Thrikodithanam Mahavishnu Temple, Kottayam – Kazhuvetti Kallu

Thrikodithanam Mahavishnu Temple, Kottayam – Kazhuvetti Kallu

Between the pond and the eastern entrance, near a public platform for arts and discourses, is a strange granite statue. It is a man flat on his back, held up stiff and straight on a stone pillar about six feet high. Only his waist rests on the pillar, rest of the body is unsupported. He holds a Shanku (conch shell) in his left hand and wears the sacred thread indicative of the Brahmin castes. At one time the statue wore a crown as well. The idol is a stern reminder that bribery, cheating and dishonesty cannot be tolerated.

Anybody who goes after these evils will be met with the capital punishment, such as, that met with the man lying on the stone. Common folklore about this stone idol has a story of jealousy, indiscretion and swift retribution. The ruler of Chembakacherry kingdom was a renowned Nambudhiri Brahmin who took pride in the prosperity of his own kingdom and Krishna Temple.

Since temples were then considered keystones to a kingdom's spiritual and temporal well-being, the King decided to embarrass the rulers of Nanrulainattu (capital-Thrikodithanam) by making a deliberate, untimely visit to the famous Vishnu Temple. He arrived in Thrikodithanam after the Seiveli puja (the last ceremony of the day) and after the temple had closed. It is considered very inauspicious to open a temple after the gods are put to rest, but still, the King forced an entry by bribing a caretaker.

When the rulers of Nanrulainattu discovered this indiscretion, they were furious. The caretaker was beheaded and, soon, the Chembakacherry king too fell ill and died. So, this stone figure was installed near the temple entrance to deter any future offenders and to remind everybody of the consequences of disturbing the gods. Another version of the story lays the blame on the king of Ambalapuzha for this surreptitious Darshan.