Padanilam Parabrahma Temple

Padanilam Parabrahma Temple is at Padanilam in Mavelikara taluk, Alappuzha district, some 7 km south-west of Pandalam and 17 km east of Kayamkulam. It is dedicated to Parabrahma, or Omkaram, is believed to be swayambhu, self-manifested, and was among the major temples of old Travancore. Padanilam is the cultural centre of the Nooranad area.

No one knows how worship here began. The name comes from pada, battle: troops of the Kayamkulam kingdom are believed to have camped near the temple, and when the Raja withdrew them about four centuries ago, rival chieftains and twenty-two karas split into northern and southern camps and fought for control of the temple and village. Many fallen soldiers were buried in the pond nearby, and tradition says Pazhoor Panamana Thampuran fasted in a tent east of the temple to bring the fighting to an end.