This temple is at Maannaar in Chenganoor thaluk in Alapuzha district. Maannaar was one of the places where Maandhaatha Chakravarthi conducted one hundred Yagas. When the Yaga was completed Parameshwara appeared before the Emperor and asked him to consecrate him at the place where the Yaga had been conducted. As it was the place where Mandhaatha saw the Lord the place came to be named Maandhaathaapuram and later Maannaar. The Sivalinga seen as the manifestation of Lord Rudra after the immolation of Sati devi was brought from the Himalayas to be consecrated here. It is believed that the more walls of the temple were constructed by the Bhoothaganas of the Lord in one night. As the deity is believed to be in meditation, women were not allowed to enter the temple. It was Thaliyil Vallyathan who built a Vishnu temple to the north of this temple for the women. There used to be a famous market from the first day of Meenam at Omalloor. Panagattu Gopalan Nair from Maannaar used to go there with copper vessels. He used to instruct his helper Avukadarkutty Muthalali to do the selling and come back with the money. During the floods of the 1134 Malayalam Era, travelling was difficult and Muthalali was alone as he reached the Thrikurutti temple. He saw three men standing there and approached them thinking that they would be helpful. But they were armed and tried to catch him. At that moment the door of the Vishnu temple opened and a man appeared there. He asked Muthalali where he wanted to go and walked with him till he reached Gopalan Nair’s house. When Nair came out, the man had disappeared. He declared that must be Lord Vishnu who saved Muthalali. The Muslims who knew how one of their clan had been saved by Lord Vishnu started making offerings to the temple which is continued even today. On Sivarathri day there is a procession with the assistant priest moving with dancing steps, reminiscent of the Siva Thandava which the Lord is supposed to have performed here. The western door is opened only at that time. Dakshinamoorthy and Ganapathy are consecrated in the south within the sanctum in order to reduce the power of the consecration. Dharmashastha is consecrated towards the east of the temple for the same purpose. Dakshayagam, the story of Daksha never used to be performed here. When recently it was done, the man who was enacting the part of Daksha, became intoxicated and ran towards the sanctum. So the performance had to be stopped. An oath taken at the western gate of the temple, touching the stone there, was accepted as true by the courts. There were secret passages connecting the temple to the Koikal Palace.