Guruvayur
Guruvayoor |
| Dwarka of the South |
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— municipality Kerala's 14 revenue districts are further divided into 5 Municipal Corporations, 60 Municipalities, 63 taluks, 1453 revenue villages and 978 Grama panchayats...
and town — |
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| A bird's view of Guruvayur city |
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Guruvayur (also written as
Guruvayoor or
Gurupavanapuri) is a municipal town in
Thrissur DistrictThrissur is a revenue district of Kerala situated in the central part of that state. Spanning an area of about 3,032 km2, Thrissur district is home to over 10% of Kerala’s population. Thrissur district was formed on July 1, 1949, with the headquarters at Thrissur City. Thrissur is known as...
, of
Keralaor Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
State in
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. It houses the famous Guruvayur Sree Krishna Temple, the fourth biggest temple in
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
in terms of the number of devotees per day.
History
Guruvayur, according to the legends may be 5,000 years old as the
Guruvayur templeGuruvayur Sree Krishna Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Krishna, located in the town of Guruvayur in Kerala, India. It is one of the most important places of worship for Hindus and is often referred to as "Bhooloka Vaikuntam" which translates to the holy abode of Vishnu on Earth...
idol is. There are no historical records to establish it. In the 14th century,
TamilTamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
literature 'Kokasandesam', references about a place called Kuruvayur is made. As early as 16th century, many references are seen about Kuruvayur. In ancient Dravidic, Kuruvai means sea, hence the village on the coast may be called Kuruvayur. According to eminent historian Professor
K. V. Krishna IyerK. V. Krishna Iyer was a professor of history at Zamorin's Guruvayurappan College, Calicut. He is considered an authority in the History of Kerala...
, the Brahmins had begun to come and settle at
KodungallurKodungallur is a municipality in Thrissur District, in the state of Kerala, India on the Malabar Coast. Kodungallur is located about 29 km northwest of Kochi city and 38 km Southwest of Thrissur, on National Highway 17 . Muziris the ancient seaport at the mouth of the Periyar River was...
during the period of Chandra Gupta Maurya (321-297 BC).
Guruvayur was a subordinate shrine of Trikkunavay Shiva temple before the latter was destroyed by the Dutch in 1755. Trikkunavay in the Guruvayur documents is the same as Thrikkanamathilakam or Mathilakam mentioned in the
DutchThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
records. And this place was in between Guruvayur and
KodungallurKodungallur is a municipality in Thrissur District, in the state of Kerala, India on the Malabar Coast. Kodungallur is located about 29 km northwest of Kochi city and 38 km Southwest of Thrissur, on National Highway 17 . Muziris the ancient seaport at the mouth of the Periyar River was...
. The story of Pandyan King building a shrine here may be a reference to the Azhavars, but they are all silent in their writing about Guruvayur. It was
Melpathur Narayana BhattathiriMelpathur Narayana Bhattathiri , third student of Achyuta Pisharati, was of Madhava of Sangamagrama's Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics. He was a mathematical linguist . His most important scholarly work, Prkriya-sarvawom, sets forth an axiomatic system elaborating on the classical system...
's
NarayaniyamNarayaniyam is a medieval Sanskrit text, comprising a summary study in poetic form of the Bhagavata Purana. It was composed by Melpathur Narayana Bhattathiri, a devotee-poet who lived in the Indian state of Kerala, in the sixteenth century AD...
through which the
Guruvayur templeGuruvayur Sree Krishna Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Krishna, located in the town of Guruvayur in Kerala, India. It is one of the most important places of worship for Hindus and is often referred to as "Bhooloka Vaikuntam" which translates to the holy abode of Vishnu on Earth...
got famous all over
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
Demographics
As of the Indian
censusA census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2001, Guruvayur had a population of 21,187. Males constitute 46% of the population and females 54%. Guruvayur has an average literacy rate of 85%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 86%, and female literacy is 85%. In Guruvayoor, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Government
Guruvayoor Township was formed on January 26, 1962 with four electoral wards with an area of 6.49 km
2. Later the wards were increased to 10 and in 1994 to 20 when the township was upgraded to Municipality status with an area of 29.66 km
2. In 2010, the electoral wards were increased to 43. Guruvayoor is a Grade-III Municipality. The Municipality has a total population of 20,216 with a population density of 31, 14 per km
2. Guruvayoor assembly constituency is part of
Trichur (Lok Sabha constituency)-Assembly segments:Thrissur Lok Sabha constituency is composed of the following assembly segments:#Thrissur Assembly Constituency#Ollur Assembly Constituency#Pudukad Assembly Constituency#Manalur Assembly Constituency#Guruvayoor Assembly Constituency...
.
Guruvayur Ekadasi
Ekadasi, the eleventh day of every lunar fortnight, is very auspicious to the Hindus. Of the 24 Ekadasis in a year, the Vrishchika Ekadasi (Sukla paksha) has got special significance in
Guruvayur templeGuruvayur Sree Krishna Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Krishna, located in the town of Guruvayur in Kerala, India. It is one of the most important places of worship for Hindus and is often referred to as "Bhooloka Vaikuntam" which translates to the holy abode of Vishnu on Earth...
. A memorial honour for Gajarajan Kesavan is conducted in Guruvayur. The Karanavar or head of the elephant family places a wreath at the statue of Kesavan in front of Sreevalsam guest house and all the other elephants stand around and pay obeisance. On Ekadasi day, the Udayasthamana Pooja (dawn to dusk pooja) is conducted by the Devaswom itself . After the morning seeveli, on Ekadasi there is a grant elephant procession to the Parthasarathi temple since it is regarded as Geethopadesam Day also. On Ekadasi after night pooja, the famous Ekadasi Vilakku with elephant procession takes place and provides a fitting finale to the festival..
Chembai Sangeetholsavam
Chembai SangeetholsavamChembai Sangeetholsavam is an annual Carnatic music festival held in Guruvayur by the Guruvayur Devaswom as a kind of homage to Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, one of the titans of Carnatic Classical Music....
is an annual
Carnatic musicCarnatic music is a system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent, with its area roughly confined to four modern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu...
festival held in Guruvayur by the Guruvayur Devaswom at
Thiruvaiyaru-External links:**...
as a kind of homage to
ChembaiChembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar was a Carnatic music singer from Palakkad . Known by his village name Chembai, or simply as Bhagavatar, he was born to Anantha Bhagavatar and Parvati Ammal in 1896, at Kottayi near Palakkad on Janmashtami day, with Bharani star in the month of Chingam...
Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, one of the titans of Carnatic Classical Music. Chembai had conducted the festival in the temple town on his own for about 60 years. He used to invite all the great Carnatic Musicians to perform in the temple town and in course of time, the scale of the festival rivalled the Thiruvaiyaru Thyagaraja Aradhana, which is recognised as one of the most important festivals of homage paid to Saint Thyagaraja.
The Guruvayur Devaswom decided to take charge after his death in 1974, and renamed it as Chembai Sangeetholsavam in his memory. About 2000-2500 musicians participate in this festival every year, and it is held for about 12–15 days culminating on the
Guruvayur EkadasiEkadasi, the eleventh day of every lunar fortnight, is very auspicious to the Hindus. Of the 24 Ekadasis in a year, the Vrishchika Ekadasi has got special significance in Guruvayur. It falls in the Mandala season . The Navami and Dasami are also very important...
day, when all the musicians sing 5 favourite songs of Chembai and also the
Pancharatna KritisA pancharatna kriti is one of a set of five kritis in Carnatic classical music, composed by the 19th century Indian composer, Tyagaraja. Four of the five pancharatna kritis are composed in Telugu language, and one in Sanskrit....
of Thyagaraja.
Guruvayur temple
The
Guruvayur TempleGuruvayur Sree Krishna Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Krishna, located in the town of Guruvayur in Kerala, India. It is one of the most important places of worship for Hindus and is often referred to as "Bhooloka Vaikuntam" which translates to the holy abode of Vishnu on Earth...
is a famous
KrishnaKrishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
temple and is one of the most important places of worship for Hindus and is often referred to as "Bhooloka Vaikuntam" which translates to the holy abode of
VishnuVishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
on Earth. The divine idol installed here represents the enchanting form of Sree Krishna endowed with the four lustrous arms carrying the conch
PanchajanyaPanchajanya is the conch of the Hindu god Vishnu, one of his four attributes together with the mace Kaumodaki, the disc-like weapon Sudarshana Chakra and a lotus flower....
, the discus
Sudarshana ChakraThe Sudarshana Chakra is a spinning, disk-like super weapon with 108 serrated edges used by Lord Vishnu. The Sudarshana Chakra is portrayed on the right rear hand of the four hands of Vishnu, who also holds a Shankha in his left rear hand, a Gada in his right fore hand, and a Padma in his left...
, the mace Kaumodaki and the lotus. Adorned with the divine Tulasi garland the idol represents the majestic form of Maha
VishnuVishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
as revealed to
VasudevaIn Hindu itihasa , Vasudeva is the father of Krishna, the son of Shoorsen, of the Yadu and Vrishni dynasties. His sister Kunti was married to Pandu. He was a partial incarnation of Rishi Kashyap....
and
DevakiIn Hinduism, Devaki is the wife of Vasudeva and biological mother of Krishna.She was the daughter of Devaka, the younger brother of King Ugrasena of Mathura. She was a partial incarnation of Aditi, the mother of the Devas.-Imprisonment :...
at the time of
KrishnaKrishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
AvatarIn Hinduism, an avatar is a deliberate descent of a deity to earth, or a descent of the Supreme Being and is mostly translated into English as "incarnation," but more accurately as "appearance" or "manifestation"....
.
The presiding deity in the sanctum-sanctorum is
MahavishnuImage:Hinducosm Map1.svg|thumb|Click an area to go there. This is one of many material universes which expand from Mahavishnu when He breathes.|300px|alt=One Brahmanda, with Garbhodakashayi-Vishnurect 216 61 277 80 Brahma...
. He faces east and his idol is 4 ft tall. Even though this is not a much small idol, devotees consider him as Little Krishna. He has 4 hands : The upper right hand holding
chakraChakra is a concept originating in Hindu texts, featured in tantric and yogic traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism. Its name derives from the Sanskrit word for "wheel" or "turning" .Chakra is a concept referring to wheel-like vortices...
, lower right hand holding lotus, upper left hand holding
shankhaShankha bhasam , also spelled and pronounced as Shankh and Sankha, is a conch shell of ritual and religious importance in Hinduism and Buddhism. It is the shell of a large predatory sea snail,Turbinella pyrum found in the Indian Ocean....
and lower left hand holding
gadaGADA: A term used to describe Kevin Gill and Dippy Grewal's awesome crew.Members of group: 2Members since: 2005Open group: nobody else is allowed in the club, and nobody in the club is allowed to leave...
. He is worshipped according to the pooja routines laid down by Adi Sankaracharya and later written formally in the
TantricTantra , anglicised tantricism or tantrism or tantram, is the name scholars give to an inter-religious spiritual movement that arose in medieval India, expressed in scriptures ....
way by Chennas Narayanan Namboodiri (born in 1427). The Chennas Namboodiris are the hereditary Tantris of the Guruvayur temple. The temple/pooja routines are strictly followed without any compromise. The Tantri is available full time at the Temple to ensure this. The Melsanti (Chief Priest) enters the Sri Kovil (sanctum sanctorum) at 2:30 AM and does not drink even a glass of water up to the completion of noon poojas at 12:30 PM. The vedic traditions being followed here with absolute perfection and sincerity is the hallmark of the Guruvayur temple. It is important to note here that, even though the shrine is considered to be one of the holiest spots for Vaishnavites, the temple is not a part of the 108
Divya DesamsDivya Desams refer to 108 Vishnu temples that are mentioned in the works of the Tamil Azhvars . 105 of these are located in India, 1 in Nepal, while 2 are located outside of the Earthly realms. 'Divya' in Tamil language indicates premium and 'Desam' indicates place or temple.The two major deities...
.
Road
Guruvayur can be accessed from
ThrissurThis article is about the city in India. For the district, see Thrissur district. For the urban agglomeration area of Thrissur see Thrissur Metropolitan Area...
city by state highway 49, which starts from Guruvayur and ends in state highway 69 at
choondal-Demographics: India census, Choondal had a population of 11719 with 5478 males and 6241 females.Choondal is about 21 kilometers away from Thrissur, where you can see a panoramic view of green grass fields. This place is...
. From Thrissur city there are regular private and State-owned
Kerala State Road Transport CorporationKerala State Road Transport Corporation is the state-run bus company in Kerala, India. It is one of the oldest state run public bus transport services in India.-History:...
(KSRTC) buses. There is a private and a
Kerala State Road Transport CorporationKerala State Road Transport Corporation is the state-run bus company in Kerala, India. It is one of the oldest state run public bus transport services in India.-History:...
bus stand in Guruvayur which run inter-state, inter-district and city services.
Railway
The main rail transport system in Guruvayur is operated by the
Southern RailwayThe Southern Railway is the earliest of the 16 zones of the Indian Railways created in independent India. It was created on April 14, 1951 by merging three state railways namely Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway, the South Indian Railway, and the Mysore State Railway. The South Indian Railway...
Zone of
Indian RailwaysIndian Railways , abbreviated as IR , is a departmental undertaking of Government of India, which owns and operates most of India's rail transport. It is overseen by the Ministry of Railways of the Government of India....
, and comes under Trivandrum Railway Division. Guruvayur Railway Station lies in the
Thrissur-Guruvayur SectionThrissur-Guruvayur Section is a railway segment of Indian Railway functioning under Trivandrum Division of Southern Railway Zone. This is a single Broad Gauge line which begins at Thrissur city in Thrissur District and ends at Guruvayur in Thrissur District of Kerala. The 23 km section was...
. It is the last station in this section. There are two passenger trains operating from Guruvayur Railway Station to
Ernakulam JunctionErnakulam Junction is the largest railway station in the city of Kochi. The station has six platforms and two terminals...
and another two passenger trains to
Thrissur Railway StationThrissur Railway Station is the busiest railway station in Kerala in terms of number of trains, located in Thrissur, India. As of 2006, 55 pairs of trains passed through the station on an average day...
every day. An overnight express train to
Chennai EgmoreChennai Egmore , formerly known as Madras Egmore, is a railway station in Egmore, Chennai , South India. The station acts as the arrival and departure point for trains connecting Chennai and southern, central Tamil Nadu and Kerala.This is one of the two main railway terminals in the city along with...
via Ernakulam Junction,
ThiruvananthapuramThiruvananthapuram , formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala and the headquarters of the Thiruvananthapuram District. It is located on the west coast of India near the extreme south of the mainland...
,
MaduraiMadurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...
, Trichy is also running from Guruvayur Railway Station everyday.
Thrissur Railway StationThrissur Railway Station is the busiest railway station in Kerala in terms of number of trains, located in Thrissur, India. As of 2006, 55 pairs of trains passed through the station on an average day...
is the major rail head near to Guruvayur from where you can get all South Indian and North Indian trains.
Air
Cochin International AirportCochin International Airport is an international airport located in Nedumbassery, a suburb on the outskirts of the city of Kochi about northeast of downtown Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. It is the busiest and largest airport in the state of Kerala...
is the nearest airport, which is 87 KM from Guruvayur. All international, domestic and chartered flights are available here.
Calicut International AirportCalicut International Airport , also known as Karipur Airport, is an International Airport serving the city of Kozhikode , Kerala, India. The airport is located in Karipur, Malappuram district about from the Kozhikode Railway Station and from the city of Malappuram, with the closest railway...
at
KaripurKaripur is a small town in Malappuram district of Kerala, south India. The place is best known as the site of the international airport of Kozhikode , serving the needs of travellers in the north Kerala region....
is about 100 KM away.
External links