Ernakulam Shiva Temple, Hindu temple in Ernakulam, India

Ernakulam Shiva Temple is a place of worship in Ernakulam, Kerala, India, located in a busy neighborhood between shops and residential buildings. The complex includes several covered areas with sloped roofs and carved wooden pillars, with the central tower rising above the surrounding houses.

The temple's history is tied to the Kochi kings, who moved their capital to Ernakulam in the 17th century and built a palace facing the temple pond. In 1842 Diwan Sri Edakkunni Sankara Warrier began renovating the dilapidated complex; work started in 1843, two gopura mandapams were built in the Kerala style, and the temple opened to the public in 1846 as a royal temple. It passed to the Cochin Devaswom Board when Kochi joined India in 1949.

At this place of worship, men wear only dhotis without shirts, while women dress in saris or traditional South Indian clothing. The individual shrines are tended by priests trained over generations, and during the major February celebrations, devotees gather through the night for fasting and prayer.

Visitors should remove their shoes before entering the temple grounds and follow the dress code, as shoulders and legs must be covered. Morning and evening hours are reserved for prayer times, while the complex is easier to visit during the day between ceremonies.

The temple's name comes from its sacred pond: Ernakulam is a corruption of Eere Naal Kulam, meaning "pond with water always". The legend of the serpent-bodied sage Devala, called Rishi Nagam, who bathed in this pond to be freed from a curse, gave the place its earlier name Rishnagakulam.