Snake temple – Hissing Divinity

“What to do, I am still not decided on the process of adoption.” Sundar told me. I was quite upset seeing Sundar and Sarita so low and upset. They have been married for 15 years yet they don’t have a child. I have been telling them to adopt but they are still hesitant.

My father, a self made astrologer and a staunch Keralite has told them to go to Mannarasala. I really don’t know if these things are true but I have had Sundar telling me, that his brother got a child after 12 years of marriage after he went there with his wife. So Mannarasala is the place where you have to go, my father said if you are praying for a child.

Well, I thought all these things don’t happen but this time, since I had the time, I decided to accompany Sundar and Sarita to Mannarasala. I joined them from Mumbai and all of us soon reached Alleppey in Kerala. Kerala itself has its own beauty and the entire ambience here is enough to make you feel romantic. Sundar and Sarita my friends were completely at ease with the surroundings and they had forgotten for the moment that they had come here with a purpose.

When you want to be hissed with the divine then do go to God’s own country Kerala and land in a place called Mannarasala. This is situated around 40 km from Alleppey or Alappuzha. The Haripad town lies near this Mannarasala city and the place is entirely dedicated to the hissing power of the snakes. It is said that Sage Parashurama built this temple. It is said that this area where the temple lies is the only area that didn’t get burnt whilst the entire forest zone that lay there in those days got burnt. This happened in the Indian epic Mahabharata. This area is called the “Khandeeva”. The locals had many snakes which came into this area by drenching the earth by constant pouring of water. Mannarasala comes from the word “Mann aariya Salai “meaning the place where the mud became cool in Malayalam.

When Lord Parashurama got this snake temple built, several Brahmins were invited by him and told to live here. But they left as there were too many snakes here. So Lord Parashurama did a penance wherein he prayed to the king of snakes Vasuki. The Lord Vasuki said that the snakes would be there and wouldn’t harm anyone and requested to get a temple made for them. Lord Vasuki also asked the villages to light a lamp there at dusk. He also assured that the salty nature of the water would be removed. Thus the Namboodiri Brahmins were brought back again and a temple built for the Naga Raja and the Naga Yakshi. There was one family – the Irinada Palli who built their house within the compound of the temple. Here the first people to live were Sridevi Andarjanam and Vasudevan Namboodiri.

This family became in charge of the temple, till it happened that once one of the descendants of the family didn’t get a child. They prayed here and got two sons out of which one was a snake. This snake was born on the Ayilyam star of the month of Kumbha. The snake son said that all the snakes were happy with the family and said that they had a request that only the eldest female member should perform worship in this temple. Since then the custom is such. The snake then went into a room and asked to be locked and only fed once a day by the eldest female member. Locals call this snake Grandfather.

While we made our way into the temple, all my doubts were laid to rest as there is a certain divinity about this temple. Today the most important offering here is a mixture of milk, turmeric powder and rice powder. These are kept outside the temple at night and in the morning poured in the mud. The same thing when given to the Grandfather in the storehouse disappears the next morning. We did this. We kept this mixture outside the temple. A lot of miracles happen in the world and India is a land of beliefs, customs and traditions. I couldn’t and didn’t want to dispute this. In spite of medical advancement if they couldn’t have the joy of being parents then I guess such divinity is resorted to.

The unique thing about Mannarasala is that these snakes do not bite anyone and if they do, nothing happens to the person. Belongings are safe and not stolen here. The Ayilyam star of the Kumbha month is a festive time here.

Due to the childbearing story of this temple, Mannarasala is a place where childless couples come to pray. Thus the snake temple at Mannarasala is a great pilgrim spot. And I for one am praying for Sundar and Sarita.