KOLLAM: The Chamayavilakku festival held at the Kottankulangara temple in Chavara on Thursday witnessed thousands of men cross-dressed as women offering rituals to the deity.
The only temple in the state featuring such cross-dressing had men even more "beautiful" than the curious women gathered around. They lit the traditional lamps at the temple.
Chamayavilakku is celebrated during the Malayalam month of Meenam 1 to 11.
The temple is also unique in architecture as it does not have a roof or a sanctum sanctorum. Men of all ages take part in the festival lighting the traditional Chamayavilakku and hold it before the deity, guised as women.
A canopy using tender coconut leaves, arecanut wood, and a banana trunk is constructed as part of the ritual where the deity is placed. The devotees join in procession at Kottankulangara junction, starting from Nallezhuthumukku and Chavara and march towards the temple carrying Vandikuthira, a model of horse made of paddy and wood.
The myth behind the ritual is associated with an incident of spotting blood from a stone when children who were rearing cattle in the area tried to break a coconut by hitting against it. People from all parts of Kerala along with those from northern India take part in the festival with a belief to fulfil their wishes.
