Karumbukonam Devi Temple

The magnificence of Sree Karumbukonam Devi Temple is well known to a lot many devotees and other people irrespective of caste, creed, sex, age or wealth, It is not through proclamations but through daily sensations of the DEVI or homage that the adorers investiture the Goddess in their souls and hence nothing is required to he mentioned or explained before those people.

Behind the parentage of every regal temple, minor or major (maha), there exist monumental legends. Its doctrine lies an .historical legitimacy, upright values and cogent precedents. Karumbukonam Mudippura Devi temple also has inheritably exchanged legend accepted by the generations. It is not a concoction or tale but is the historical revelation.

Kodungallur is the Goldmine where the vanished memories of the history of Kerala lie. Sometime back, say one or two centuries before, it is believed, at any juncture as is said usually, there existed a well established (notable) main family. in the fore running arena of this main family, there was no laddie (male child). Worried on this, the main house wife of the family advised her ingénues (female children) to go anywhere towards south and escape. The observant women traveled towards south and reached the banks of a river and boarded a country boat that seemed to wait for their arrival. As and when they entered the boat, an oracle was heard as “where to go?” for which the girls answered ‘towards south”

The black modality that sat at the head end of the boat paddled it towards south. The innocent girls could not realize that their Family God- ‘Thampuran’- also is following them in the boat. The boat moved forward. On reaching Akkulam lake near Sreekariyam, the girls got down and went in search of a safer place. They began to walk toward north east direction as if were decided earlier. At the onset of dusk, they reached Karumbukonam house. In the house, there was only a beldame couple (very old) reciting Devi Bhagavatham. They were not having any male or female issues. The couple welcomed the girls and gave every possible facility. At night, the beldame couple had a dreaming revelation in which they were denoted the location for the investiture of the goddess of the family. Thus a temple was erected at Elamkom at kariyam. Once in three years, the goddess was being invoked to the green pandhal (shed made of green palm leaves) erected in the midst of extensive paddy fields of Karumpokarn and festival were conducted followed by ‘thottarn Paattu’ (traditional hymns embodying Kannaki and related matters).

Decades after, the presence of DLVI was realized and noticed at Karumbukonam by the devotees in their minds and was also confirmed by astrologers during ‘Devaprasna’. Based on these, a Mahaksletra or Maha Temple was erected at Karumbukonam and the adoration of Sree Bhadra (Sree Bhadra Kaali Maatha) was done there following all rituals. Meena Bharani Ponkala Mahoitsavam celebrated every year is the most important festival of Karumbukonam temple. it is a nine day festival commencing on the Bharani star of the Malayalam month Meenam (March- April) and ends up with the most fascinating procession accompanied by many decorated elephants, excellent temple and non-temple instrumental music, folk arts, indigenous / traditional arts/ plots etc. Now Sree Karumbukonam Mudippura DEVT ramble by pouring endless blessings to all irrespective of caste or creed, devotees or others. It has become the asylum not only for the local inhabitants but also for people from far away places including a lot many in foreign countries. The invocation of the deity at Kariyarn Puliyarakonam temple has been done for the other Goddess that came by the same boat and that at the Paanichal near kariyam is for the Tampuran (main God of the family) that followed the girls. Every year offerings are being done for these two also. Now, as per the astrological prognostications (Jyothisha Prasnam) and other findings, the deity of Thampuran is also invoked at Karumbukonam temple.