THIRUVALLAM SREE PARASHURAMA TEMPLE
Karkidaka Vavu Bali or Vavubali Tharpanam is one of the most important ritual conducted at the temple. Karkidaka Vavu is the new moon day in the Malayalam month of Karkidakom (July - August). During the Karkidaka Vavu day people of Kerala perform Vavu Bali on the guidance of a priest or an elderly person. Some of the important accompaniments needed for performing Bali Tharpanam include Darbha (a type of long grass), cooked rice, sesame (Ellu), pavithram (ring made of darbha grass), water and banana leaves.
Thiruvallam Sree Parasurama Swami Temple is one of the most ancient temples of South India. It is situated on the banks of Karamana Rivernear Thiruvallam, Thiruvananthapuram. It is the only temple in Kerala dedicated to Lord Parasurama.[1] The temple is 9 km from Kovalam Beach andTrivandrum Airport.
History says that the temple was built during the 12th and 13th century. The temple is considered a protected monument by the Archaeology Department of Kerala.[2] The temple is managed by the Travancore Devaswom Board It is famous for Balitharpanam (a tribute to ancestors).
Legend has it that Lord Parasurama is the creator of Kerala and the temple dedicated to him is considered as a holy place for his devotees. During the karkidaka vavu day (a holiday in the Malayalam month of karkidakam) as part of the bali (a religious ritual), devotees pay homage to the departed souls of forefathers, after taking a dip in the holy water.[3]
Parashurama (Sanskrit: परशुराम, Paraśurāma), is the sixth avatar of Vishnu and arrived in the Treta yuga, and is the son of a Brahmin fatherJamadagni and mother Renuka in Hindu culture he is considered one of the seven immortal (Chiranjivi) humans. He received an axe after undertaking a terrible penance to please Lord Shiva, from whom he learned the methods of warfare and other skills. He fought back the advancing seas thus saving the lands of Konkan and Malabar. The coastal area of Kerala along with the Konkan region, which is the coastal region of Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra states, is also sometimes called Parashurama kshetra (Parashurama's area)[citation needed]. Parashurama is said to be aBrahmakshatriya ("warrior Brahman"), the first warrior saint. Parashurama is worshiped as a founder (Mool Purush) of Bhumihar, Chitpavan andDaivadnya Brahmin Communities. You find the remnants of this first family of ancient Indian wisdom and social reform-Jamdagni, his wife Renuka and son Parshuram in all four farthest corners of Indian land mass. From Kutch Girnar Saurashtra to Lohit kund Northeast, from Malana in HP, Thaan-barkot in Uttarakhand to both coasts of South India, Kerala and Konkan boasts of his legacy. Even Kumbhalgarh in Rajasthan and Jana paav in Madhya Pradesh in central India have his temples apart from famous Mahurgarh in Maharashtra. His perrenial hero using force of his symbolic axe to annihilate all those who were tormentors of the common people in Indian civilisation for a very long time crossing many time lines. So he is considered as everlasting, alive in memories and legends of Indian ethos across four far off corners of India.
Karkidaka Vavu Bali or Vavubali Tharpanam is one of the most important ritual conducted at the temple. Karkidaka Vavu is the new moon day in the Malayalam month of Karkidakom (July - August). During the Karkidaka Vavu day people of Kerala perform Vavu Bali on the guidance of a priest or an elderly person. Some of the important accompaniments needed for performing Bali Tharpanam include Darbha (a type of long grass), cooked rice, sesame (Ellu), pavithram (ring made of darbha grass), water and banana leaves.
