Nelluvaya Shree Dhanvantari Temple

Nelluvaya Shree Dhanvantari Temple

Nelluvaya Shree Dhanvantari is a famous Kerala Vaishnava temple in Nelluvaya village in Kunnamkulam taluk of Thrissur district. It is one of the rare Dhanvantari temples in India. Dhanvantari , an incarnation of Lord Vishnu and the god of cure, is believed to bring health and wellness to those who come here. It is a temple that is inseparably connected with the Guruvayur temple. It is believed that this temple and Guruvayur temple are facing each other. Shiva , Ganapati , Ayyappan , Varahamurthy , Churuthevar (Maha Vishnu) and serpent deities reside as sub-devas of Lord Dhanvantari.

The temple is situated in the middle of the rice paddy village surrounded by vast paddy fields. The temple is facing west. The temple precincts are a place where the village atmosphere remains constant. There is a big Arayal tree in front of the temple . According to Hindu belief, Brahma is at the top of the sacred tree, Vishnu is in the middle and Shiva is at the bottom. That is, Arayal considered the concept of Trimurtis.

Legend

It is believed that the Dhanvantari idol in the temple today was worshiped by Lord Krishna’s parents Vasudeva and Devaki during the Dwapara Yuga.There is a story that caused this idol to reach the temple.

The villagers of Nelluvaya decided to build a temple for Dhanvantari , the lord of Ayurveda. For a suitable idol to be installed there, a Krishna stone was brought from a small hill in nearby Muringatheri and the idol was built on it. Then, while the construction of the temple was completed and the preparations for the consecration were going on, two brilliant boys came forward from somewhere and said that there was an idol more divine than the idol proposed to be consecrated. Then the locals who went with them to the nearby paddy found the idol and installed it in the temple. The idol proposed to be installed at first was installed in a separate temple in the nearby field. Later it was moved to the Dhanvantari kshetra wall. This shrine is known as ‘Cheruthevar’ today. Choreva is thought of as Lord Vishnu. The children who found the idol are believed to be Ashwini devas, the great healers .

The Nelluvaya Temple has a very close relationship with the famous Guruvayur Temple.The idols of both the temples are installed facing each other (Guruvayurappan facing east and Nelluvai Thevar facing west). Also, bhajanamiril in both the temples is considered special for curing various diseases.