Kaarikatu Subramanyaswamy Temple is situated at Kaarikatu near
Manjeri in
Malappuram District. The temple is dedicated to
Lord Muruga. This is an ancient temple that dates back over 1000 years.
It houses two shrines of Muruga and a separate enclosure for Shastha with its own nalambalam. The
shrikovil on the south (Thekkedathambalm) was built during the 10th century AD and the circular shrikovil of Muruga is ascribed to 12th century AD.
The east facing temple has a large tank towards the eastern part. The southern temple has a mukha mandapam in its front. The garbhagrha has the adhishtana, which shows the recesses and projections, with division into five bays. There are three ghanadvaras (false doors) on the three sides of the sanctum.
The sanctum is roofed in dvi-tala structure and is decorated with tiles in the lower part and copper on the upper shikhara. The Dwarapalakas (gatekeepers) are installed on either side of the sopanam with hasti-hasta bannisters. The 16 pillared
namaskara mandapam is eye-catching. The ceiling of it has wood carvings. The shrikovil and the mandapa are built in such a way that the idol can be seen clearly through the openings of the Namaskara mandapam.
The other shrine, known as the Vadakkupurathambalam is also a dvi-tala shrikovil, which is circular in shape. Shrines of Lord Ganesh and
Dakshinamoorthy are on the southern side. It also has an open rectangular namaskara mandapam with 16 pillars and pyramidal tiled roof. The ceiling has ornamental woodwork. The sastha temple faces to the west and is a nirandhara type (without an ambulatory inside the shrikovil). It also has its own
nalambalam
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The dhwajastambhas (flag staffs) and valiabalikkals of the three temples fall in a north-south straight alignment in between the two nalambalams. The whole complex is surrounded by the massive outer wall on the north and east side and a large rest house and pathayappura (grain silo) borders the courtyard.
The main festival is the eight-day long festival, which concludes with the arattu on the Thaipusam day. Shri Bhootha bali is also conducted during festival days. Another festivity is the Kalampaattu festival for Shastha from the first of Kumbham (February–March) and culminating on the 24th of
Medam (April-May) with the ritual Nalikerameru (bursting of coconuts).
The temple is on the Manjeri-Nilambur route and is 6 km from Manjeri.
