There is a saying in Malayalam – Poorathil Pooram Thrissur Pooram, which means that amongst all festivals in Kerala, the Thrissur Pooram is considered the best and the most sought after. Pooram Day changes annually because it’s a star based on the Malayalam Calendar, but the festival is always held at the Vadakkunnathan Temple in Thrissur town.

Thrissur Pooram was the brain child of Raja Rama Varma aka Shakthan Thampuran, who was the Maharajah of Cochin from year 1790–1805. In 1798, he unified the 10 temples situated around the Vadakkunnathan Temple  and organized the celebration of Pooram as a mass festival. He invited temples with their deities to Trissur to pay obeisance to Lord Vadakkunnathan, (Lord Shiva).

 

The Maharajah of Cochin ordained these temples into two groups, the Western group and Eastern group. The Western group is focused on the Thiruvambay Sri Krishna Temple, the Eastern group on Parmekkavu Bhagavathy Temple. The Pooram (procession) was to be centered around the Vadakkunnathan Temple with all these temples sending their poorams to pay obeisance to Lord Shiva, the presiding deity. The Thampuran is believed to have chalked out the program and the main events of the Pooram.

In an earlier post, I mentioned Kerala being a must visit in anyone’s travel itinerary, and when people are in Kerala, it is imperative that they plan their itinerary around Thrissur Pooram as this is one festival which one shouldn’t miss seeing.

Thayambaka, elephants (as in the above picture), changing of umbrellas (very colorful) and firecrackers are the highlights of Trissur Pooram.