Sri Major Rameshwaram Mahadeva Temple

About this place

Sri Major Rameshwaram Mahadeva Temple is a Shiva temple in Thangassery, inside Kollam city. Devotees know it as Kollam Rameswaram Mahadeva Temple. The deity is Rameswara, a form of Shiva, and the idol faces west. The shrine is counted among the 108 Shiva temples of Kerala. It is one of only two temples on that list that carry the name Rameswaram. The other is at Amaravila in Thiruvananthapuram district. The famous island temple at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu is a different shrine.

Local belief says the sage Parasurama installed the idol. The temple is dated to about the 12th century. A stone pillar in the courtyard carries a royal order of Rama Kulasekhara, a Chera ruler of that time. For a visitor, that pillar is the clearest sign that this is an old city temple, not a new roadside shrine. Worship has continued here while Kollam grew from a port into the town around it.

The building follows the Kerala temple plan. The sanctum, called the sreekovil, is rectangular and carries stone and wood carving. In front of it stand the valiyambalam, the main hall, and the balikkalpura, the covered space around the offering stone. Two small towers rise on the west and north sides. A copper flag mast, the dwajastambham, stands before the western offering hall. These are the parts a visitor can pick out while walking the courtyard: the west-facing door, the copper mast, the carved sanctum, and the two towers.

Smaller shrines in the same compound are dedicated to Ganapati, Subrahmanya, Dharma Sastha, the serpent deities, the Navagraha, and Krishna. A visit is usually a circuit of these shrines and then the main sanctum, rather than a stop at one idol. Daily worship follows the usual Kerala temple rhythm. Listed hours are about 5 am to 11 am and 5 pm to 8 pm, and festival days can differ, so it is worth checking on the morning you go. Dress as you would for any Kerala temple: covered clothing, and follow the custom at the entrance.

Maha Shivaratri is the main festival. The night is given to Shiva, with lamps, chanting, and a larger crowd than on an ordinary day. There is no separate ticketed programme or stage show attached to the temple. It is a working shrine. People come to pray, to see the old structure, and, in the Shivaratri season, to join the night worship.

Thangassery is the old port quarter of Kollam, so the temple sits in a neighbourhood of lanes, a lighthouse, a beach, and churches as well as Hindu shrines. Anandavalleeswaram Sri Mahadevar Temple, another of the 108 Shiva temples, is only a short walk away. Thangassery Lighthouse and the beach are close enough to add to the same outing. Thirumullavaram Beach is a little farther along the coast. Kollam Junction and the city bus stand are a short ride away, so the temple works as a stop on a day in the city rather than as a journey into the hills.

For anyone looking up Shiva temples in Kollam, the 108 Shiva temples of Kerala, or a temple visit in Thangassery, Sri Major Rameshwaram Mahadeva Temple is the west-facing Rameswara shrine in the old port ward, marked by its copper flag mast, carved sanctum, and the Chera-period pillar in the courtyard.

🚆 Kollam Junction (~3 km)

✈️ Thiruvananthapuram International Airport (~70 km)

🚌 Thangassery bus stop, about a 15-minute walk; Kollam KSRTC stand is in the city

🏨 D Fort Hotel; Townhouse Dona Castle; Hotel Rail View

✅ A west-facing Shiva temple in Thangassery. Listed hours are about 5 am to 11 am and 5 pm to 8 pm. Maha Shivaratri is the main festival, and timings can change that day.