Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala – Kautuka Beram (Bhoga Srinivasa)

Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala – Kautuka Beram (Bhoga Srinivasa)

This is a tiny one-foot (0.3 m) silver deity, which was given to the temple in 614 AD by Pallava Queen Samavai Perundevi, and has never been removed from the temple from the day it was installed. This deity is popularly known as Bhoga Srinivasa, because it enjoys all the Bhoga (worldly pleasures) which the Moolavirat (Dhruva Bera) has. This deity sleeps in a golden cot every night and receives Sahasra Kalasabishekam every Wednesday. This deity is always placed near the left foot of Moolavirat and is always connected to the main deity by a holy Sambandha Kroocha.

The deity is always faced at an angle of 45 degrees towards the devotees, because it holds a Prayoga ("ready to strike") Chakra. Bhoga Srinivasa is a silver deity that is a near-replica of the main deity (Dhruva Bera) of the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple in Tirumala, Andhra Pradesh, India. The deity is also known as Manavalapperumal or Kautuka Bera. The deity is used daily for performing the Abhishekams ceremony (as part of Thomala Seva) and the Ekantha Seva. The deity is believed to imbibe the essence of the Dhruva Bera as well as grant devotees' wishes.

Bhoga Srinivasa was consecrated to the temple in 614CE by the Pallava queen Samavai (also known as Kadavan-Perundevi) along with donation of land and gold to the temple. The idol is a faithful copy of the Dhruva Bera except that the Sanka and Chakra are fixed in the case of Bhoga Srinivasa. On the pitham and below the feet of the deity is a Yantra that is in the shape of two interplaced equilateral triangle. The deity is connected permanently to the Dhruva Bera by means of a silk cord. When the deity is brought outside the sanctum sanctorum for deputizing for the Dhruva Bera, the cord remains attached and is reinforced with gold links.