Sabarimala is a hill situated in Perunad village, Ranni Taluk, Thiruvalla Revenue Division, in the Pathanamthitta district of Kerala. The hill lies about 72 kilometres from Pathanamthitta town, while the distance from Ranni to Sabarimala is approximately 60 kilometres. A motorable road extends from Ranni up to Pampa, the valley at the base of the Sabarimala hills.
Located within the Periyar National Park in the Western Ghats, Sabarimala rises to a height of 1,260 metres above mean sea level. The forested terrain around the hill forms part of the larger ecologically significant tract of the Western Ghats. The Sabarimala Sree Dharmasastha Temple and the Malikappuram Temple are situated on one side of the hill and are associated with long-standing pilgrimage traditions.
According to the Valmiki Ramayana, an ascetic woman named Shabari, also known as Sabari, is believed to have lived in this region. In the tradition recounted in the text, she is described as having undertaken rigorous penance with the aim of meeting Lord Rama. The narrative relates that, while searching for Sita, Rama visited her hermitage. This episode is held to be the source of the name "Sabarimala," which translates as "the hill of Sabari," honouring the devotee remembered in the tradition.