Vaikom in Kottayam

Today Vaikom is one of the most revered Shiva shrines in South India. The temple alongwith Ettumanoor Siva Temple, Kaduthuruthy Thaliyil Mahadeva Temple  is considered a powerful trisome. The  belief is that if a devotee worships at these three temples before 'Ucha pooja', all the wishes are fulfilled. 

Though Vaikkath Asthami is the the better known festival at the temple, it celebrates many other festivals, some of them unique to the temple.

Arattupuzha Temple, Thrissur

The Arattupuzha Temple is a Hindu temple situated at Arattupuzha in Thrissur district of Kerala in India. The Temple is administered by Cochin Devaswom Board

Accoding to legends, the antiquity of this temple dates back 3,000 years. The temple has been the host of the most ancient and well-known yearly Devamela a festival when all gods and goddesses assemble at Arattupuzha. It is believed that the deity of Arattupuzha temple is the embodiment of the divine potential of Guru Vasishta, the great master of Lord Sree Rama

Kodungallur Sreekurumba Bagavathy temple

Kodungallur Bhagavathy Temple is situated at Kodungallur in Thrissur District. Presiding deity badrakali is situated with Saptamaatrukkal, Vasoorimala and Kshethrapalakan. One of the supreme temple which is installed by Parasurama. It is believed that this temple built in the period of Cheran Chenguttavan.This is the most ancient temple in the northern part of Kerala. It was one among the first temple which removed the caste and religion restrictions of people for worshipping temple

The deity of the temple is the image representing Sree Badra Kali, who killed the evil demon Daaruka. The 6 foot high wooden image of Kali is facing north side and there is a cloth hung on the western wall of the sanctum where the worship is offered. The idol has eight arms and holds different kinds of weapons. The crown of the image is similar to the Kathakali type. The idol is covered with golden raiment all over except hands. This deity is believed to be ugra form of Kali.

Secret chamber, which is the Sakthi Kendra of the temple can be found in eastern side of Sreekovil. The Sreekovil and secret chamber have a common wall. The secret chamber is closed full with granite and on the top there is a roof. There is a closed door on the western wall of the chamber along with the sanctum sanctorum of Bhagavathy

You can see sub deities Lord Ganesh, Lord Veerabhadra and the Seven Divine Mothers in this temple. Idol of Mahameru and Adi Shankara are also can be found which is installed by Parasurama. The idol of Shiva is facing to the east without a Nandi. There is a separate shrine for 'Silappathrkaram,' the chaste Kannagi, an avatar of Goddess Durga which is well known in Tamil Nadu

Bharani festival[edit]

Kodungallur Bharani festival in Kodungallur Bhagavathy Temple

The Bharani festival at the Kodungallur Bhagawati temple is one of the grandest in Kerala. It is a month of festivities from the Bharani asterism in the month of Kumbham to 7 days after the Bharani asterism in the month of Meenam. It normally falls between the months of March and April. The festival usually starts with the ritual called 'Kozhikkallu moodal' which involves the sacrifice of cocks and shedding of their blood, which forms an important feature of this temple. The members of the Kodungallur Bhagavathy temple are allowed to participate in this ritual. It is to appease the goddess Kali and her demons who take delight in blood offerings.

'Kavu Theendal', another important event of the festival, overseen by the King of Kodungallur where Vellichapads (oracles) make a run around the temple waving their sabres in the air while the members of their retinue offer reverence over the inner quadrangle. They make cry of abuse at the goddess in bawdy language. Their abuse is said to be accepted by the goddess followed by the purification ceremony the next day. Chandanapoti Charthal is yet another festival of smearing the image with sandal paste.^[7][8]

Thalappoli festival[edit]

The Thalappoli festival is in the month of Makaram (January–February). The four day Thalappoli commences from the evening of Makara Sankranthi with religious rituals. Big procession headed by richly caparisoned elephants are taken out to the accompaniment of Pancha Vadyam, Paancari, Paandi, etc.It is the Main Celebration of KUDUMBI Community.

Perunthatta Mahadeva temple

 The Perunthatta Mahadeva Temple one of the legendary 108 Shivalayas of Kerala is situated at a distance of nearly half-a-kilometer to the south of the famous Sri Krishna temple of Guruvayur. This Shiva Kshetra too was once a great center of pilgrimage.The history of Perunthatta temple is shrouded in mystery. There is no known evidence of record indicating the date of construction or who constructed it. But the fact that it is mentioned in the ancient Tamil work Thirukovai as one of the Shivalayas visited by the Bhakthasiromony Sundaramoorthy Nayanar and his entourage is proof enough that this temple was already a flourishing center of pilgrimage in that distant past.

The Perunthatta temple has survived quite a few onslaughts by vandals over the centuries. Legend has it that the soldiers of Tippu Sulthan, who camped near the temple premises, once demolished this temple. It is believed that the Lord's wrath fell on the marauders in the form of mortal diseases. The penitent soldiers to appease The Lord by offering Him His favorite archana - Elaneer Abhishekam (pouring of tender coconut water over the idol).

The sultan and his men left the place only after making arrangements for regular abhishekam as a token of their thanks giving.Frequent plunders and loot reduced the temple assets to very pitiable state. The Zamorin Raja of Kozhikode, who was the Ooralan (Trustee) of the temple, too were not in a position to provide for the upkeep of the temple since their reign had come to an end in Malabar. Even for performing the daily poojas adnrites of the temple, the priest had to seek contributions from generous devotees. This miserable Plight was a matter of deep sorrow and great concern to the Bhakthas of Perunthattappan.

Sreekandeshwaram temple, Trivandrum

Sreekanteswaram is known for the temple of Lord Shiva.There is another temple by the name "Pazhaya Sreekanteswaram" near Overbridge,Trivandrum.In the 'Mathilakam' records (documents relating to administration of Sree Padmanabha Swami Temple,Thiruvananthapuram) there is reference about this temple.In this temple, the 2 main deities are Lord Shiva and Lord Mahavishnu.

The story goes that there was an old sweeper maid who used to work in Pazhaya Sreekanteswaram Temple.After the day's work,the tired old maid used to take rest under the shade of a tree near her hut.She would keep the broom and the pot called "Kalayakkudam" near the tree.One day it so happened that after her rest, she tried to lift the pot but it would not move!! So she tried to break the pot using a stone.To her great shock she found that the pot was bleeding profusely!! It is believed that Lord Shiva gave darshan to the old lady.On further enquiry, it was confirmed to be 'SWAYAMBHU SHIVA LINGA'.The king inspected the spot and orderd to build a new Shiva Temple there which in the later years become the famous Sreekanteswaram Temple.

This temple must be at least 700 years old.Hundreds of devotees worship at Sreekanteswaram Temple every day.The main idol faces east.The sacred temple pond is seen on the eastern side.Sree Mahaganapathy, Sree Dharmasastha,Sree Nagaraja,Sree Murukan,Sree Anjaneya and Sree Krishna are also worshipped in this glorious temple.Although the "Sreekoil"(Sanctum Sanctorum) is very small,divine presence is strongly felt.

Sreekanteswaram Temple is conveniently located at 3 km from Trivandrum Central Railway Station and KSRTC Bus Stand and 1 km from Sree padmanabha Swami Temple.

Erumeli Sastha Temple

Erumeli Sastha Temple, an important meeting place in the pilgrimage trip to Sabarimala is famous on many counts. There is also a Muslim Temple very near to the Sastha Temple. Ayyappans go to Sabarimala after worshipping at these two temples, that symbolise the Hindu-Muslim unity. The pilgrims go to Sabarimala after 'Pettathullal' at Erumeli. Pilgrimage to Sabarimala without Pettathullal and worship at the above mentioned temples is against the traditional dogmas. Erumeli Temple is at a distance of 38 Kms from Kottayam. Nearest Railway station is Kottayam.

Parthasarathy Temple, Guruvayoor

Parthasarathy Temple This is a famous temple credited with an idol of Parthasarathy, Lord Krishna in the form of Guiding Arjuana (Partha). It is believed that this idol was installed in this temple by Adi Shankara. This temple also has a shrine for Adi Shankara. The temple sanctum is in the form of chariot with wheels and horses. Many devotees regularly visit to offer prayers and temple ambiance is good for silent prayer and meditation.