CHELAMATTOM SREEKRISHNA SWAMY TEMPLE

Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita that for the protection of the virtuous, destruction of the wicked, and establishment of dharma, Lord Mahavishnu took 'avatar' in every yuga whenever there is a decline in dharma and a rise in adharma: of the 10 Principal 'avatars' taken by Him, popularly known as Dasavatara, Chelamattam, a sleepy village near Perumbavoor on the bank of Periyar (where it flows from west to east) in Kunnathunadu taluk, Ernakulam District, is blessed with three 'avatars' - Lord Krishna, Lord Narasimha, and Lord Vamana. Traveling hardly a kilometer from the midway on the Kalady-Perumbavoor stretch on the Main Central Road, one can access it.

Though there are no iconographic details and distinguishing features of the various forms of the Lord in the three avatars, legend has it that the first simple shrine with Lord Vamanamurthy as the presiding deity came into being on the north-east side of the present temple complex; then came Lord Vishnu's Narasimha avatar, the household deity of Thottamattam Mana, followed by the holy arrival of Lord Krishna.