Varadaraja Perumal Temple,
Kanchipuram – History
The
temple was believed to be built by Pallava king Nandivarman
II. As per the available inscription, the
temple was originally built by Cholas in 1053 CE. The
Temple was extensively renovated during the reign of Kulothunga
Chola I, Vikrama Chola, Rajadhiraja Chola I, Rajaraja Chola II, Rajadhiraja
Chola II, Kulothunga Chola III and Rajaraja Chola III. It is said that
Ramanuja, one of the greatest Hindu scholars, is believed to have resided in this
temple.
The
temple received extensive patronage from Vijayanagara
Kings after the fall of Chola Empire. Krishna Devaraya, Achyuta Deva Raya,
Sadasivaraya, Rangaraya I, Venkataraya I and Venkataraya III made elaborate
endowments to this
temple. The
temple has around 350 inscriptions from various dynasties like Chola,
Pandya, Kadavarayas, Cheras, Telugu Chodas, Kakatiya, Sambuvarayars, Hoysala
and Vijayanagara indicating various donations to the
temple and also the political situation of Kanchipuram.
There are inscriptions dated to 1532 CE indicating the
gift of number of villages made by Achyuta Deva Raya. Vira Narasingaraya
Saluva Nayaka who was directed by Achyuta Deva Raya broke the royal order by
giving more lands to Ekambaranathar
temple than the Varadaraja
Swamy temple against the instruction of an equal gift to either of
the temples. Achyuta Deva Raya on hearing this partiality equally distributed
the lands to both the temples.
The inscriptions and records of the
temple states that several leaders like Vyasatirtha and Satya Vijaya
Tirtha from the Dvaita school of Vedanta had evinced interest in this
temple. An epigraph of the
temple datable to 1511 CE records that the Dvaita saint and Kulaguru
of Krishnadevaraya, Shri Vyasatirtha presented a village and serpent
vehicle to Varadaraja
Temple and instituted a festival in honour of Vijayanagara
king Krishnadevaraya.
The renovations done by Alam Kheer Basha of Delhi during
1645 CE was inscribed on the walls of the
temple. Another record dated to 1726 CE mentions that another Dvaita
saint and Peethadhipathi of Uttaradi Matha by the name Satya Vijaya
Tirtha was honoured in the
temple with some privileges. In his work Sasana Tamil
Kavi Saritham, Raghava Iyengar mentions that Parimel Azhagar wrote
his commentary of the Thirukkural around 1271–1272 CE as indicated in an
inscription at the
temple.
When a Mughal invasion was expected in 1688 CE,
the main image of the deity was sent to Udayarpalayam, now part of Thanjavur
District. It was only during 1710 that the situation was ripe for the
deities to be returned. But the chieftain of Udayarpalayam opposed the move and
only after the intervention of Paramahamsa Parivajakacharya Attan Jeer, the
deities were returned. The event is commemorated as a festival in the
temple.
Robert Clive, the British general during the colonial
period visited the Garuda Seva festival and presented a valuable necklace
(now termed Clive Mahara Kandi), which is adorned during a special occasion
every year. The Thathacharyas are the custodians of the Kanchipuram
Perarulaalan Kovil popularly known as Varadaraja
Perumal temple. They are the Pradhana Acharya Purushas in the
protocol to receive and deliver the temple honours.
In retrospection Tirumalai Nambi's son Thirukurukai
Piran Pillan was ordained by Ramanuja himself as the first and foremost among
the 74 Peetadhipathis to propagate Vishishadvaita philosophy after him. Pillan
was also chosen by Ramanuja as the competent person to write the commentary on
Thiruvaimozhi. The annotation of Thiruvaimozhi thus brought out by
Pillan under the behest of Ramanuja is called the famous Araiyar Padi the
first gloss in Manipravala, an elegant mixture of Tamil and Sanskrit words, on
the Divya Prabandham.
After Pillan, Tirumalai Srinivasacharya Thathacharya in
the fifth generation of Thathacharyas was installed by Sri Vedanta Desika as
the Sri Kariyam of the Devaraja Swamy Kovil. Since then the office of Sri
Kariyam is institutionalised in the diligence and devotion of the Thathacharyas
to the Varadaraja
Perumal temple in Kanchipuram. Lakshmi Kumara Thathachariar inherited
this mantle from his ancestors and made epoch making contributions to the
temple annals.
He was the Sri Kariya Durandhara (a phrase connoting
absolute dedication and authority) of the temple affairs. Simultaneously he was
also the Raja Guru of the Vijayanagar king Venkatapathi Deva Maharaj. In Ayyangarkulam,
a village named after him near Kanchipuram, he built a
tank and temple to Sri Rama and Hanuman. In the modern days, the
temple is administrated by the Tamil Nadu Government through the
Ministry of Hindu Religion and Charitable Endowments having the Thathachariars
as the Honorary Trustees.
