Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kerala: Kasaragod Tours

This is a brief blog about my recent experience of Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kasaragod during Tyndis Temple Tour in Kerala. Tourists can explore Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour if you are looking for tours near Taj Bekal.

Kasaragod, the North-most district in Kerala was formed in 1984 by acquiring some part from the Kannur district and the other from parts of Karnataka. Hence, Kasaragod has a unique culture and dialect. Bekal Fort is one of the most visited places in Kasaragod. About 25 km from Bekal lies an idyllic town called ‘Kumbla’.

Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kerala

Ananthapura Lake Temple interestingly is the only ‘lake temple’ in Kerala situated 6 km from the town of Kumbla. The ruling deity of this temple is Lord Vishnu. If you are coming from Mangalore, this temple is 42 km away.

This was my first visit to this temple. Here I am sharing the amazing experience I had during Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kerala. I travelling along with my friend cum guide for Tyndis Kasaragod Tours, Mr Mahesh and few guests from the US attending the Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kerala.

This Temple tour in Kerala is one of ht best tours near Taj Bekal. Hence we were having tourists from Taj Bekal for the Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour. They had searched for best things to do near Taj Bekal and came across Tyndis Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour. And so, we were in Ananthapura Lake Temple!

By the time we reached the shrine, it was twilight. The Sun was looking beautiful! Ananthapura Lake Temple is open to all regardless of religion or caste (some temples in Kerala is reserved only for Hindus). We removed our footwear outside, as we walked towards the entrance of the shrine.  

A middle-aged gentleman, the caretaker of the temple premises welcomed us. Before entering the shrine, Mahesh gave us a brief on the temple and the legendary stories behind it. He later said that he always does this, so that the experience of Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kerala can be exciting for the tourists.

While moving through the temple compound in Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour, Mahesh explained about the myths about the Temple. There are so many myths associated with this shrine that it is difficult to trace back the exact year when it was built.

Legend behind Ananthapura Lake Temple

According to one of the legends, as early as 9th century, at this spot where the temple is built, there lived Divakara Muni Vilwamangalam, the great Tulu Brahmin sage who was a devotee of Lord Vishnu. Pleased by his penance and prayers offered, the Lord appeared to him and asked the sage to create an idol in his form.

While at work, to put his devotee to test, the Lord came in the form of an orphan child. Feeling pity, the sage allowed the boy to stay along with him. As time went by, the sage became very proud of himself. One day, the boy peed in the holy water the sage had kept aside for his rituals. An angry Vilwamangalam pushed the boy in anger.

Feeling humiliated, the boy declared that if Vilwamangalam wanted to see him again, he would have to come to Ananthankat, the forest of the serpent God, Anantha. Saying this, the boy disappeared and in his place was a cave.  Realizing the boy was none other than the Lord himself, the sage ran into the cave in search of the boy that led him to a sea next to a forest.

In the forest, the sage saw the child standing near a Mahua tree. As the sage came near, the tree fell and assumed the shape of Lord Vishnu lying on a thousand hooded serpents. This spot is believed to be the spot where the Sri Padmanabha Swamy Temple at Thiruvananthapuram is located. Thus the temple in Kasaragod is the original abode of Lord Anantha Padmanabha who now resides at the temple in Thiruvananthapuram. This Temple Tour in Kerala can be experienced in Tyndis Trivandrum Heritage Walk.

This lake temple in a small village called Ananthapura, in Kasaragod district, shot to fame when they claimed they have a vegetarian crocodile living in the cave within the lake. Believers feel ‘Babiya‘ – the crocodile is a messenger of Lord Padmanabhan himself.

Babiya has been a resident of the temple lake for more than 70 years now and the temple priests are not fearful to take a holy dip in this lake. She supposedly lives on the temple’s ‘Prasadam’ which is served to her twice a day. The story about Babiya in the Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kerala was out of the world.

It was hard for us to believe this telltale but after spending about half an hour, we witnessed this sight and looked at each other in amazement! The lake in which the Sanctum Sanctorum is built measures about 2 acres.

As the Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kerala was reaching its end, we passed over to the entrance of sanctum sanctorum that is reachable only by a bridge. There is a large Banyan tree that stands in its mightiness here. The uniqueness about this temple is that the idol here is not made of metal or stone but out of 70 medicinal plants called ‘kadum-sharkara-yogam‘.

As our guests explored the temple along with Mahesh, I captured some beautiful snapshots of the landscape with the setting sun as the backdrop. As it grew darker, we completed the Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour and headed out to the main road.

But I said to myself, I will be visiting this place again, perhaps with a DSLR camera to capture much better snaps of this temple has a typical Kerala architecture, the lake and its water lilies and if luck is by my side, then get a glimpse of Babiya the crocodile. Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kerala is simply the best of Kasaragod Tours. I knew why it was listed as the best things to do near Taj Bekal!

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If you like this blog, share it with your friends and plan for Kasaragod Tours and Ananthapura Lake Temple Tour in Kerala with Tyndis Tours. I sure can come along with you as your storyteller for your Kasaragod Tours.