Goddess herself. He prayed her to absolve him of his sins. After killing Banasura, Kumari assumed her original form of Parvati, and reunited with her husband, Shiva. Kumari maintained her divine presence in the place, in the Bhagavati Kumari Amman Temple. According to Vaishnavism, the saint Vadiraja Tirtha states in his Tirtha Prabandha that Devi Kanya Kumari is a form of the goddess Lakshmi herself, who descended upon the earth to kill the demon Banasura, who was a devotee of Shiva. Worship The Bhagavati Kumari Amman Temple is one of the 52 Shakti Peetha. It is believed that the back spine area of Sati's corpse fell here creating the presence of Kundalini Shakti in the region. The shrine is accessed through the Western door. The eastern door is opened only on certain days of a year, as on the new moon days in the months of Thai, Aadi (Karkidaka) July, during Navaratri and in the month of Kaartikai. For the purpose of rites and rituals in the temple of Kumari is imagined as (Sankalpam) as Bālambika, the child goddess. The goddess is considered as Katyayani, one of the Navadurgas here. She is also considered as Bhadrakali by the devotees while worshipping her. Devi Kanya Kumari is the goddess of virginity and penance. It is a practice that people choose to receive the Diksha of Sanyasa from here in olden times. The rites and rituals of the temple are organized and classified according to Sankaracharya's treatise. The other attractions inside the temple are the Pathala Ganga Tirtha, Kalabhairava Shrine. Kalabhairava is a ferocious form of Shiva who annihilates kala, or time itself. Each of the 51 Shakti Peetha has a Kalabhairava shrine within the temple meant for the protection of the temple. The name of the Kalabhairava in Kanyakumari temple is 'Nimish' and the Shakti is 'Sarvani' and in the Shakti Peetha of Shuchindram the Kalabhairava is 'Samhāra' and the Shakti is 'Narayani'. These are two Shakti Peethas out of the 51 Shakti Peethas all over South Asia. There are also shrines to Vijayasundari and Balasundari, friends and playmates of the Goddess in her youthful form. Navarathri Mandapam is a hall where devotees can display their artistic ability in music as a dedication to the goddess, Shri Pāda Pāra is a rock in the shape of Kumari's feet. This is now famous as Vivekananda Paara, where Swami Vivekananda got enlightenment to