The Sabarimala Sree Dharma Sastha Temple Malayalam pronunciation: [ʃabəɾimala]), is a Hindu temple dedicated to the God Dharma Sastha where the deity is worshipped as Lord Ayyappan, the son of the deities Shiva and Mohini female avatar of the god Vishnu, and is situated atop the Sabarimala hill in Ranni-Perunad village of Ranni Taluk in Thiruvalla Revenue Division of Pathanamthitta district in the Kerala state of India. The temple is surrounded by 18 hills in the Periyar Tiger Reserve. It is one of the largest annual pilgrimage sites in the world, with an estimate of over 10 to 15 million devotees visiting every year.
The temple is open for worship only during the days of Mandala Pooja approximately 15 November to 26 December, Makaravilakku or Makara Sankranti 14 January, Maha Thirumal Sankranti 14 April, and the first five days of each Malayalam month. The Sabarimala Temple serves as a prime example of the amalgamation of several religious traditions within the Indian context.
The temple practices prohibit women between the ages of 10 and 50 years from accessing the temple premises. This restriction was lifted by the Supreme Court of India after a case was filed by five hindi speaking North Indian women advocates from Delhi including Prerana Kumari, who is the official spokesperson of the Purvanchal Morcha and the secretary of the BJP legal Cell Supreme court unit.
Origins and legends
According to Bhagavata Purana, god Shiva lay with god Vishnu while the latter was in the female Mohini form. Their carnal union resulted in the conception of the deity Shasta. Shasta is also known as Hariharaputra, the son of Hari Vishnu and Hara Shiva. It is believed that Ayyappa is a form of Shasta.
The worship of Shasta forms part of the ancient history of South India. There are many Shasta temples in South India and across the globe.
Five Shasta temples, namely those in Kulathupuzha, Aryankavu, Achankovil, Sabarimala, and Ponnambalmedu, are said to be linked to Parashurama, an avatar of Vishnu. In Kulathupuzha, Shasta is venerated as a child deity. In the Aryankavu temple, he is worshipped as an adolescent Brahmachari. The Achankovil temple is connected to the deity's Grihastha household, where he is shown sitting on a horse and holding a sword, along with his wives, Pushkala and Poorna. The Sabarimala temple is associated with the deity's Vanaprastha, and in the Ponnambalmedu or Kantamala temple, the deity is shown as the greatest Yogi.
Legend of Manikandan
Sage Suta told his followers the story of how Ayyappa was born, according to Bhutnathopakhyanam, a text for Ayyappan followers. After Chamundi killed Mahisasura, his sister Mahisi arrived to take revenge on the devas gods. Brahma gave Mahishi a boon that made her invincible, with the caveat that only a human born of two males could kill her. The devas were afraid and helpless, so they sought assistance from Vishnu. The union of Shiva and Vishnu, who took the avatar of Mohini, produced a son named Manikandan.
Manikandan was abandoned on the banks of the Pampa River in southern India. The emperor Rajasekhara of the Panthalam dynasty, who was child less, found this child. In the meantime, the queen delivered a baby. The queen disliked Manikandan and devised a scheme to eliminate him. She lied about her sickness, claiming that she could only be treated by consuming tiger's milk. Twelve-year-old Manikandan ventured into the wilderness in search of tiger's milk for his adoptive mother. On his journey through the forest, he killed Mahisi. The devas were pleased at Mahishi's death. Indra assumed the appearance of a tiger, which Manikandan used to return to the kingdom. He flung an arrow into the forest to mark the location of a temple, directed them to construct a temple, and then departed for Devaloka the devas' abode.
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