History of Sri Padmavathi Devi Temple - Tiruchanur

 

The Goddess' arrival and subsequent marriage to Lord Srinivasa are vividly described in the Padma Purana. Akasha Raja of Thondamandalam's daughter Sri Padmavathi was found in a lotus after one of his big yagnas. She was given the name Padmavathi and got married to Lord Venkateswara since she was found in a lotus.

 

According to a legend, Pundarika, a Brahmin who dedicated himself to the religion and followed the duties as per the shastras, couldn’t have a son till he was 50 years old. When his son was born, he named him Madhava, whom he raised with the utmost care, teaching him the intricacies of religion and spirituality. Madhava was then married to an equally religious woman, but he got deviated and went with another woman. After her death, unable to bear his loss, he wandered around and eventually joined a group of pilgrims on their way to Tirumala. As he took bath in the holy waters of Sudarshana Lake, and climbed the hills, his sins were washed. It was here that he heard a celestial instruction to bathe in Swami Pushkarini and seek Lord Varaha Swamy's blessings. Later, Madhava was born again as Akasharaja a son of King Mitravarman of Thondamandalam. However, even after years of his marriage to Dharanidevi, they didn’t have any children. To have kids, Akasharaja decided to perform a yagna. When the ground was being plowed for the same purpose, Akasharaja and his wife Dharanidevi found a child on a lotus flower with thousand petals. This child was named Padmavati, in whose search Lord Venkateshwara was down to earth. Eventually, Lord Srinivasa and Goddess Padmavathi were married.

 

According to another legend associated with Goddesses Padmavathi, Maharishi Bhrigu came to meet Lord Vishnu at Vaikuntam. However, when he entered Lord was asleep, which angered him as he took it as an insult owing to which he kicked the Lord on his chest, which awakened the Lord. Lord Vishnu, instead of getting angry, paid his sincere homage to the sage. Goddess Lakshmi, who was witnessing all this, couldn’t fathom the insult to Lord Vishnu at the hands of Maharishi. Owing to this, she went to Patalokam, in search of atonement on the banks of the Swarnamukhi River. Later after 12 years in penance, on the 13th year, she emerged as Sri Padmavati on a Golden Lotus on the auspicious day of Panchami in the month of Karthika, aligned with the arrival of Uttarashadha Nakshatra. By this time, Lord Vishnu, in the search for Goddess Lakshmi, had come down to earth. As Lord Venkateswara, he later married Goddess Padmavathi.

 

According to the local believers, Tiruchanur was the center for spiritual and religious activities. From the beginning of 9h Century A.D., a large number of Vaishnavaits came and settled in Tiruchanur. Though the Vaishnavaits knew about the Tirumala temple in the 9h Century A.D. they could not reach Tirumala for lack of facilities and they used to worship the Lord at Tiruchanur. The Tiruchanur temple flourished till the end of the 9h Century A.D. At the end of the 9th Century A.D. Tondamandalam came under the control of Cholas. Tirumala and Tiruchanur were under the part of Tondamandalam. The Cholas favored Saivism. With the influence of Cholas the powerful Vaishnava place of Tiruchanur turned into Saivism.

 

During Chola and Yadava dynasties: To the west of Thiruchanur (the present Yogi Mallavaram) the Cholas built a Sivalayam i.e. the present Sri Parasareswara Swamy Temple. The Chola's power came to an end in the middle of the 13th Century A.D. when Jatavarma Sundara Pandya occupied Tondamandalam. Later the Yadava dynasty came to power and controlled the place of Tiruchanur. During their period they built Sri Krishna Swamy Temple in Tiruchanur.

 

During Vijayanagar Period:  Vijąyanagara kingdom was founded in the year 1336 A.D. and soon Tiruchanur came under their rule. During the Vijayanagara Rule the temples of Tirumala and Tiruchanur reached glory and became famous attractions. The Vijayanagara Kings constructed Sri Padmavathi Devi Temple Mukhamandapam. Afterward, the power came to the hands of the Britishers. The Britishers handed over the temple administration of Tirumala to the Hathiramji Mutt. The Head of the Hathiramji Mutt took the charge on 16 July 1843 and the Mutt heads continued the administration till 1933. During their period they developed the Thiruchanur temple. At present the Thiruchanur is under the administrative control of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams. Recently temple Pushkarini was renovated in 2013.