Varkala Janardanaswamy Temple

Janardana Swami Temple is a 2000 year old temple situated in Varkala. It is also known as Varkala Temple. Janardana Swami is a form of Lord Vishnu. It is a very well known temple in Kerala about 3 km west of Kallambalam on NH 47 near sea, 25 km north of Thiruvananthapuram.It is situated near the Arabian sea shore.It is referred to as Dakshin Kashi (Benares of the south).

The temple is located close to the Papanasam beach, which is considered to have medicinal properties since the waters wash the nearby medicinal plants. It is also an important Ayurveda treatment centre. The temple has an ancient bell removed from a shipwreck, donated by the captain of the Dutch vessel which sank near Varkala without causing any casualties

The main deity of this sthalam is Sri Janarthana Swami. The deity is found in standing position facing his face towards the east. His right hand is position as if he is performing "Aachamanam". His right hand is raised towards his mouth and legends say that if his hand goes nearer to his mouth, the world will come to an end. It is believed to happen at the end of the Kali Yuga.