Aluva Sree Krishna Temple
The temple was built in 1938 as per the instructions of Maharani and the idol of Lord Balabhadra was installed then. The shrine for Lord Krishna was not built until 1984. The delay was due to transfer of power from the princely State of Travancore-Cochin to the Travancore Devaswom Board under the Government of Kerala. The nadapandal was also constructed in 1984 and Lord Ganapati was installed three years later. This is one of the rarest temples were Lord Krishna and Lord Balabhadra idols face in opposite directions.
According to the legends, once Maharani (mother of Sree Chithira Thirunal) was staying in Aluva Palace, she had an unbearable stomachache. Legends say that Lord Krishna appeared in her dreams and told her about the idol lying buried at Karukutti, 15 km away from Aluva.
As instructed by her, the officials of Travancore Devaswom Department went to Karukutti and traced a temple destroyed by Tipu Sultan. They found two idols - that of Lord Krishna and Lord Balabhadra there. Then, Maharani ordered to build a temple in Aluva for Lord Krishna.
The temple is spread over one acre. It has got twin Sree Kovils, Nadapandal, Thidappally, Balalayam and Balikal. While the shrine of Balabhadra faces east, that of Krishna faces west. Otherwise, both the shrines are similar in construction.
Lord Balabhadra is made of stone idol in standing pose with a plough in right hand and pestle in the left. Lord Krishna's idol is also in standing pose with a conch in the left hand and a whip in the right (Parthasarathy form).
Location
Aluva
Main Deity
Lord Krishna & Lord BalaBhardra
Other Deities
Lord Ganapathy, Brahmarakshas, Nagayakshi
Festivals
Sree Krishna Janmasthami Day. The Annual festival in the temple is held in Malayalam Vrischika Masam (November – December) and is famous for traditional Vaishnava pujas and rituals. Caparisoned elephants, melam, traditional temple performing art forms of Kerala, and procession are part of the festivities. The festival concludes with the Arattu ceremony.
Main Offerings
Thrikai Venna is special for Lord Krishna and Aval Nivedyam for Lord Balabhadra.
How To Reach
By Air: Cochin International Airport is the nearest airport situated at 11.1KM from the Temple.
By Road: Aluva KSRTC Bus station is 1.8KM from the Temple.
By Rail: Aluva Railway Station is 2KM from the Temple.