Panayara Triporittakkavu Bhagavathi temple is located at Panayara in Chemmaruthy near Varkala in Thiruvananthapuram district, Kerala. The temple is dedicated to Goddess Bhagavathi. The 10-day annual festival in the temple coincides with the Meena Bharani day in Malayalam Meena Masam.
The sankalpam of Bhagavathy at Panayara Thripporittakavu Bhagavathi Temple is that of Goddess Bhadrakali.
This is a typical Kerala style traditional temple with nalambalam, namaskara mandapam and shrines of upa devatas. The shrine has a chathura sreekovil. A unique anakottil (made of single twelve pillars) and kodimaram are part of the temple.
The annual festival begins with kodiyettam. The Pongala ritual is held on Revathi nakshatra before Bharani. Urul Nercha is the most important ritual on Meena Bharani day. The festival concludes with Arattu procession with melam and caparisoned elephant.
There are special pujas including Vrischika Vilakku in Malayalam Vrischika Masam. The temple also conducts special pujas and rituals on Bharani nakshatra day in Kumbha Masam.
The Story of Thriporittakavu Temple
The name of this temple is rooted in a chilling event that
occurred during the Kaliyoottu festival. The ritual battle between the goddess
Bhadrakali and the demon Darikan was traditionally held on the Kaliyoottu
Parambu, the grounds stretching just outside the temple walls.
The Fatal Ritual
One year, as the rhythmic beat of the percussion
intensified, the line between performance and reality blurred. The actor
portraying Bhadrakali was suddenly consumed by a divine, uncontrollable rage.
Breaking free from those attempting to restrain her, the "Goddess"
charged at "Darikan" with terrifying intensity.
The crowd watched in shock as the ritual turned into a
desperate chase. Darikan fled for his life toward the west, with Bhadrakali
close behind. The pursuit ended miles away at the edge of the Arabian Sea,
where Bhadrakali finally struck, slitting the throat of the demon and drinking
his blood.
A Tragic Realization
In a cruel twist of fate, the two performers were actually brothers.
When the brother portraying Bhadrakali returned to his senses and realized he
had killed his own kin, he was struck by overwhelming grief and guilt. In an
act of penance and renunciation, he tore the ritual hair (the mudi) from his
head and cast it away.
Because this "sacred battle" (or Poru) resulted in
such a profound sacrifice, the shrine became known as Thriporittakkavu—the
place where the hair was cast down following the battle.
Note: To this day, the traditional Kaliyoottu performance has never been repeated at this temple, out of respect for the tragedy that took place.