How old is guruvayur temple

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Email required Address never made public. Name required. Follow Following. Ramani's blog Join 6, other followers. Sign me up. Already have a WordPress. Log in now. Pre-Colonial history According to legends, the deity worshipped here is more than years old. In the 14th century, "Kokasandesam" a Tamil literary work , references to a place called Kuruvayur are made.

As early as the 16th century fifty years after Narayaniyam was composed many references to Kuruvayur are seen. In ancient Dravidian languages, "kuruvai" means "sea", hence the village on the Malabar Coast may be called Kuruvayur. The earliest temple records date back to the 17th century. The earliest mention of the many important Vishnu temples of Kerala is found in the songs of Alwars, Tamil saints, whose timeline is not exactly fixed.

Mamankam was a very famous local event at Tirunavaya, on the bank of Bharatappuzha. Due to the prolonged battles, people across the riverbank started preferring Guruvayur. Even the Samoothiri of Kozhikode become a devotee and thus his subjects followed him. While looking for a suitable place to instal the idol they met Parasuram who was also searching for the idol. From then on the place came to be known as Guruvayur. The pilgrimage to Guruvayur is to this day considered incomplete without the worship at the Shiva temple at Mammiyur.

That is as far as legends go. Historically the earliest mention of Guruvayur or rather Kuruvayur comes from a Tamil work Kokkasandesam. Kuruvai means sea in Tamil hence the name Kuruvayur. The earliest temple records date back to 17th century. The temple is mentioned in the songs of the Alwars. By the end of the 16th century Guruvayur was a popular pilgrimage centre in Kerala. In the Dutch looted Guruvayur and raided the treasures, the gold plate that covered the flagstaff and set fire to the temple.

In Hyder Ali captured Calicut and then Guruvayur. In Tipu Sultan marched to Malabar. Fearing destruction the priests hid the deity. The central shrine is believed to have been rebuilt in A. By then it had become the most famous center of pilgrimage in Kerala mainly due to the five devotees who propagated the glory - Poonthanam, Melpattur, Vilvamangalam, Kururamma and the Prince Manadevan Zamorin.

In AD. The Dutch plundered and set fire to the temple. It was rebuilt in AD. Haider Ali captured Calicut and Guruvayur, but spared the temple for a reason of Ferams which was paid by Vatakkepat Variyar.