Wanderlust Tales : Guruvayur Diaries - Dwarka of the South

DAY 1

GURUVAYUR DIARIES:
https://xylo742.blogspot.com/2018/11/wanderlust-tales-road-trip-to-guruvayur.html

THINGS TO DO IN GURUVAYUR:

• Sree Krishna Temple

First and foremost post our lunch, we decided to pay a visit to the Sree Krishna Temple.

The Guruvayur Shree Krishna temple is the major attraction in the town. Guruvayur as mentioned in my previous post is known as the "Dwarka of the South" and is also the holy abode of Vishnu, referred to as the Bhuloka Vaikunta.

It is among the 108 most divine Vishnu temples of the world and dates back to more than 5000 years old.

It is believed that the temple is a creation of the Guru and Vyus - God of the winds. The idol is carved from a rare stone called Patala Anjana.

It was located at a distance of 1 km from our hotel where we were staying for the night - The Guruvayur Gateway Hotel.
We took a auto rickshaw from the hotel and for a price of Rs.30/-, we were dropped at the temple.

The temple has two entrances - we chose to enter from the main entrance which had a horde of shops for artifacts, puja items,accessories, clothing and others among the other.

It is among the most visited temple in the South - the Guruvayurappan is a form of Lord Vishnu having four arms with one carrying Panchajanya, another one Sudharshna Chakra,third one Kaumodaki and the last one is a lotus with basil garland.🙏

You would find numerous light pillars all over the inner sanctum of the temple - right before you enter the narrow room where the holy abode has been placed, which is also known as the Garbhagriha.

Here you can see the priests collecting the daan made to the Lord. As they were clearing the daan in handis, it was only the sounds of coins that was echoing through the corridor.😊 Do see the video below.

The chief priest is called the Mesanti - he observes fast till the rituals are completed.

There is a auditorium where there are lot of these folks singing lot of bhajans in malayalam I believe.

This is a 33.5 m gold plated lamp post right outside.

You would find a lot of mural paintings on the wall of the temple. There is a digital display which shows the various Krishna shlokas.

"Om Namoh Bhagvate Vashudeva Namah"

Located at a distance of 3 km from the temple is the Punnathur Kotta which is elephant yard.It is home to 56 elephants - all adopted by the temple and donated by the devotees.

You would find lot of stalls selling basil garland and lotus for offering to the Lord.

Source : from various information available over the net

Must Do:

1. There is a strict dress code for the men and women. Men need to wear mundu, and on the upper body a small piece of cloth which is called vesthi. Women can wear salwar kameez or sari.
2. The wait time in the evenings is really high - we had to wait for almost 3 hours or so.
3. They have safes where you can deposit your clothing, belongings, footwear, camera, mobile phone for a minimal price. 
4. They have placards in English thankfully indicating the direction for safe deposit, changing room.
5. Men can carry their clothing in a bag to the temple - that is not necessary to be deposited.
6. There are many changing rooms also available.
7. Language is something, you could face a problem with.
8. Only hindus are allowed in the temple premises.
9. There is a dedicated seating area for the darshan.
10. There is no entry fees.

Timings:

Address:

Guruvayur Devaswom, East Nada
Guruvayur

• Chavakkad Beach

This beach was located at a distance of  5 km from our hotel. It is said it is here that the sangam of the river and the sea known as the Azhimukam happens. The beach is coastline stretch  of the Arabian Sea.The beach in its obvious nature is surrounded by loads of coconut trees  and you would find a lot of food stalls around.

There is dedicated car parking area, chargeable at a minimal price of Rs.10/-. There is a mini park with swings.

A beach in its entirety is the best way to spend your early mornings - just gazing at the beautiful sun kissed morning, the numerous families flocking the beach to spend some quality time with their families.

Beach walk is the best thing you can do there - although I did not get to witness but this is where majority of the fisherman display a wide range of catch from the sea. Albeit we did find couple of road side stalls on the narrow roads to the beach - where they where selling their catch.

Chavakkad Beach is a very popular beach in the vicinity. 💧

Mind you - you would need to drive through narrow roads to reach the beach.

Address:

Chavakkad Beach Road

Not a very clean beach I would say but....

• The town

The streets, the nature, the culture all are noteworthy. You would find the men dressed in Mundu and the women in the notable white-golden border saree.

Language is a slight problem.

There are plentiful of small kirana shops, market places in the locality. It is a typical small town. 😊

Source : Some of the facts about the places are from various information available over the internet.

Cheers to life!!         

~Believe in yourself always!

P.S. All the above photos have been clicked by me. 😊