Sivagiri Mutt
Sivagiri – Varkala, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
Sree Narayana Guru established Sivagiri Mutt in Varkala, 39 km away from Trivandrum. Pilgrimage fo Sivagiri is conducted at Dec – Jan. Sivagiri mutt is run and organised under headquarter of Narayana Dharma Sangham Trust. Sri Narayana Guru took samadhi here.
Sree Narayana Guru, a sage & reformer made a temple for propagating a philosophy of – One Caste, One Religion, One God. Around 1904 , an elementary school was established, then a night school came in existence. People do darshan here & his followers are called Ezhavas. He even installed idols in temples to prove that the authority for performing any religious rite doesn’t exclusively belong to Brahmin. The Sivagiri Mutt at Varkala is a unique place apt for pilgrimage.
Every year, the birthday or Samadhi day are celebrated in Aug/ Sept respectively. On this event, processions, seminars, cultural shows, community feasts, public meetings, & special set of rituals are held inside the temple.
Mahasamadhi of Sree Narayana Guru attracts devotees from around the world. Many seminars & discussions on aspects of modern life ranging from industrialization to women empowerment are held on these days. Architecture is really simple, inside, there are halls where people can comfortably rest, take part in religious discourses.