01Where Indra was made pure
Suchi means pure. The sthala purana says Indra, cursed by Maharshi Gautama for his wrong to Ahalya, came to this forest and worshipped the Trimurti until he was freed. The priests keep the custom that Indra returns each night for the ardhajama puja, so whatever is offered at night is not touched again in the morning. The linga in the sanctum is Sthanumalaya: Sthanu for Shiva, Mal for Vishnu, Aya for Brahma, one form for all three. Anasuya’s katha, of the three Devas who came to test her and were turned into infants, is also told here.
02Hanuman and the musical pillars
The temple was long in the Venad country and then under Travancore, whose rulers endowed it richly. Inscriptions on its walls go back to the 9th century. Near the entrance stands a Hanuman about 18 feet tall, carved from one stone, one of the tallest in India. In the Alankara Mandapam four pillars, each a bundle of thin shafts cut from a single rock, ring with musical notes when struck. The seven-tiered white gopuram is carved with scenes from the Puranas.
The life of this place
- 9th centuryEarliest inscriptions on the temple walls.
- 18th centuryThe temple passes under the care of the Travancore kingdom.
About 11 km from Kanyakumari on the Nagercoil road. Men enter bare-chested, following the Kerala custom.
