the town of , or Thiruvananthapuram, for short.
This is one of the first things you need to know about this small town which now goes under the long name of Thiruvananthapuram. But then Kerala itself is small, just 38,863 sq.km stretching like a miniature Chile for a length of 600 odd km from Parassala in the south to Manjeswar (called Manjeswaram in Mallu lingo-that is another thing you need to know-always close your mouth when you pronounce a malayaam word, but more about that later.) in the north. Of the 25 states of India, Kerala is the 8th smallest, a mere 1.18% of India's land area. (India 3,287,263 sq km). With a population of 29,698,518, Kerala ranks as the 12th most populous state in India. The state also has the dubious distinction of having the highest per capita debt burden on India(over Rs 5000.00 per head)
Kerala is partitioned into 14 districts, Trivandrum the south and Kasargod up north. Trivandrum has an area of 2192 sq km and a population of 2,938,583: 9.9 % of Kerala's population live in Trivandrum. The official language is Malayalam probably one of the youngest languages in India. The most conspicous visual detail of Trivandrum,(and Kerala) are the coconut trees. In fact, Kera means coconut and Kerala means the land of coconut trees.
Parasurama was born the last of the sons of the sage Jamadagni. Parasurama earned his father's love by beheading his mother on his (Jamadagni's) order. This feat is considered by many to be proof of his filial piety. Later on in his life he became so furious with the ruling warrior class, the Kshathriyas that he annihilated their tribe, not once, not twice but 24 times before his fury was abated. He was teacher to Bhishma on the art of warfare. He was also teacher to Karna on the same topic, but chose to curse Karna, thanks to a worm. Go to the TOP
Kshathriyas were the second from the top in the caste hierarchy of ancient India. (The top most location was occupied by the priestly group called Brahmins) They were the warriors and rulers, rather like the knights of England. The other caste divisions below the Kshathriyas were the Vaisyas and the Sudras. Go to the TOP
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