Kapil Beach and Sivagiri Mutt
Later, after our breakfast at Coffee Temple, we went towards the market to grab some shorts for ourselves. As you know, you should definitely bargain for some really awesome deals you can’t imagine at the ferry market. We didn’t buy anything later, but had a good time looking at the fancy stuff they were selling out there.
Kappil Beach
We saw some great pictures of the Kappil Beach and it was just 6.5 km away from the cliff. So we filled the location and headed over to the beach, amazing ride crossing the rail lines and later the bridge to enter this road covered with coconut trees on both sides which adds a serene feel to the ride. We reached the beach but thought that there will be some other entrance to the place so we rode a bit ahead.
Later we were guided by this person that the point we missed was the beach actually. As you can see in the picture how the whole stretch of the beach is covered with huge rocks. Blocking the water to come over the roads and actually there wasn’t any space for you to stand on the beach. With the water hitting the edge of the rocks, we tried to go to the bottom but it’s not possible.
You can either go towards the north of the beach which has the area in the middle of the coconut trees. As we saw some families there and also some beside the other side of the rock at a distance. The weather was extremely hot at this hour, maybe one of the reasons this beach was not that crowded. So we headed towards our next spot the Sivagiri Mutt.
Sivagiri Mutt
Sivagiri Mutt is the most popular pilgrimage destination of Kerala, about 3kms from the main town. Located on the Sivagiri Hill it is spread around 200 acres of land. The final resting place of the Sree Narayana Guru who founded the SNDP (Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam) for the upliftment of backward classes. Especially during the Sivagiri Pilgrimage the Sivagiri Mutt is visited by 1000s of pilgrims and tourist. Which happens every year from 30th December to 1st January which is the best time you can come here. As many community feasts, group weddings, cultural shows are organised by the locals there. With people visiting in yellow attire gather around the samadhi of the Guru who propagated his concept of “One Caste, One Religion and One God”.
The Architecture of Sivagiri Mutt
It was at a distance of 10 km from the Kappil Beach, so we rushed towards that. As it was getting hotter we wanted to spend some time at a peaceful and calm place instead of visiting the beaches. Even on that day, it was crowded with the pilgrims and tourists visiting the place. We ate a quick snack at the cafe beside the entrance of the temple. We had a walk around the whole place and were amazed by the wonderful architecture of the place.
Sarada Temple
The Sivagiri Sarada Temple, which was designed by the Guru is in octagonal shape, with windows not like the typical shape of the temples. It was dedicated to Saraswathy, the Goddess of Knowledge, with a statue of the Goddess sitting on a white lotus. Again the rituals carried on here does not include the typical way, where the other temples perform nivedyam (offering of food to the deity) or abhishekam (pouring oil, ghee and such on the idol). Instead, they are free to worship the goddess by reciting hymns.
It is really wonderful to spend some time out here as it is quite peaceful. To know more about how we spent our day after the Sivagiri Mutt, stay tuned. In the last article which drops tomorrow. See you guys then.
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