Thirunelli Temple is one of the most ancient temples in Kerala dedicated to Lord Vishnu, on the side of a hillock called Brahmagiri in Wayanad district. Thirunelli temple is the only temple in the world where the devotees can perform all the rituals related to one’s life, starting from birth to death and life after death. It is one of the most ancient temples in Kerala. It is believed that Lord Vishnu ('Chathurbahu' idol - Lord Vishnu with four arms) was consecrated here by Lord Brahma. It is also known as 'Sahyamala Kshetram' and 'Kashi of the South'.
Thirunelli Temple draws pilgrims from allover the India, primarily for ancestral rites(tharpana). The rituals are performed on the banks of the stream called 'Papanasini' which flows down from Brahmagiri hills. It is believed that this stream has divine power to dissolve sins of all the mortals. Another major attraction of the temple is the holy rock (pinnapara - bone of a demon killed by Vishnu) where people pray for their forefathers.
On the western side of the temple is the cave temple Gunnika, dedicated to Lord Shiva. Thus Thirunelli has been related with the trimurtis, Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva and hence considered extremely sacred. Parasurama is said to have visited Thirunelli temple and performed last rites at the death of his father sage Jamadagni. He also took immersion in the Papanasini to wipe away sins committed by killing Kshatriyas.
The serene scenic Brahmagiri hills and the surrounding lush green canopy
have made the temple premises a valley of tranquility. The
temple is an embodiment of ancient temple architecture. Its
'Koothambalam', is having one of the best and the rarest paintings of
the state. The aqueduct that brings water to the temple is also a
witness of more than a hundred years of history.
The name Thirunelli came from the word 'nelli', the Malayalam equivalent for "Indian gooseberry" (Amla) tree. Once when Lord Brahma while traversing the world on his swan, landed on Brahmagiri hills where he saw an idol of Lord Vishnu resting on an amla tree in the valley and thus the place came to be called Thirunelli. At Brahma’s request Vishnu promised that the waters of the area would wash away all sins and hence the name 'papanashini'. In Padma Purana also there is mention of a beautiful Vishnu temple located in the picturesque valley of Sahya mountain ranges deep inside the forest.
History depicts Chera king 'Kulasekhara' as the founder of this temple. He lived between AD 767 and AD 834. After a brief reign, he relinquished the throne and started missionary work to propagate Vaishnava order. It was he who wrote the Sanskrit work 'Mukundamaala'.
The inner sanctorum is surrounded by a tile roofed structure with an open courtyard around the sanctorum. At the east, in front of the entrance is a granite lamp-post. Curiously enough the flag post is absent, though one can spot a hole on the floor where it ought to be. Along the outer wall of the temple is a cloister made of stone pillars cut in cubical style. This part of the temple architecture is slightly unusual for a Kerala temple. And it seems the cloister work was never completed. The story goes that once the King of Coorg, tried to renovate this temple. When he was half way through, the Vellattiri King who owned the temple objected to the same. Thus renovation was discontinued.
It is an undisputed fact that Thirunelli was once an important town and pilgrim centre in the middle of inaccessible jungled valley surrounded on four sides by mountains. The copper plates of the 10th century and a few books of the later centuries convincingly prove that Thirunelli was an urban hub in South India at least from 10th century onwards. Also in the dense forest surrounding the temple, the ruins of two ancient villages can be found. Recent excavations at the time of paving roads have yielded coins of 9th and 10th centuries. There are two copper plate inscriptions pertaining to the history of Thirunelli Temple. They date back to the period of Bhaskara Ravivarma, a ruler of the Chera kingdom who lived in the 10th century. First inscription is written in 999 AD (37th year of the rule of Bhaskara Ravivarma) and the second inscription in 1008 AD (46th year of the rule of Bhaskara Ravivarma). The first one is regarding the allotment of the royal land in Thirunelli to the temple, to meet its expenses towards daily poojas. The second inscription deals with the procedures to be observed during the temple visit of the ruler of the Puraikeezhar Kingdom. The donor in the first inscription is Kunhikutta Varman Veera Kurumpurai who ruled Kurumbranaad. The donor in the second inscription is Sankaran Godavarman of Purakeezhar dynasty. Both the inscriptions shed light to the ruling customary practices and social relations of the time.
“Unniyachi Charitham” is a poetical work written by Thevan Chirikumaran (Devan Sreekumaran) between 12th and 13th centuries. In this poem there is an elaborate description of Thirunelli, Papanasini and the four borders of Thirunelli. Among them 17 lines are in prose. There are two poetic stanzas each having 4 and 6 lines. It is indeed a travelogue in which the poet imagines himself as a Gandharva interested in travel and tour. Observing the customs, it is after visiting Thrissilery temple that the Gandharva comes to Thirunelli.
"Kokila Sandesham" is a book written by Udhanda Sashthrikal of Kanchipuram during the 15th century. The hero of this poem lived in his house at Chendamangallur near Kochi. He happens to be airlifted from the house by some airy spirits and gets stranded at Kancheepuram in Tamilnadu. Then the hero entrusts a cuckoo to intimate his wife about his peril. This cuckoo on the way reaches Thirunelli to worship the Perumal in the temple. The 40th stanza of this poem describes the visit of the Cuckoo in Thirunelli Temple. The author Udhanda Sashthrikal (Udhanda Sashtrikal lived in the time of Kakkassery bhattathiri, an ardent devotee of Chottanikkara Devi, who defeated Udhanda Sastrikal in debates held at that time) lived from 1405 to 1475. It is certain from the descriptions about Thirunelli that the poet had personally visited the temple there.
“Unniyachi Charitham” is a poetical work written by Thevan Chirikumaran (Devan Sreekumaran) between 12th and 13th centuries. In this poem there is an elaborate description of Thirunelli, Papanasini and the four borders of Thirunelli. Among them 17 lines are in prose. There are two poetic stanzas each having 4 and 6 lines. It is indeed a travelogue in which the poet imagines himself as a Gandharva interested in travel and tour. Observing the customs, it is after visiting Thrissilery temple that the Gandharva comes to Thirunelli.
"Kokila Sandesham" is a book written by Udhanda Sashthrikal of Kanchipuram during the 15th century. The hero of this poem lived in his house at Chendamangallur near Kochi. He happens to be airlifted from the house by some airy spirits and gets stranded at Kancheepuram in Tamilnadu. Then the hero entrusts a cuckoo to intimate his wife about his peril. This cuckoo on the way reaches Thirunelli to worship the Perumal in the temple. The 40th stanza of this poem describes the visit of the Cuckoo in Thirunelli Temple. The author Udhanda Sashthrikal (Udhanda Sashtrikal lived in the time of Kakkassery bhattathiri, an ardent devotee of Chottanikkara Devi, who defeated Udhanda Sastrikal in debates held at that time) lived from 1405 to 1475. It is certain from the descriptions about Thirunelli that the poet had personally visited the temple there.
'Panchatheertham'
is the holy temple pond. One notable feature of the temple is the lack
of a temple well. Hence water is transported from a perennial mountain
stream deep in the valley by impressive stone aqueducts right into the
priests' room. It is the image of a footprint on a boulder in the middle of the tank. It is believed that Sri Rama and his brother Lakshmana performed the last rites of their father King Dasaratha, standing on this rock.
Thirunelli is famous as the destination to perform last
rites of the deceased at the rock close to Papanasini stream. During early times, water for temple use was brought from Papanasini stream. During a draught period, the wife of Chirackal Raja who was a member of the famous Vaarikkara Nayanar tharavadu, came with her attendants to temple to worship. She asked the Priest some water to dissolve the sandal, which he was not able to give. Being enlightened about the water scarcity in the temple she asked her attendants to solve the problem. They found out the water source called Varaham in the thick forest. From there the water was brought, using bamboo halves for immediate use. Subsequent to her return home, she sent men and materials to construct the present stone aqueduct to bring uninterrupted water supply to the temple. The granite open channels are supported by pillars with interesting murals carved on. Even till date, cold mountain stream water gush out of this aqueduct.
The worship in every shrine across Kerala ends ordinarily before 10:00 pm at night. But here the ordinary pooja is done five times, from morning till 10 pm and the priest arranges materials required for a sixth pooja (also called yama pooja) and keep it ready before closing the sanctum. On opening the sanctum doors next morning, for his amazement he finds that all the materials have been utilised for a pooja which may have occurred during the night after the temple closes. It is believed that Lord Brahma is who performed the sixth puja by himself and the priest before entering the temple in the morning swears thrice that he will not divulge what he sees there on opening the door, and no priest dares to give out the secret in fear of the wrath of Lord Brahma.
Trissilery Shiva temple and Kottiyur Mahadeva temple are deeply related with legends and folklores to Thirunelli temple. Thirunelli temple is located at an altitude of about 900 meters in north Wayanad in a valley surrounded by mountains and beautiful forests. The temple faces east where sun rises over the Udayagiri range. At the north is the formidable Brahmagiri Range which appears so close to the temple.
