Last Updated: September 20, 2023, 17:30 IST
The temple is linked with the great epic Ramayana.
It is said that nearly 300 years ago the temple was consumed by fire but the mandapam, with its beautiful carvings, was spared.
Kaduthuruthy Mahadeva Temple or the Thaliyil Shiva Temple is one of the temples among the many Shiva Temples in Kottayam, Kerala. The Mahadeva Temple was made by the demon Khara along with the Ettumanoor and Vaikom temple shrines. As the idols of Ettumanoor Shiva and Vaikom shrines are also in the temple, it is believed that visiting the temple before noon is considered to be auspicious compared to visiting all three Shiva temples at Vaikom, Kaduthurthy and Ettumanoor on the same day. Here let’s take you on to tour of the temple’s history.
The Kaduthurthy Temple is linked with the great epic Ramayana. As per legend, Kharasure- mentioned in Ramayana had installed the Shiva lingam. As an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva, he performed strict penance at Chindambaram. Impressed with his devotion, Lord Shiva offered him a boon and 3 lingams.
He travelled south and carried two Shiva lingams in his hands and one in his mouth. Due to the weight of the shivilings, he rested at three places Vaikom, Ettumanoor and Kaduthurthy. The third shivling, he placed was one that he carried in his mouth. That is why the temple is known as Kaduthuruthy Temple, Kadichu in Malayalam means bite and thuruthy to be placed.
History of Kaduthurutht Mahadeva Temple
Kaduthuruthy Shiva Temple was under the Vadakkumkoor dynasty. It is said that nearly 300 years ago the temple was consumed by fire but the mandapam, with its beautiful carvings, was spared. As the fire was spreading out in the temple, the chief priest clasped the idol towards his chest and died while protecting it. The idol of the chief priest is erected at the northern part of the shrine.
It is also said that a king of the Vadakkumkoor dynasty used to worship the three deities at Kaduthuruthy, Vaikom and Ettumanoor on the same day but with time and his age, he could travel to all three temples. Hence, he arranged for the replicas of the deities at Vaikom and Ettumanoor to be installed at the Kaduthuruthy temple.
Maharani Sethu Lakshmi Bai revived the 28-day-long festival and enforced orderliness and punctuality in the temple observances. Later when the Vadakkumkoor dynasty merged into Travancore the family deity fell into misfortune for about a century. Today, Kaduthuruthy Shiva Temple has risen to be one of the major temples under the Travancore Devaswom Board.
If you are planning to visit the temple then remember that men can only enter the temple after wearing mundu and veshti while women have to wear a saree, skirt or a salwar suit.
