Bhu Varaha Swamy Temple, Srimushnam – History
The existence of Bhu Varaha Swamy temple during
the medieval Chola period is seen from the inscriptions from 11th
century. The temple was expanded by Thanjavur Nayak king Achyutappa
Nayak (1560 - 1614 AD). The life
size image of the king and his brothers are found in the sixteen pillared hall
of the temple. An epigraph dated 1068 in the nearby Shiva temples
indicates gifts by Vira Rajendra Chola (1063–1070 AD) to the Varaha shrine. Another
inscription dated at 1100 by Kulothunga Chola I (1070–1120) indicates a gift of a village to the
temple, where the presiding deity is referred as Varaha Azhwar.
The later inscriptions are from Vijayanagara kings of the 16th Century like Virupaksha Raya II (1465-85 AD) dated 1471 AD, Sriranga
I (1572–86), Venkata
II (1586 - 1614) indicating various gifts to the temple.
The most notable contributions of the temple were from Achuthappa
Nayak (1560 - 1614 AD) who built
the sixteen pillars red Purushasuktha Mandapa along with other smaller shrines
of the temple. The Zamindars of Udayarpalayam have contributed to the
temple by offering costly jewels and commissioned additional structures,
notably Udayavar Mandapam.
