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This
is a holy ambalam, whose glory is celebrated both in history and
legends. It is sanctified by the eternal presence of Siva and
Parvathi in a sacred ambalam, built on a vast six-acre land, and
deemed one of the biggest of its kind by Kerala standards. It has a
massive prakara and a tall three-tiered tower over the Gateway,
facing east. Its architectural beauty is of high order and detains
the visitors with beauty. Crossing the Mahadwara; when proceeded
further, you see the Anakottal -- elephant shed. Next comes
Kuttambalam in front of which lies the tall, brass plated flag
staff; then Balikalpura leading to the imposing Mukhamantap. Finally
the circular Srikoil enshrining the image of Lord Siva in the front,
facing the east and Mother Parvathi facing west, just behind, in the
same garbhagriha at it, but seperated by a wall with passage. This
is one of the distinctive features of the temple that marks it out
from the rest of the temples found anywhere in India. The roofing
covered with copper plates is quite vast and beautiful, sloping
steeply downwards. The outer- walls, the wooden pillars of Srikoil
and the eastern mandapam are adorned with wood carvings, and the
craftsmanship is so exquisite and impressive that Marthanda Varma,
the famous builder of Sri Anantha Padmanabhaswamy Ambalam employed
all of them for his ambalam after visiting this temple for worship.
Their skill is superb and the pouranic stories they carved are
life-like in expressions, style and design.
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