Ever heard of a judge uncle who is known to save innocents from legal hassles? Yes, this incredible deity exists and that too, in God’s own country.
Kerala, which is known for its magnificent terrains and heartwarming culture, also encloses enumerable religious beliefs and notions. One of them is Judge Uncle, who according to the natives and their beliefs, resides in the Cheruvally Devi temple in Kottayam.
Many people across the country come to visit this temple in order to take blessings from this presiding deity.
But where did this all start from?
Moving back to 18th century, there lived a judge Govinda Pillai -a native of Ponkunnam in erstwhile Travancore province, during the time of King Dharma Raja Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma. Pillai was known for his impartial judgements and was considered as a truthful and just executor of law.
One day, a case came up to him for hearing. The accused was his own nephew but according to his final calculations, he summed up the case by giving death sentence to the accused. But after the execution, Pillai realised that he had made an error in the judgement.
In order to pay for his mistake, he requested the king that he be punished for the same. After listening to him and to escape from quandary, it was decided that the judgement will be passed on Pillai himself.
Pillai wanted to tell the people that no one is above the law and to explain this he promptly ordered that he be hung from a tree with both his feet chopped off so that he would die a slow painful death. He also demanded that his body is left hanging for three days.
However, after some time rumours came that Pillai’s soul was seen wandering in the area.
Later on, his soul was reportedly confined in a ‘stone’ at the over 1100-year old shrine which now has become a place of solace for devotees. Thousands of people come to visit this shrine only to seek blessings from judge uncle. Mostly, people come to seek blessings when stuck in legal proceedings.
The temple’s Devaswom president, Ajayan said, “Everyday, we have devotees from across the country -irrespective of religion- visit the temple to propitiate ‘Judge Uncle’ in order to resolve a host of legal issues ranging from minor cases to land disputes and serious criminal cases”.
The temple administration mentioned that judge uncle has saved lives of many people, from a common man to the VIPs out there. Even, cricketer Sreesanth, who was accused in the IPL scam case, found solace in 2013 under uncle’s blessings. It is said that newly appointed judges also visit the shrine before taking charge of cases.
Recently, Travancore Devaswom Board president Prayar Gopalakrishnan visited the shrine. People usually offer ‘ada nedyam’ and tender coconut to please the deity. They also say that it is no guarantee that he will favour someone who is guilty.
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