Kunnathoor Padi

The boy used to visit the jungle near by the Mana (the house where Brahmans live) for hunting with his bow and arrows. He would take food with the poor and with the backward communities. These acts were against the Namboothiri (another term for Brahman) way of life, so his father and mother earnestly requested him to stop this practicing. But the boy turned a deaf ear to their warnings. Due to the unfavorable actions of his son, with shattered hopes, Ayyankara Vazhunavar became very disappointed.

One day, as if knowing everything, the boy went in front of his parents and to their surprise appeared a divine form (visvaroopam) with bow and arrow, and with fire sparkling eyes. The parents understood that the boy was not an ordinary child, but a God. They prostrated at the God's feet and 'He' blessed them.

Chandhan (name of a toddy tapper who was illiterate and uncivilized} knew of his toddy being stolen from his palm trees every day. So he taught of guarding his palm trees. While he was keeping guard at night, an old man was found stealing toddy from his palms. He got very angry and tried to shoot the old man using his bow and arrow. While he was about to aim an arrow at him, he fell unconscious.

Chandhan's wife, who came there seeking for her husband, saw him lying unconscious. She cried broken heartedly. When she looked up, she saw an old man at the top of the palm tree, and called "MUTHAPPA" (as if addressed to a grandfather; Muthappan means grandfather in the Malayalam language). She earnestly prayed to 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 benediction from him. Muthappan choose Kunnathoor as his residence at the request of Chandhan; this is the famous Kunnathoor Padi.

After spending some years at Kunnathoor, Sree Muthappan decided to get a more favorable place as his 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, which was glowing from the Theertha (sacred water ) near the temple, was received with devotion and placed on the altar of the temple. Since then, Lord Muthappan is considered as residing at Parassinikkadavu.