the land where season never ends !

Still, geologists say, Kerala had not been born. In fact it is quite possible that the birth of Kerala which  must  have  been a rather long process in human terms, though lightning-quick in geological ones could have been witnessed by the first human beings wandering in the forested highlands of the  western ghats. There is a persistent legend which says that Parasuraman, the sixth incarnation of Lord Vishnu, the Preserver of the Hindu Trinity, stood on a high place in the mountains of the western ghats, threw  his axe  far into  the sea, and commanded the  sea to retreat. It  did and the land that emerged dripping from the waters became Kerala.As long before as the 3rd Century BC, Egyptians, Phoenicians, Chinese and Babylonians had trade relations  with  Kerala.

The  Arab and Jewish traders started exporting Kerala's spices to the west. These contacts, in turn, led  to the  arrival of Christianity and Islam in to Kerala. It  was the first place in India to host these two faiths. Later, when  a new need  arose, the Islamic people became Kerala's ship builders, seafarers  and powerful  merchant princes. In the 15th century, when the semitic monopoly of the spice trade  became  too expensive  for the European markets to bear, Portugal financed Vasco da Gama to discover the sea route to the spice  lands of Kerala. The Portuguese were followed by the Dutch in to Kerala, then by the  French in a limited way, and finally by the British who stayed on in India till 1947. This multi-layered international history has left traces throughout the  state. The Arabs and Chinese also made their mark on Kerala and fishermen use Chinese fishing nets to this day. One can find ancient Hindu temples sitting serenely near gaily painted colonial-style churches and splendid mosques. Crumbling Portuguese ruins by the sea- side soften the harsh memories left behind by colonisers, while British residences and english town squares remind one of the more recent colonial past.

Kerala has also had Christians as  long  as  Christianity  has been in Europe!. The portuguese were more than a little surprised to find Christianity already established along the  Malabar coast  when they arrived here 500  years ago. Christianity, Judaism and Islam found their way into Kerala. A tolerant people welcomed them. Kerala has an amazing mixture of religions -Hindus, Christians and Muslims. Communal harmony and religious toleration are an essential part of Kerala's culture and heritage.