Sethubandhanam at Sreeraman Chira or Chira kettal is a
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
ceremony reminiscent of the ''
Sethubandhanam'' where
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 on ...
and his army built
Rama Setu to reach
Sri Lanka and rescue
Sita
Sita (; ) also called as Janaki and Vaidehi is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic, ''Ramayana''. She is the consort of Rama, the avatar of the god Vishnu, and is regarded as a form of Vishnu's consort, Lakshmi. She ...
from the
Rakshasa
Rakshasas ( sa, राक्षस, IAST: : Pali: ''rakkhaso'') lit. 'preservers' are a race of usually malevolent demigods prominently featured in Hindu mythology. According to the Brahmanda Purana, the rakshasas were created by Brahma wh ...
King,
Ravana
Ravana (; , , ) is a rakshasa king of the island of Lanka, and the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' and its adaptations.
In the ''Ramayana'', Ravana is described to be the eldest son of sage Vishrava and rakshasi Kaikesi. ...
.
It is annually conducted at
Sreeraman Chira, a 900 hectares of paddy fields situated in
Chemmappilly
Chemmappilly is a place in Thrissur District, Kerala, 23 km from Thrissur. It is in the jurisdiction of Anthikad Police station and the Grama Panchayath is Thanniyam. There is a lower primary school called ALPSchool in the centre. The nea ...
near
Triprayar
Thriprayar is a town in Thrissur District of Kerala, India. It is famous for the Thriprayar Temple. It is a part of Thrissur Metropolitan Area. It has one of the 4 temples which is visited in Nalambalam Yatra(Rama-Bharta-Lakshmana-Shaturghna).
...
of
Thrissur district of
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 ...
state in
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 ...
.
Binding of the bund
The ''Chira kettal'' (binding of the bund) is a sacred religious ceremony performed by a team of priest from
Thriprayar Temple
Thriprayar Shree Ramaswami Temple is Hindu temple situated in Triprayar in Thrissur district of Kerala state in India. The deity is Lord Rama, the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu, with four arms bearing a conch, a disc, a bow and a garland ...
. When the ceremony happens,
Thriprayar Temple
Thriprayar Shree Ramaswami Temple is Hindu temple situated in Triprayar in Thrissur district of Kerala state in India. The deity is Lord Rama, the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu, with four arms bearing a conch, a disc, a bow and a garland ...
is closed early after performing the ''Deeparadhana'' (Evening pooja) and ''Athazhapooja'' (Night pooja). Earlier workers who build ''chira'' belonged to the backward ''Vettuva'' community and the performance of pooja is done by Brahmins. It is believed that after finishing the poojas of
Thriprayar Temple
Thriprayar Shree Ramaswami Temple is Hindu temple situated in Triprayar in Thrissur district of Kerala state in India. The deity is Lord Rama, the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu, with four arms bearing a conch, a disc, a bow and a garland ...
, the God ''Thriprayar Thevar'' comes to the river in front of the temple and goes upon a crocodile to the place of ceremony. At this time one can see a number strong waves in the river as a symbol of god's movement. It is also believed that a heavy rain will come on this day which will fill the entire areas of paddy field of Sreeraman Chira with water.
Date
The temple observes ''Sethubandhanam'' in ''Thiruvonam'' day of
Malayalam
Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...
month ''Kanni'' (September - October) in every year.
[Sreenilayam Sukumara Raja (1983). ''Thriprayar Sreeramaswamy Kshethram'', (Malayalam: തൃപ്രയാർ ശ്രീരാമസ്വാമി ക്ഷേത്രം) p.21-22. Nambeesans' Lakshmi Publications, Thriprayar.]
See also
*
Shree Rama Temple
Shree Rama Temple is Hindu temple situated in Triprayar in Thrissur district of Kerala state in India. The deity is Shree Rama and with four arms with bearing a conch
Conch () is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-siz ...
References
Religious festivals in India
Hindu festivals
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