Thuravoor Mahakshetram is located at Thuravoor village in Cherthala, Alappuzha district by the side of NH 47 just 25 Km south of Cochin city, is the sacred abode of Lord Narasimha Swamy (half man - half lion incarnation of Lord Vishnu) (called as Vadakkanappan) and Lord Sudarshana Murthy (the discus god of Lord Vishnu) (called as Thekkanappan). Two separate temples are seen in close proximity reflect the divinity of the place so much. The idol of Lord Narasimha is said to have originated at Varanasi(Banares/Kashi). Swami Padmapadar (8th century AD), the principal disciple of Adi Sankaracharya, had worshipped the very same idol at Kashi.
Of the two temples here, it is believed that the one dedicated to
Sudarsanamoorthy was the first to come into existence. Though there is
no record of its origin, the temple is estimated to be over 1300 years
old. There are scholars who hold that the circular shaped sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum)
belongs to the Thretha Yuga (Yuga in which Sri Rama lived) according to others, its origin dates back
to the Dwapara Yuga (Yuga in which Sri Krishna lived). As for the Lord Narasimha temple, records do show that it came into existence sometime in the 7th century AD, during the reign of a Chera king
named Keralendran. His guru was the great Muringottu Adigal, a
well known Tulu Brahmin priest and scholar.
According to legends, during his pilgrimage to Varanasi, a Namboothiri from Angamally had a supernatural vision. He saw a brilliant beam of light descending towards the earth and travelling in a south-west direction. The brahmin followed the beam closely. At a pre-ordained point in a village called ‘Poothanilam’ in central Kerala, the light hit the earth and disappeared into the ground. The brahmin dug the earth at this spot and saw an exuberant idol of Lord Vishnu made of 'Anjanakallu' (a rare kind of black-stone) buried underneath. This Vishnu idol was none other than of Lord Narasimha. The brahmin enshrined the idol in a sanctum of its own near the sanctum of Sudarsanamurthy. It is said that the idol occupies a site, which was originally the abode of Goddess Bhagavathy. The Bhagavathy idol was relocated at a place a little towards the west. Reinforcing this belief is the fact that the multi-tiered bronze lamp in front of the Narasimhamoorthy temple bears the image of a lion, the carrier of Goddess Bhagavathy. The place came to be also called ‘Surapuri’ probably because of the presence of an entire gods and goddesses.
Twin-Sreekovils in a single Nalambalam, two gold-plated flagmasts that tower into the skies, a majestically tall Aanapandhal (elephant rostrum, the largest in Kerala), a strict regimen of observances of vrathas for the priests, days after days of rituals and festivals, chanting of Vedic hymns and presentation of learned discourses on Puranas throughout the year, Yanjas like Soma Yagam, festivals like Vaisakhotsavam attract streams of devotees to the temple from every nook and corner of the country. Great seers and saints such as Jagadguru Sankaracharya of Sringeri, Jagadguru Sankaracharya of Kanchi, Sankaracharya of Puri, Head of Uduppi Pejavar Mutt and the Jiyar of Ahobilamath have all visited this temple.
Geographically, the temple site belongs to the former Cochin state. However, it subsequently came under the purview of Travancore for certain political reasons. But this transition was subject to an important proviso (condition) that if a Travancore king were ever to set foot on the temple soil, the temple would be immediately restored to Cochin. Therefore, for a long time, no Travancore king visited the temple. In 1951, on the merger of Travancore and Cochin and coronation of Sree Chithirathirunal Maharaja, he visited the temple, the first time for a Travancore king to do so. He walked to the temple over a carpet to avoid stepping directly on the ground.
Within the Nalambalam, on the southern side of the inner courtyard is the shrine of Lord Ganapathy. There are the idols of Sastha on the south, with the serpent gods just behind it, Bhagavathy on the west and Brahmarakshassu on the north, housed in separate, smaller sub-shrines.
Before the shrine of Lord Narasimha, the Namaskaramandapa is ornamented with sculptures of lotus blooms. The granite pillars on the mandapa feature mind blowing carvings and similar is the case with the sculptures and murals on the outer walls of the Sreekovil. The Garbhagriha of the the Sreekovil has two chambers. The Garbhagriha houses the elegant standing chathurbahu (four armed) idol of Narasimhamurthy (Lord Vishnu) worshipped as Ugranarasimha. In the corridor on the southern side, there is an idol of Lord Shiva. Nine different perceptions of Narasimha including Ugranarasimha, Lakshmi Narasimha, Yoga Narasimha etc. are seen in the temple. Khalki straddling an elaborately decorated horse, Yakshi carrying a hand-mirror and eloquent scenes from Ramayana are also depicted in the temple. On the extreme eastern side there is a massive temple tank and is built to reduce the fierceness of Lord Narasimha.
The idol of Sudarsanamoorthy is also chathurbahu which carries conch, discus, mace and a lotus. The foreground of the temple is spacious and paved with rough-hewn granite slabs. The Namaskaramandapam is also fittingly large and impressive. On the ceiling of this Mandapam are exquisitely carved figures of Ashtadikpalakas (guardians of the eight directions) with Lord Brahma in the middle. The large, circular sanctum contains three enclosures. Two circumambulatory paths go around the Garbhagriha. The outer walls of the Srikovil are profusely adorned with intricately sculpted woodwork. Sculptures of Parvathi Devi breast-feeding Ganapathy, Devi astride the Nandi with a bell in her hand, Ganapathy depicted in different rows etc. are also seen.
The 9 day festival during the month of Thulam (October) is the most important festival. Valiyavilakku is celebrated on the Diwali day. It is said that one of the Arattu functions at the temple coincided with the birth of Sree Chithira thirunal Maharaja.
