Karrikkattu Madappura Sree Muthappan Kshetram

Myths and Legends about Sree Muthappan
Sree Muthappan is believed to be the personification of two divine figures - Thiruvappana and Vellatom. Fundamentally the dual divine figures Thiruvappana and vellatom are not very different from the Theyyamkaliyattem of the north Malabar region. Though Sree Muthappan represents a single god, it represents two godly figures, Vishnu (with fish-shaped crown) and Shiva (a crescent-shaped crown).
Sri Muthappan as a theyyam is performed year-round whereas other theyyams are seasonal (lasting October to May).
The traditional story of Parassinikkadavu Muthappan describes the background of the god.
The Naduvazhi (landlord) Ayyankara Illath Vazhunnavar was unhappy as he had no child. His wife Padikutty Antharjanam was a devotee of Lord Shiva. She offered several things as sacrifice to the God Shiva. One day in her dream she saw the Lord. The very next day while she was returning after a bath from a near by river saw a pretty child lying in a flower bed. She took the child home and brought him up as her own son.
The boy used to visit the jungle near their house (mana) for hunting with his bow and arrows. He would take food to the poor and to the backward communities. As these acts were against the Namboothiri way of life, his parents earnestly requested him to stop this practice. But the boy turned a deaf ear to their warnings. Ayyankara Vazhunavar became very disappointed.
One day the boy went to his parents and shown them his divine form (visvaroopam) with bow and arrow and fiery eyes. His parents realized that the boy was not an ordinary child but a god. They prostrated in front of him and he blessed them.
The god started a journey from Ayyankara. The natural beauty of the Kunnathoor detained him. He was attracted by the toddy of palm trees.
Chandhan (an illiterate and uncivilized toddy tapper) knew that his toddy was being stolen from his palm trees every day. So he decided to guard his palm trees. While he was keeping guard at night, he caught an old man stealing toddy from his palms. He got very angry and tried to shoot the old man using his bow and arrow. While he was aiming an arrow at him, he fell unconscious.
Chandan's wife who came there looking for her husband saw him lying unconscious. She cried brokenheartedly. When she looked up she saw an old man at the top of the palm tree, she called "MUTHAPPAN" (as if addressed to a grandfather, Muthappan means grandfather in Malayalam language). She earnestly prayed to the god to save her husband. Before long, Chandhan regained consciousness.
She offered boiled grams, slices of coconut, burnt fish and toddy to the Muthappan (Even today in Sree Muthappan temples the devotees are offered boiled grams and slices of coconut). She sought a blessing from him. Muthappa choose Kunnathoor as his residence at the request of Chandhan. This is the famous Kunnathoor padi.
After spending some years at Kunnathoor, Sree Muhtappa decided to look for a more favorable residence so that he could fulfill his aim of reincarnation. He shot an arrow upward from Kunnathoor. The shaft reached Parassini where the famous Parassini Temple resides now. The arrow, when it was found, was glowing in the Theertha (sacred water) near the temple. It was received with devotion and placed on the altar of the temple. Since then, lord Muthappan has been thought to reside at Parassinikkadavu
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Another story
As a boy, Muthappan was rebellious. He was a great hunter and would skin the animals that he killed and wear their skins as clothes. One day, he came across a coconut tree that was being tapped for toddy, the liquor fermented from coconut sap. He climbed the tree and emptied the jar that was holding the toddy. When the toddy tapper returned and saw Muthappan, he immediately challenged him. Muthappan turned the man to stone for daring to address such a powerful god in this manner. During performances of Muthappan theyyam, the performer consumes the toddy liquor and passes it around to the spectators. In this act, Muthappan “breaks” the temple rules by allowing alcohol into temple grounds.
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Sree Muthappan and Dogs
Sree Muthappan is always accompanied by a dog. Dogs are considered sacred here and one can see dogs in large numbers in and around the temple.
You can see two bronze carved dogs at the entrance of the temple to symbolise the trustworthiness of the bodyguards of the god. When the prasad is ready it is first served to a dog that is always ready inside the temple.
Local legends enhance the importance of dogs to Sree Muthappan, such as the story that follows:
A few years ago, temple authorities decided to reduce the number of dogs inside the temple, so they took some dogs and puppies away. Surprisingly, from that very day, the performer of the Sree Muthappan Theyyam was unable to perform (it is said that the spirit of Sree Muthappan enters his body and the performer becomes the god until the theyyam performance is finished). Since the dogs were removed from the temple, Sree Muthappan did not enter the theyyam performer's body. Knowing this, the dogs were bought back to the temple. From that day onwards, theyyam performance returned to normal.
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Temple Festival Procession
Tradition requires that the Annual Festival ('Ulsavam') of the Muthappan Temple at Parassinikkadavu to start by a procession led by a male member of the "Thayyil" clan of Thayyil, Kannur from the family home to the main altar of the temple, where he offers a 'pooja' (prayer) to the gods.
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