My father belongs to south part of Kerala: Kollam. Every year during our summer vacations, we used to visit Kollam to meet my Paternal grandparents. The whole year me and my brother would be waiting for our summer holidays to visit our grandparents.
Every year during our visit to Kollam there would be some or the other relative who would have visited the Kottarakkara Mahaganapathi Kshetram and we would relish the yummy prasadam (the Unniappams) from the temple. The first memory which flashes in one’s mind is the Kottarakkara Unniappams and later the temple. Since those time we always wanted to visit the temple.
How to reach
In 2012 finally we got to visit this amazing temple. Kottarakkara is a small town in Kollam district and is 25 kms away from Kollam town and 80 kms from Thiruvananthapuram. The buses are well connecting and autorickshaws can also take you to your destination.
The deities of the temple are Lord Shiva, Goddess Parvati, Lord Ganesha, Lord Murugan, Lord Ayyappan, and Nagaraja. Even though the main deity is Lord Shiva, the main priority is given to his son Lord Ganesha. Kottarakkara Mahaganapathi Temple is one of the famous temples in Kollam district, Kerala. Actually, the main Idol is Lord Siva, but Ganapathy is famous here. The exact name of the temple was Kizhakkekara Siva Kshetram.
The Story
The Unniappams made here is very famous and it has a very different flavour to it.Unniappams , a sweet ghee-fried snack made with rice and bananas.
The story being: The first offering of the famous sculptor Perumthachan, who carved the idol of Mahaganapathi at Kottarakkara. was Koottappam.( six to seven Unniappams stringed together).
The Unniappams are made just in front of the Lord Ganapathy’s shrine, the holy fire is lit for making Unniappams. Moreover, it is only after the sanctum sanctorum is open that the uniappam’s are made. Raw rice, jaggery, ‘kadali’- a variety of banana and Ganapathy’s favourite, ghee and sugar are the ingredients used for making unniappam.
Right from dawn to dusk, Unniappams are made and all of these together are made as an offering to the Lord at dusk. Later on, it is distributed freely to the devotees. This offering is known as Udayasthamana Pooja. The heavy rush of devotees to Kottarakkara Ganapathy Temple speaks volumes of Lord Ganapathy’s love, care and concern towards them.
As soon as you enter the temple a sweet smell of Unniappams is sure to tempt you. The Unniappams are kept in huge cane baskets and offered to Ganapathy is Urli (bronze vessel).
Its so mesmerising to watch the Unniappams being made in front of the shrine that you will surely forget to offer your prayers to Lord Ganapathy.
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