Thayineri Sree Vellarangara Bhagavathi Kavu temple is located at Thayineri near Payyanur, Kannur district, Kerala. The shrine is dedicated to Goddess Vellarangara Bhagavathi. The annual theyyam thira kaliyattam festival in the temple is observed for four days in Malayalam Dhanu Masam – Dhanu 14 to Dhanu 2 (December 30 to January 2).
Important theyyams that can be witnessed at Thayineri Sree
Vellarangara Bhagavathi Kavu temple are Gulikan theyyam, Kurathi theyyam,
Ankakkulangara Bhagavathi theyyam, Kanikkoru Makan theyyam, Vellarangara
Bhagavathi theyyam, Bali theyyam, Raktha Chamundi theyyam, Kundor Chamundi
theyyam, Vishnumoorthi theyyam and Puthiya Bhagavathi theyyam.
This is a small temple with a chathura sreekovil – square
sanctum sanctorum. The shrine has a decorated roof with traditional motifs. There
are other smaller sreekovils. Certain deities are worshipped atop square
platforms and under trees. Important pujas are performed here on Sankranti day
which falls in the middle of a month as per Malayalam calendar.
Thayineri Sree Vellarangara Bhagavathi Kavu Temple History
It is believed that the sacred site (arooda sthanam) of this
ancient temple is the laterite stone structure, known as kusham, situated near
the Madayi Thiruvarkkattu Bhagavathi temple. The artisan community, responsible
for crafting temple artifacts, including the deity ornaments of Madayi Kavu,
resided here, following their traditional rituals and ancestral vocations.
There is a belief that a family temple existed here specifically for worship
purposes. During Tipu’s invasion, the temple was reportedly destroyed, leading
to the abandonment of the deity and associated tools in the temple well.
Subsequently, the sculptors' ancestors migrated to Thayineri desham, where they
continued their traditional occupation.
As time passed, efforts were made to restore the temple for
worship, including a devaprashna chintha. During this process, it was
discovered that a stone fell into the well while searching for the old well in
the arooda sthanam. The well water reportedly surged with the sound of Omkara,
seen as a divine intervention. The subsequent prashnachintha confirmed the
presence of the goddess in the well, previously worshipped in Madayi Kavu. The
name Vellarangara Bhagavathi was derived from the phrase "Vellam karayolam
uyarunna," meaning "water that rose to the surface of the
earth." Consequently, the temple was constructed in Thayineri,
incorporating all the deities worshipped in the aarooda sthanam and conducting
the necessary rituals—a tradition maintained for centuries.
In the recently reconstructed temple precincts,
Madayi Kavilamma Sri Vellarangara Bhagavathi, the annihilator of Darikasura,
shares the left palliyara (sacrosanct chamber) with the god of worship, Pancha
Shilpis, and the son of Aruna and Devendra, Bai, and Puthurvadi
Kannikkorumakan. The palliyara also accommodates Chamundi, Vishnumoorthi, and
Angakkulangara Bhagavathi. The main palliyara, facing west, houses Kali Kundor
Chamundi, who emerged from the copper vessels of Kandora Thanthri, and
Kurathi Amma, embodying the essence of Parvathy in an alcove. In close
proximity, just behind, resides the embodiment of Puthiya Bhagavathi, the
destroyer of disease and disaster.
Beyond the temple wall, towards the south, is the dwelling
place of Gulikan, believed to have originated from the toe of Paramashivan.
Additionally, a Naga sthanam has been installed nearby.