Wadakkunathan Sanctuary (Malayalam: Vadakunnatha Kshetram) is an old Hindu sanctuary devoted to Ruler Shiva in city of Thrissur, Kerala State in India. The sanctuary arranged in the actual focal point of town on a greatness ordering a perspective on adjoining regions all around. No antiquarian or researcher has had the option to determine when this sanctuary appeared. Our insight into the beginning of this sanctuary comes from legends. As indicated by legends the first "Prathishta" was finished by Master Parasurama, a manifestation of Vishnu and it probably been finished something like quite a while back. This sanctuary is an exemplary illustration of the engineering style of Kerala and has forcing towers on the four sides and furthermore a great sanctuary theater called "koothambalam". Painting artworks portraying different episodes from the puranas should be visible inside the sanctuary.

The Places of worship and the "Koothambalam" show vignettes cut in wood. "Tekkinkadu Maidan" encompassing the Wadakkunathan Sanctuary, is the fundamental setting of the Thrissur Pooram. The principal divinity of the sanctuary is Master Siva, different icons introduced in the sanctuary are those to Sree Parvati, Ganesha, Sankaranarayana and Sree Rama. Parvati, is bless in the sanctum of Ruler Shiva it self in inverse bearing. There are discrete sanctum for Krishna, Rishabha, Simhodhara, Dharma sastha Vettakkara, Dharmasastha, Naga Devatas and Adhishankara on the circumambulatory way. There are spots to recollect Parasurama, Kasinatha, Chithambaram, Ramaswaram, Kodungallur Bhagavathy,Urakathamma, Koodalmanikyam,vyasa and downfall of Adhishankara. A wall painting of "Nrithanantha" is offered everyday poojas.A white bull known as "Nanthikeswara" and intriguing canvas of "Vasuki Sayana" are unique fascination here.

The tale of the beginning of the Wadakkunathan Sanctuary is momentarily described in "Brahmanda Purana". Parashurama eliminated Kshatriyas multiple times. To appease the wrongdoing, he played out a "yajna" toward the finish of which he offered all the land to Brahmins as "dakshina". He needed to resign to another land to do thus he mentioned the ocean god Varuna to hurl another real estate parcel from the ocean. As indicated by another variant, a few sages moved toward him toward the finish of the yajna and mentioned him to give them some isolated land. Parashurama then made the solicitation to Varuna for the wellbeing of they. Varuna gave him a winnow (surpa) and requested that he fling it into the ocean; as he did a huge domain of land was without a moment's delay hurled by the ocean; this region that rose out of the ocean was Kerala. It was then known by the name "Surparaka", from, "Surpa" importance winnow. As indicated by some other rendition Varuna requested that Parashurama heave his hatchet into the ocean. Parashurama currently needed to give a heavenly clothing to this new land. So he went to Mount Kailash to his master, Ruler Shiva and mentioned him to take home in Kerala and subsequently favor the area. Shiva joined by his better half Parvati, his children Ganesha and Subrahmanya and his parshadas obliged Parashurama, to fulfill the craving of his follower. Shiva halted at a spot, presently Thrissur, for his seat and later he and his party vanished and Parashurama saw a brilliant and brilliant Shiva "linga" (aniconic image of Shiva) at the foot of an immense banyan tree. Where Shiva initial showed his presence through the "linga" came to be known as the "Sreemoolasthana". This is articulated as the tale of start of Sree Wadakkunathan Sanctuary.

For at some point, the linga stayed at "Sreemoola Sthana" at the foot of an enormous banyan tree. Later a leader of Cochin State,of which Thrissur framed a section, then chose to move the "linga" to a more helpful spot and fabricate a sanctuary. Courses of action were before long made to reinstall the icon in the new spot. Yet, there was an underlying trouble. The "linga" couldn't be taken out without removing an enormous piece of the banyan tree. While cutting the parts of the tree, there was the risk of a piece of it falling on the icon and harming it. At the point when the ruler and the others didn't have any idea what to do, the "Yogatirippadu" approached with an answer. He lay over the icon in order to cover it totally and requested that the men cut the tree. The slicing started and to the miracle of all not a piece of the tree fell even close to the icon. The symbol was taken out with every due custom and introduced in the new spot where it has stayed till now.