Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala – Snapana Beram (Ugra Srinivasa)

Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala – Snapana Beram (Ugra Srinivasa)

Ugra Srinivasa is one of the idols in the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple at Tirumala, Andhra Pradesh. Ugra means anger and the idol which was originally called Venkatatturaivar is supposed to represent the anger aspect of Lord Venkateswara. He is also known as Snapana Murti. He remains inside the sanctum sanctorum, and comes out on only one day each year: on Kaisika Dwadasi, before the sunrise. Snapana means "cleansing". The idol is cleansed daily with holy waters, milk, curd, ghee, sandalwood paste, turmeric, and so on.

Legends:

Legend has it that fire broke out in the village destroying houses during Brahmotsavam at Tirumala in the 14th century A.D. When prayers were offered to the God, a vision appeared to a devotee with a message from Lord Srinivasa himself. With the change in times, the Ugra Srinivasa idol could no longer remain the procession idol and a new idol would be found as Utsava Murti (Malayappa swami). The Ugra Srinivasa idol is no longer brought out of the temple after sunrise and it is believed that sunrays touching the idol would spark fire in the temple complex.

History:

Apart from Dhruva Bera, the idol of Ugra Srinivasa is the oldest idol in the temple. The date when the idol was consecrated is unknown though records indicate that the idol existed much before the Bhoga Srinivasa was presented in the 10^th century AD. Records show that the idol was used as Utsava Murti till the 14^th century when Malayappa swami was found and used as Utsava Murti. The name Venkatatturaivar means 'resident Godhead of Venkatam' in Tamil language.

Idol:

The idol is about 18 inches long and has a base pedestal 7 inches high. The chakra in the hand of the Lord is called prayoga chakra as it is in a slightly tilted condition as if ready for use. Bhudevi and Sridevi are also found as standing figures.

Worship:

The worship is proportioned solely to this idol on three occasions in a year - Uttana Ekadasi, Mukkoti Dwadasi and Dvadasaradhana. The idol is bought in procession at wee hours only on Kaisika Dwadasi (also known as Mukkoti Dwadasi) while the idol is worshipped inside the temple complex on the remaining two occasions.

Relevance of Kaisika Dwadasi:

Sri Vaishnavas called Prabodhotsava or Uttana Dvadasi as Kaisika Dvadasi. On the Uttana Dvadasi, preparations are made for waking Lord Vishnu, who went to sleep on Ashada Sukla Ekadasi (Vishnu Sayana Ekadasi). Among Sri Vaishnavas, this Dvadasi is known as Kaisika Dvadasi named after the ragam of a song which was used last in praise of the Lord by devotee Chandala Bhakta Nambaduvan. Bhakta Nambaduvan kept his word and returned to a Rakshasa (demon) to offer his body to be devoured as food by the hungry Rakshasa. The reading of the Kaisika Puranam, which is specially composed in a dialect which is a mixture (manipravalam) of Sanskrit and Tamil or Telugu interspersed with Sanskrit quotations and vernacular explanations is the special feature of the early hours of the morning before day break.