Attukal Temple

The famous Attukal Temple is located just 2 km away from the world-famous Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram. The Attukal Bhagavathy Temple is at Attukal in Thiruvananthapuram District in the state of Kerala in India. The deity of this temple is Goddess Bhagavathy. The construction of the building exhibits a mixture of Kerala and Tamil styles of architecture. Several images can be seen outside the temple, such as the images of Dasavatharam, Dakshayagam, Goddess Kali, Shiva, and many more. The temple is renowned for its festival named Attukal Pongala which has been included in Guinness Records for the highest number of women devotees participating in the festival. It comes to approximately 37 lakhs women annually who take part in the Pongala Festival and the number keeps on increasing every year. It is a 10-day fete which falls in February – March every year. The ritualistic offering of Pongala is performed on the 9^th day. On this day, around 4 km of either side of the road are filled with makeshift stoves. Attukal Pongala is the event in which the largest number of women in the world participates. This temple is also known as the “Sabarimala of Women.” The mythology behind pongala relates to the story of Kannagi. It is said that Goddess Kannagi burnt the city of Madurai with the fire that came out of her eyes. In order to pacify her, people made pongala and offered her. The celebrations take place on the Pooram day (9^th day) in the Malayalam month of Kumbham. On that day, at 10.20 am, the melsanthi (head priest) lights the hearth at the temple – thidapally – and the flames passed on. At 2.10 pm, libation is made. Temple Timings – The temple is open from 4.30 am to 12.30 pm and 6.45 pm to 8.30 pm. Photography is not permitted.