Jain Temple Mattancherry: The Noon Pigeon Feeding and Its History
Mattancherry's Dharmanath Jain Temple dates from 1904. Pigeons are fed daily from 12 to 12.30 pm. When to arrive and what to see.
The Dharmanath Jain Temple on Gujarati Road in Mattancherry was built in 1904 by Hirubai Jivraj Dhanji in memory of her husband, and its best-known ritual happens every day between 12 noon and 12.30 pm, when pigeons circle the temple and are fed after the Jain mangalik prayers are recited. It is about 10 km from Ernakulam railway station, in the same Mattancherry neighbourhood as the palace and the synagogue.
- When is the pigeon feeding at the Jain temple in Kochi?
- Who built the Jain temple in Mattancherry?
- What is there to see inside?
- How do you fit it into a Mattancherry visit?
When is the pigeon feeding at the Jain temple in Kochi?
Around noon. Accounts of the ritual describe the pigeons taking three rounds of the temple at about 12, listening to the mangalik chant, and then being fed. The Jain Treasures heritage site reports that feeding was fixed at 12 to 12.30 pm after a monk advised the community to keep a set schedule, and that members strike a steel plate and call "Chalo" to bring the birds in. In March 2025 the temple trustees opened a birdhouse for the pigeons, reported as 30 metres high with 300 compartments.
The honest caveat: this is a feeding, not a show. If you arrive at 12.40 you have missed it, and on a busy tourist day there will be more phones than pigeons. Get there by 11.45 and stand back.
Who built the Jain temple in Mattancherry?
Jain traders from Kutch and Saurashtra came to Kochi, Kozhikode and Alappuzha for business, and the Gujarati Jain community of Mattancherry runs the temple through the Cochin Swetamber Murtipujak Jain Sangh. The main temple, dedicated to Dharmanath, the 15th Tirthankara, was built in 1904 by Hirubai Jivraj Dhanji. A second temple in the same complex, dedicated to Chandraprabhu, was built in 1933 by Seth Popatlal Govardhan Lalan.
You may see the temple dated 1960 on Kerala Tourism's page. In the Vikram Samvat calendar, 1904 CE is the year 1960.
What is there to see inside?
The temple looks like nothing else in Kochi because it was designed after the Jain temples of Gujarat rather than in the Kerala style. Look for:
- White marble tiling
- The main idol of Dharmanath, which Jain Treasures reports is believed to be more than 1,500 years old
- The separate Chandraprabhu shrine in the same complex
- Idols of other Tirthankaras, including one of Shantinath that is the subject of a community legend
The temple is an active place of worship and the community holds Paryushana, its eight-day festival of self-purification, here each year. Dress modestly and ask before photographing inside the shrines.
How do you fit it into a Mattancherry visit?
Plan the morning backwards from noon. Here is a sequence that works without doubling back:
| Time | Stop |
|---|---|
| Morning | Mattancherry Palace |
| Late morning | Paradesi Synagogue and Jew Town |
| 11.45 am | Jain temple, Gujarati Road, for the noon pigeon feeding |
| Afternoon | Lunch and the walk towards Fort Kochi |
Check the palace and synagogue opening days before you go, since both close on certain days of the week. If you are torn between the two halves of old Kochi, our Fort Kochi vs Mattancherry guide lays out which one suits which kind of visitor. For us, the Jain temple is the most underrated stop in Mattancherry: its Gujarat-style marble looks nothing like the Kerala-style temples around the rest of the city.
Written By
Haila Kochi Editorial Team
Part of the Haila Kochi editorial team, covering the food, business, lifestyle, and people that make Kochi what it is.
