Kerala is a slender strip of land in the southern tip of Indian subcontinent. Beautiful and benign, this Indian state lies along a sun drenched coastline flanked by the Arabian Sea on the west and the mountains of the Western Ghats on the east.
Cascading delicately down the hills to the golden coasts covered by verdant coconut groves, Kerala is located between north latitudes 8 degree 18′ and 12 degree 48′ and east longitudes 74 degree 52′ and 72 degree 22′. Encompasses 1.18 per cent of the country, this land of eternal beauty is the abode of more than 31.8 million Malayalees
Origin of Kerala has been linked to a legend dating back to Satya Yug. According to this legend, Kerala rose up from the sea when Lord Parasurama threw his axe into it and the sea receded to bring up this narrow strip of land from underneath. Lord Parasurama, believed to be the sixth avatar of Lord Mahavishnu, threw his axe from Gokarnam southward across the ocean in rage and in repentance for his actions of killing Kshatriyas. The land of Kerala emerged from the waters of the Arabian Sea with the blessing of Varuna-the God of Oceans and Bhumidevi- the Goddess of Earth. The sobriquet “God’s own Country” thus bestows itself on Kerala.