Pazhavangadi Shree Mahaganapathy Temple
Principal Deity – Maha Ganapathy
Sub-deities – Shree Durga, Shastha, Nagaraja, Brahmarakshas
Temple Timing – 4.30 am to 10.45 am, 5 pm to 8.30 pm IST
Idol (Prathishta) – East-facing.The idol is unique in that Ganesha is in a seated posture with right leg folded.
Dress Code
Males – No shirt allowed inside nalambalam (inner complex).
Females – Any traditional dress allowed.
Directions
One km from Thiruvananthapuram Central Railway Station, Eight km from Airport. Walking distance from Shree Padmanabhaswamy Temple.
Offering- (Nivedyam) Coconut – (for removal of obstacles and fulfillment of wish) – approximately 3000 coconuts broken daily Appam, Modakam, Vadamaala, Ganapathy Homam
Temple History
Years ago, the capital of the erstwhile Travancore Kingdom was Padmanabhapuram (now part of Kanyakumari district, Tamilnadu state). The soldiers who guarded the palace-fort at night were repeatedly harassed by a ‘yakshi’ and over time,no one was willing to do night patrol. One of the soldiers happened to be an ardent devotee of Ganesha. When his turn came to take night vigil, he decided that the Lord will protect him from harm. He went for a bath that evening and stumbled upon a Ganesha statue lying on the river bed. He saw this as a divine signal and took it with him to work that night and did not experience any trouble from the yakshi. The soldiers built a temple and installed the idol in it.
Later in 1795, the capital of Travancore was moved to Thiruvananthapuram and the Ganesha was shifted to its current location. The temple we see today was built in 1860 by Maharaja Ayilyam Thirunal. The stones used in its construction were reportedly cut from the so-called ‘Kallan Paara’ in Killiyar near Nedumangad. After Indian independence, Travancore army merged with the Indian Army and the temple has been under the management of Indian Army (Pangode Military Camp) ever since.
The place where the temple stands used to be a fruit market years ago. Thus the name – Pazhavangadi (Pazham=fruit, Angadi=Market).
Significance of breaking coconut
Coconut symbolises human ego. When coconut is broken by force, the ego which shrouds one’s conscious mind is shattered. The devotee’s mind is opened to a larger, higher realm. You are allowed to reveal your true nature, unencumbered by self-consciousness, doubt or insecurity.
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