Beemapally Dargah Shareef is one among the ancient places of worship for Muslims in Kerala. This Dargah is located between Valiyathura Junction and Poonthura Junction at Thiruvananthapuram. It is known as home to the tomb of Syedunnisa Beema Beevi, a Muslim woman with divine powers, and her son Syedu Shuhada Maheen Abubacker.
It is dedicated to Beema Umma who was a family member of Prophet Mohammed and believed to have great spiritual powers. It is said that both the Beema Umma and her son, Sayyid Shuhada Maheen Aboobaker came to Kerala from Arabia in order to preach Islam.
There are two wells at Beemapalli out of which one contains cold water and the other hot water. It is believed that the water in these wells has medicinal properties and effective to cure many diseases. Even during the extreme drought, the water in these wells does not dry.
Legand has it that Cheraman Perumal went on a pilgrimage to Arabia where he met Prophet Mohammed at Jeddah. He converted to Islam and his name was changed to Thajuddin. He married the sister of the then King of Jeddah and settled down in Arabia. Before he died, he handed over many letters to the king of Jeddah; these missives were addressed to several rulers of Kerala seeking their support in spreading the tenets of Islam in Kerala.
After Thajuddin’s death, the King of Jeddah travelled to Kerala and met the Rajah of Kodungalloor who helped him to alter the Arathali Temple into a Juma Masjid. This mosque was designed and built by Hindus based on their art and architecture. The graves of three renowned disciples are located next to Beemapally mosque, which is the first in India and the second in the world where the Juma prayers were started.
Chandanakudam Mahotsavam or Uroos: The famous annual Urus Chandanakkudam festival at Beemappalli is held in memory of Beema Umma and her son Sayyidussaheed Maheen Aboobaker. The celebration of this annual festival starts on the first of Jama dul Akbar and continue for 10 days. Huge crowd of devotees visits this holy place during the uroos festival from all the cities to offer prayers.