Mukhathala Murari temple is located on a small village called Mukhathala in Kollam district and the place is between Kollam and Kottarakara on the National Highway and is one of the famous temples of Lord Mahavishnu worshiped as Murari or Murahari who killed the demon Muran. It is one of the rare temples in Kerala where sub-deities are worshiped and the entire importance is given to the only deity, Lord Vishnu. Usually, temples will have one or more sub-deities other than the principal deity.
Lord Vishnu is worshiped here as carrying divine Conch, Discus, Club and Lotus. The temple is having a large compound wall. Balikallu (sacrificial stone) seen on one side of the temple and is very large which clearly signifies the oldness of the temple. From the architecture style and the roofing pattern of the temple, we can undoubtedly say that the temple is atleast a 1000 years old.
Inside the Nalambalam, the main sanctum could be seen and the Sanctum Sanctorum is circular in shape with a large Garbhagriha and the idol is quite a distance away from the door of the Sanctum. The ceiling as well as the pillars show exquisite examples of fine carving in wood and so many foreigners visit this place and study the vividness in architecture of the Keralite temples.
Kalabhabhishekam is the main offering of the temple and there is a legend behind the initialization of Kalabhabhishekam in this temple. It is said that the Resident of the princely state of Travancore, Colonel John Munroe's wife was suffered with high body temperature and Ayilyam Thirunal Maharaja of Travancore with the help of astrologers found out that it is because of the hotness suffered by the idol at Mukhathala Murari Temple and ordered 12 day Kalabhabhishekam for the deity which soon reduced the temperature of the idol which inturn reflected in the body temperature of Resident's wife. From that year onwards 12 day Kalabhabhishekam is performed for Murari and is now done by the Travancore Devaswom Board.
Kalabhabhishekam starts on the Shivaratri day in Dhanu and ends by the day before the festival day on the Malayalam month of Medam. Visiting the temple and offering respects during Kalabhabhishekam is considered highly auspicious by devotees all over Kerala.
