|
Legends and Mythology
|
The peak’s name in Kannada means ‘cutnose’ and is believed by the local people to be the nose of Ravana’s sister Surpanaka, whose nose was cut by Lakshmana.
The peak is sacred to the Toda tribes of the Nilgiris. According to a legend, when female infanticide was prevalent among the todas, the babies were taken to this side of the hill and killed. Toda women were forbidden to this side of the hill. As one of the women disobeyed, her nose was cut off as punishment. This nose turned into the peak and she became a goddess. Even today, the Todas believe that the souls of men and buffaloes leap together into the other world from the summit of the Mukurti peak.
|