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Published: February 24th 2020
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A picture of a long lane of Elephants adorned with golden headgears and fancy umbrellas on their top would come to your mind when you are thinking of any kind of traditional temple procession of Kerala. God's own country does have some exciting events in its kitty that they can be boasted off. The largest mammal on earth had got a wider prominence in the temple festivals of the state especially in the central parts. So one such event on which you could witness that grandeur and splendour of these tamed wild animals could be the Guruvayoor Elephant Race. At the event, you could behold at the sight of healthy tuskers competing with each other at a healthy race on deciding which could be the fastest among the lot.
Conducted in the premises of one of the major Hindu pilgrimage centres at Guruvayur Sree Krishna Temple, they have witnessed around by not only the elephant fans in
Kerala but also from the entire world. Once you had seen a splendid event in real, you will be urged to watch them again. So you will be longing to experience them every year. For that very same purpose, you would not feel
reluctant to book any tour
packages and plan your holidays to Guruvayoor in Thrissur district during that particular time of the year when they are organized. Furthermore, you could drop in at the temple when they follow Guruvayoor Ekadashi or take part in the internationally acclaimed Chembai Sangeetholsavam.
The eventful race is performed till date more like a temple ritual, as it had got a rich history behind it. It was a rare incident of the chained elephants that ran from the hold of the Trikkanamathilakam temple without their prior knowledge to the Ezhunallath of Guruvayur temple when the idol of the deity was to be taken for some ceremonial procession. It was the custom to hire elephants from Trikkanamathilakam temple by the temple authorities of Guruvayur on the festivals of every year. However, in that particular year, due to some arguments between the temples, the acquisition was cancelled and such an incident had occurred. Since then, the incident was commemorated every year by the increasing number of elephants in the premises of Guruvayur, which are raised from the shelter owned by them.
The challenging race of the majestic elephants is conducted 10 days prior to the Annual
Guruvayur Festival during the month of either February or March. More precisely, this coincides with that particular day of the Malayalam month of Kumbham. Moreover, the races of these tuskers are surprisingly done for a purpose and the winner will be rewarded with the permission to carry the ‘Thidambu’ for the next following occasions of that year. These are a basically a smaller idol of the major deity of the Guruvayur temple.
Although that eventful race may sound daring, you do not have to get worried of its safety issues, as the racing paths are separated from the crowd of curious spectators by strong ropes and other barricades on both the sides. Apart from that, each of the tuskers participating in the race is accompanied by their trained mahouts. Also, the directions on which they are supposed to move are already pre-determined, so they will not be allowed to rush into any spaces of their wish. Next major security concerns are implemented by controlling the speed, in which the elephants are moving around the temple compounds and other roads in the race.
The tuskers that are participating in the contest are mostly owned and cared for by the Guruvayoor Devasam Board themselves. So these tamed and well-behaved mammals are sheltered under a space called Aanathottil, which is located in this auspicious land of Guruvayur. At their homes, you could find them roaming around the 12 acres of land so leisurely and freely. There will not be any mahouts accompanying them unless the elephant is in their fervent mood. Furthermore, the people of
Kerala are very much particular about their concern for this massive mammal. So when you are on
tour to these parts of the state, do not miss that opportunity to drop into the Aanthottil at least, if you are not making it reach the place at the commencement of Guruvayur Elephant Race. Furthermore, with the dire interference of PETA, the participation of Elephants in the Republic Day programs in
Delhi was banned recently. Therefore, such a sight would be most rare to experience.
How to Reach There: You may reach the premises of the Sree Krishna Temple of Guruvayoor by travelling around 79 km from the Cochin International Airport and almost the same from the Calicut International Airport. Moreover, the temple is situated approximately at the centre of these two major air stations of Kerala. The nearest railway station of Guruvayoor is only 1 km away, whereas one needs to travel for 45 minutes covering 27km to reach the temple
from the more accessible Thrissur railway station. By road, Guruvayoor Sree Krishna Temple is at a distance of 84 km from Ernakulam.
Date of the Event this Year: 6th March 2020 The real essence of experiencing an exciting programme, yet as part of a temple ritual like Guruvayoor Aanayottam can be felt only when you are watching them in real. You may give a visit to the temple situated on the south-western side of Thrissur district of Kerala. Tour
packages that could help you to sightsee the major attractions found in the nearby tourist places also.
Dream Holidays based in Kochi could be your best option for your journey to Kerala, as they had curated the finest travel deal that could fulfil your dream of vacationing in the state. Besides that, you could avail their services at most affordable prices once you are contacting them over the phone or online.
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