The virgin goddess who slayed a demon and absolves sins.

The southern most tip of India marks the confluence of three bodies of water: the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean. This convergence is called as mukkoodal in Tamil. This is one place on earth where one can see the Sun rising, traversing and setting at dusk.

For thousands of years, this has been one of India’s important pilgrimage sites, as bathing in Kanya Kumari’s waters is said to absolve one of all sins. The reason behind this is explained in an intricate story involving Lord Shiva, Goddess Parvati and a demon king - Banasura.

According to the legend, once upon a time the asuras gained supremacy over the devas. Protected by a boon that he could only be killed by a virgin girl, Banasura was wreaking havoc, driving the devas away from their home in heaven and torturing the saints and sages. Unable to bear the agony of her children, Bhooma Devi sought the help of Lord Vishnu, the Protector of the Universe. Vishnu advised that the devas should surrender themselves at the feet of Parashakthi, the Divine Mother, as she alone was capable of vanquishing Banasura.

Accordingly, the devas performed a yagna seeking Parashakthi’s help. Parashakthi appeared before them in the form of small girl and promised to annihilate the evil forces championed by Banasura. Asking the devas to be patient for the right time for the killing of Banasura, Parashakti then came out of the fire and travelled to the southern-most tip of India, where she began to meditate upon Lord Shiva. As time went on she grew into a teenager. This is how the southern tip of India got the name Kanya Kumari, as kanya kumari means “a virgin teenaged girl.”

Seeing Parashakti in the beautiful form of Kanya Kumari, Lord Shiva fell in love with her. Parashakti agreed to become his bride and arrangements were made for their holy wedding. But Naradha, the divine sage played his part and made sure that the wedding never took place because Banasura can only be killed by a Virgin Goddess Parvati. 

The goddess was so heart-broken, but remained ever-dedicated to Lord Shiva and continues to perform austerities to this day with the hopes that he will one day unite with her.

Soon Banasura heard about Kanya Kumari’s beauty. He decided to ask for her hand in marriage. She refused him. In rage, the demon decided to take her by force. A fierce battle took place, which ended with Kanya Kumari slaying Banasura with her chakra in Mahadana Puram located 4 km north of Kanya Kumari.

It is said that at the moment of his death, Banasura repented for his sinful acts and prayed to Parashakti to have compassion upon him and absolve him and anyone else who bathed in the waters off Kanya Kumari of their sins. Devi granted Banasura the boon, and this is why people come from all over the world to bathe in this holy confluence of seas.

Another legend is about the nose-pin worn by the goddess. It is said that the nose-pin shines so bright that it was misunderstood to be the light house and led many invading ships astray. Therefore the east facing door remains closed and is opened only on special occasions.

World's tallest Thiruvalluvar statue, Vivekanda's meditation rock are among other tourist attractions of Kanya Kumari.