Sivalaya Ottam

Sivalaya Ottam means running from one Siva temple to another. On Sivarathri day, the pilgrims at Kanyakumari district worship at 12 siva temples covering a distance of 82 km within 24 hours by foot.
Pilgrims who cover the distance by foot observe ‘vridha’ for a week. Those who cannot run this distance, visit the temples in vehicles. Package tours are available at Trivandrum on Sivarathri day.
The temples are covered in a particular sequence starting from Thirumalai Siva Temple which is near Marthandam (40 km from Kanyakumari).  The distance between the temples are as follows.
Thirumalai – Thikkurichi                    9 km
Thikkurichi – Thripparappu            14 km
Thriparappu – Thirunanthikkara –  8 km
Thirunanthikkara – Ponmana   –     7 km
Ponmana – Pannippakam  –           11 km
Pannippakam – Kalkulam –             6 km
Kalkulam – Tirumelankode –          3 km
Tirumelankode – Thiruvidaikode – 5 km
Thiruvidaikode – Thiruvithamkode – 6 km
Thiruvithamkode – Thirupannikode – 8 km
Thirupannikode – Thirunattalam –     5 km
Total distance covered is 82 km