Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one of ...

. It is a major temple under the

Cochin Devaswom Board Cochin Devaswom Board is a socio-religious trust appointed by the Kerala Government to look after Hindu temples in central Kerala consisting of Ernakulam District, Thrissur District and Palakkad District. It is headquartered in Round north, Thr ...

. For centuries the temple was closely associated with the Kartha family of Cheranelloor Swaroopam and was later taken over by Rama Varma Maharaja of

Cochin Royal Family The Kingdom of Cochin, named after its capital in the city of Kochi (Cochin), was a kingdom in the central part of present-day Kerala state. It commenced at the early part of the 12th century and continued to rule until 1949, when monarchy wa ...

. It is a classic example of Kerala temple architecture. The ''sreekovil'' or sanctum sanctorum is square in shape, with a pyramidal roof covered with copper plates. Similar to the idol at

Guruvayoor Guruvayur () is a municipal temple town in Thrissur District, of Kerala State in India. It is a suburban town of Thrissur city, located from Thrissur towards the north-west. It houses the Guruvayur Shri Krishna Temple. It is located at ...

, the idol of Lord Krishna faces east in standing posture with 4 arms, carrying the conch named Panchajanyam, Sudarshana Chakra, Lotus and Gada. There is a small shrine of

Lord Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

and

Lord Ganesh Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu d ...

to the right of the inner sanctum. The outer sanctum is built with tiled roof, houses the temple kitchen, storage and preparation areas. The shrines of

Ayyappan Ayyappan an incarnation of dharma sastha, also called Manikandan, is a Hindu deity popular in Southern India, He is considered to be the epitome of dharma, truth, and righteousness and is often called upon to obliterate evil. Although devotion ...

Naga Naga or NAGA may refer to: Mythology * Nāga, a serpentine deity or race in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions * Naga Kingdom, in the epic ''Mahabharata'' * Phaya Naga, mythical creatures believed to live in the Laotian stretch of the Mekong Riv ...

Brahmarakshas ''Brahmarakshas '' is an Indian Hindi-language supernatural thriller television series broadcast on Zee TV and digitally available on ZEE5. Spanning two seasons, it is a franchise produced by Ekta Kapoor under her studio Balaji Telefilms. The ...

and

Bhagavathi Bhagavatī (Devanagari: भगवती, IAST: Bhagavatī), is a Hindu epithet of Sanskrit origin, used as an honorific title for female deities in Hinduism. It is primarily used to address one of the Tridevi: Saraswati, Lakshmi, and Parvati. ...

are located outside the outer sanctum, but within the complex. The shrine of

Lord Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine ''vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and one ...

is located outside the west entrance to the complex. The temple pond, called Agnihotratheertham lies to the north of the complex. There is a huge statue of ''kaaliya mardanam'', where Lord Krishna is shown standing on the hood of a huge serpent. This is in reference to the legend of the serpent

Kaliya Kaliya (IAST: Kāliya, Devanagari: कालिय), in Hindu traditions, was a venomous Nāga living in the Yamunā river, in Vṛndāvana. The water of the Yamunā for four leagues all around him boiled and bubbled with poison. No bird or ...

being banished by Lord Krishna.

History

The history of this temple dates back to the 13th century. It was built by the head of the local ruling family, the Cheranelloor Swaroopam - Cheranelloor Karthas. The men of this family were known by the title ''kartha''. Around seven centuries ago, Narayanan Kartha (Another version says the name was Raman Kartha), a young member of the family, became an ardent devotee of Lord Krishna, and moved to

to be near the famous temple there. Eventually, he became the head of the family by succession, which required him to move back to the family seat in order to discharge his responsibilities as the head and ruler. Split between his devotion to Lord Krishna, and the responsibility to his family and subjects, Narayanan prayed to Lord Krishna for guidance. He had a vision in his dream that the lord has promised to accompany him, by embedding into an umbrella, and he was expected to build a shrine where he puts the umbrella down. Travelling back to his home, he happened to put the umbrella down at the present temple site, which was close to his home. Eventually, he built a temple at the site. It was modeled after the Guruvayoor temple, and the chief priest of Guruvayoor was invited to conduct the installation of the deity. Image of temple

The subsequent generations of the family showed great reverence for the temple, and built it up further. Later, as the

became prominent, they took over the administration of the temple. When the kingdom acceded to the Indian Union, management of the temple was transferred to the Cochin Devaswom Board.

Pooja Timings

Offerings

Aadiya Enna, Puvan/Kadali Pazham, Kalabhabhishekam, Pushpabhishekam, Palpayasam, Sahasranamarchana, Neyvilakku, etc. are the main offerings of Lord Krishna. Vedi Vazhipadu, Turmeric and Kumkum, Guruthy and Chanthattam are the main offerings for Bhagavathi. Pinvilakku, Dhara, Koovalamala, etc. are the main offerings of Lord Shiva. Lord Ganesh has Ganapathi Homam as his main offering. Ayyappan has Neerajanam as his main offering. Nagas have Noorum Palum and Rakshas has Palpayasam.

Location

The temple is located in the village of South Chittoor, 6 km from Erankulam North, surrounded by coconut lagoons, in the north western part of the city of Kochi, Ernakulam District, Kerala. The temple is well connected by rail and road, with the nearest railway station at

Ernakulam Town Ernakulam Town (also known as Ernakulam North, code: ERN) is one of the main railway stations in the city of Kochi, Kerala, India. Administration The station is operated by the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways and is an 'A� ...

and reached by

Chittoor Road Chittoor Road is one of the major arterial road in the city of Kochi, India. It is the oldest arterial road in the Ernakulam mainland city that connects Ernakulam south with Chittoor, Kochi island in Ernakulam north. The road runs in North-sout ...

References

External links