Mangala Devi Kannagi Temple

The temple is believed to have originated from the legend that Kannaki came to Cheranadu (today Kerala) after the cursing and burning of the Pandya nadu (today Tamil nadu) of Madurai (based on Chilappathikaram )It is possible to see the ancient Chera-Pallava-Pandya style of stone layering. Legend has it that after that Kannaki went to Kodungallur from here.

There is no credible evidence that how this temple, which is in the uninhabited jungle, was destroyed. According to SN Sadasivan, who has written a history book on South India, the temple was destroyed by Saivites from Tamil Nadu. During its golden days, the temple is believed to have been associated with a similar Buddhist monastery at Chitral in Kabul. The temple of the same name, founded in Mangalore is dedicated to Tara Devi, a Buddhist monk. It was founded in the 5th century. Temple in Idukki is in the 6th century. At the conclusion of Sadasivan, Kannaki paved the way for the fall of the Pandya kingdom, entered the monastery of the Mangaladevi temple, took refuge in the Sahyaparvata and lived as a nun. He argues that this would be strong evidence if read in conjunction with the available evidence. It is believed that Sambandhamurthy, a Saiva saint from Tamil Nadu, and his army captured the temple in the 9th century, killed the monks and later set out to capture the temple at Sabarimala.

It is located at an altitude of about 4000 ft on a hill in the Periyar Tiger Reserve at an distance of 15 km from Kumily in Idukki district. On one wall is a picture of Avalokitesvara. On another wall is depicted the Buddha meditating and Mara's daughters attacking from behind. According to K.N. Gopala Pillai, the Buddhas seen in the temple belong to the closest disciples of the Buddha. The ruined wall outside the temple indicates that there were monasteries or chaityas with the temple. Parts of the shrine and even parts of the idol are in a dilapidated condition so it is not known exactly what the idol is. The temple remained unnoticed for centuries by other places but was protected and functioned by the Poonjar dynasty and later by the Travancore dynasty. When the Tamil Nadu people came to know of the existence of such a temple in the 1980s, they claimed the temple, even when the place was geographically within the boundaries of Kerala, undoubtedly. Now, on the day of Chitrapournami, the priests from Kerala do poojas in one of the sanctum and the other sanctum are allowed to perform pooja by priests from Tamilnadu. The Chitrapournami festival is famous here. [3] About 10,000 people attend the festival. Special poojas for the festival continue from 6 am to 4 pm. The temple can be reached through the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala.The entire Periyar Tiger Reserve, including Mangaladevi temple premise, is under the strict control of the Kerala Forest Department. The ancient shrine is protected by Kerala government, but at the festival time, devotees from outer states, is ruining the centuries old structures, on behalf of doing the rituals and customs. The demand to reconstruct the shrine emerged long ago, but due to the archeological importance of the ancient structure in the protected dense forest of Periyar tiger reserve, it can't be allowed. The construction of new temple will lead to the destruction of the ancient temple structure and lead to various environmental issues in the area.

• Wikimapia

R. Raghava Iyengar, Vanjimanagar, Madras University Publications, 1932, Tamil Nadu, India.

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• Thousands of devotees throng Kannagi temple The Hindu