Tali Shiva Temple

Tali Shiva Temple, or Tali Mahakshetram, stands in the centre of Kozhikode, about a kilometre east of the railway station, with Palayam market around it. The Zamorins, rulers of Kozhikode, kept it as their family temple, and though it now falls under the Malabar Devaswom, the Zamorin is still managing trustee. The present temple dates from the 14th century. Tradition says Parasurama installed the linga, worshipped in the form of Umamaheswara, and the rise of the city is closely bound up with the shrine. It was badly damaged when Tipu Sultan invaded in the 18th century and was renovated in 1964.

Built in the Kerala style, the temple has a two-storeyed sanctum shaped like a chariot, decorated with murals and with granite figures of Shiva's attendants. Ganapathy and Bhagavathy are installed inside, while shrines to Krishna, Ayyappa, Vishnu, Narasimha and the serpent deity stand outside. The Revathi Pattathanam began here, a gathering where eminent scholars of Mimamsa, Vedanta and grammar came together.