Papasnanam Beach, Varkala

The Papasnanam Beach lies 45 km away from Thiruvananthapuram. It is believed that bathing in the fresh water spring here brings relief from the sins as the name reveals, papasnanam meaning ‘sin destroyer’.

Devotees come here to submerse the ashes of their dead relatives. The act of draining the ashes of the dead and taking a dip in the papanasam water is considered sacred.

The Mythology goes like: One day Sage Narada came near a group of devotees. These devotees confessed to him of having sinned. To redeem them, Narada tossed his ‘Valkkalam’ in the air, and the Valkkalam fell at a place which came to be known as Varkala.

He asked the devotees to go to the beach and pray to destroy their sins. Thus, the beach got its name Papasnanam. It is a pleasure to gaze at the horizon watching the sunset from the Papasnanam Beach that is surrounded by coconut palms.