Temple festivals
Temple festivals of Kerala, and some near Thrissur
Temples in Kerala, and in India generally, are first of all the homes of gods and goddesses rather than places where people go to worship. The difference matters. The devotee is only a visitor to the house, not the centre of what happens there. The deities, like living beings, sleep, eat, bathe and receive visitors when they have time. A temple festival makes most sense if you keep this in mind: it is an occasion when the deity living in the sanctum comes out, to give blessings and to mark something special.
How a festival works
Almost everything in a traditional festival follows from how a divine person would visit their own realm. The deity, usually represented by an idol, travels in a style that suits a ruler: a caparisoned elephant, a palanquin or a chariot, depending on the region. Drums and trumpets announce the deity's arrival in a village, as they once announced a king's. A decorated umbrella and other royal insignia are carried to show high rank.
The kinds of festival differ with the ritual behind them: ulsavam, pooram, vela, thalappoli and others. A festival usually lasts from a day to nine days, and almost all of them end with the deity's ritual immersion in a river, lake or the sea. Those waters presumably marked the edge of the land over which the deity held authority.
Over the centuries the festivals have taken on a cultural side as well. The drums and trumpets grew into percussion orchestras of several kinds, which are now art forms in their own right. The caparisoned elephants and their trappings grew into colourful decoration, so that the processions are something to see and to hear. In the twentieth century the ritual and royal sides faded, and the festivals have come to be seen mainly as cultural events.
When and why
In Kerala, temple festivals are mostly held from late November to early May. This is a carry-over from the farming year, when these were the months without rain. Elephants are the usual carriers of the deity because of the state's forests, and a developed and sophisticated percussion tradition, with endless possibilities, holds the crowds. Even for someone who knows nothing about them, the festivals are a pleasure for the eyes, the ears and the mind. But every festival has its own history, and understanding even a little of it multiplies the enjoyment of watching.
Festivals near Thrissur
The festivals here vary in size, from small affairs at privately owned temples to large fairs that last a week or more and draw tens of thousands. We have chosen the ones below for how easy they are for a visitor to watch, rather than for how famous they are.
Arattupuzha Pooram. In our own village, across the river from Neelambari, between mid-March and mid-April. It is one of the oldest temple festivals in India, and a Devamela, a gathering of the gods, with the deities of twenty-three temples coming to the village. There is a separate page on Arattupuzha and its Pooram.
Peruvanam Pooram. Three days before the main Pooram at Arattupuzha, the deity of Arattupuzha goes to Peruvanam for the festival that was once the main episode of a twenty-eight-day festival involving 108 temples. It is described in the Arattupuzha page.
Thrissur Pooram. Thrissur Pooram is perhaps the most famous of all temple festivals in Kerala. Renowned for its grandeur and setting in the cultural capital of Kerala, the festival attracts thousands from all over the state and beyond. In April or May, in Thrissur itself: caparisoned elephants, parasols, and panchavadyam (the temple ensemble of five instruments) through the night.
Varakkara Pooram. The sun's passage from Sagittarius to Capricorn is a major event in the Hindu calendar, and several temples around Thrissur hold their annual festival that day, around the middle of January. Among the most important is the Varakkara Pooram, in which several temples in and around the village of Varakkara, in the suburbs of Thrissur, take part. Each temple stands for a locality and holds its own festivities and procession, which the local people join with delight. The final procession, with twenty-three caparisoned elephants and a large percussion ensemble, is a fine sight, and as it takes place in a wide open space, it is easy for visitors to watch.
Thaipooyam. Celebrated in all Murugan temples across South India, in January or February. The most important and colourful ritual is the kavadi attam, a dance with decorated wooden altars to the accompaniment of percussion and song. Two important Murugan temples near Thrissur celebrate it with great enthusiasm: Koorkkenchery, known for its extensive kavadi attam, and Thayamkulangara, which holds an elephant procession with traditional percussion as well as the kavadi.
Kuttanellur Pooram. One of the classical temple festivals of central Kerala, at the ancient Kuttanellur Devi temple on the outskirts of Thrissur. The rituals are elaborate, but two processions, one in the afternoon and one early in the morning, are the central events. Each has seven elephants and a full percussion orchestra (melam). The early morning one is especially beautiful to see and is a favourite with people who follow festivals closely.
Athikkavu Vela. Athikkavu is a small, privately owned temple in the suburbs of Thrissur, known for its riverside setting and relaxed feel. Its annual festival is in the first week of January. Compared with the major festivals around Thrissur it is small, and the afternoon procession, with three elephants and percussion, mostly draws the local people. The setting and the ease of getting there make it a good first festival for a visitor.
Deshavilakku. A different kind of festival, held from November to January and associated with the Sabarimala pilgrimage. There are no elephants, and it is no less enchanting for that.
Watching one
- Festivals are crowded, and the procession is the point of the day, so decide beforehand where you will stand, and avoid the thickest crowds.
- Do not get too close to the elephants.
- Carry your own water.
- Many temples admit only Hindus to the inner worship area. The restrictions are usually eased during the festival time, offering a unique opportunity for visitors to take in the temple and its surroundings.
- Dress modestly, and do as the people around you do about footwear.
Which one to choose
The dates follow the Malayalam calendar, not the Roman one, and move from year to year, so tell us when you plan to be here and we will say which festivals fall in your stay. We can also help with where to watch from, and with a car and driver for the early-morning and late-night processions.
Planning your visit
Message us on WhatsApp, call +91 94005 25150, or use the enquiry form. We will take it from there.