He also presented valuable jewels to the Lord, including a large emerald which is still preserved in a box named after the General. The Maratha general, Raghoji Bhonsle, visited the temple and set up a permanent endowment for the conduct of worship in the temple.
There is also a statue of Venkatapati Raya in the main temple.Īfter the decline of the Vijayanagar dynasty, nobles and chieftains from all parts of the country continued to pay their homage and offer gifts to the temple. Sri Krishnadevaraya had statues of himself and his consorts installed at the portals of the temple, and these statues can be seen to this day. It was during the rule of the Vijayanagar dynasty that the contributions to the temple increased. The Pallavas of Kancheepuram (9th century AD), the Cholas of Thanjavur (a century later), the Pandyas of Madurai, and the kings and chieftains of Vijayanagar (14th – 15th century AD) were devotees of the Lord and they competed with one another in endowing the temple with rich offerings and contributions. There is ample literary and epigraphic testimony to the antiquity of the temple of Lord Sri Venkateswara.Īll the great dynasties of rulers of the southern peninsula have paid homage to Lord Sri Venkateswara in this ancient shrine. This was how he made his way to Venkatadri, and entered the ant-hill under the tamarind tree on the southern bank of Swami Pushkarini on the Tirupati hill. Unable to bear the solitude, Vishnu left Vaikuntam in search of Sri Maha Lakshmi. She left Vishnu and went to stay at Karavirapura (now Kolhapur in the state of Maharashtra). Sri Maha Lakshmi was angry with Bhrigu because he had kicked the spot which was her favourite resort on the bosom of the Lord. Pleased with Vishnu’s attention, Bhrigu returned to the rishis and advised them to dedicate the fruit of their sacrifice to Vishnu. Vishnu immediately got up, massaged the rishi‘s foot and enquired if he had been injured. Disgusted, Bhrigu kicked Vishnu on the chest, where Sri Maha Lakshmi was reclining.
Siva even became indignant at Bhrigu’s intrusion.įinally, Bhrigu went to Vaikuntam, the abode of Vishnu and found Vishnu and Sri Maha Lakshmi reclining on Adisesha. Here too, he found Siva absorbed in sporting with his consort. Bhrigu resented the want of courtesy on the part of Brahma.īhrigu then went to Siva’s abode (Kailasam). He first went to Satyalokam, the abode of the three-headed Brahma (who is also attributed to have four heads) and found him busily chanting the Vedas with one face, uttering the name of Narayana with another and looking at Goddess Saraswati with the third. Bhrigu, one of the rishis undertook to solve the problem by examining the three chief divinities. The rishis could not decide as to whom they intended to dedicate the fruit of their sacrifice. Narada then went to the banks of the River Ganga, where several rishis were performing a sacrifice. Brahma was very unhappy with his departure and asked Narada to persuade Vishnu to return to Venkatadri. At the commencement of the Kali Yuga, Vishnu left Venkatadri for Vaikuntam.