Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala – Under Mysore Rule

Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala – Under Mysore Rule

According to the Raja Vamsa Valli (Annals of the present royal family of Mysore) the Wodeyars of Mysore were devotees of Lord Venkateswara and the kings from the Kanthirava Narasaraj (1639-1659) were in the habit of making donations to the Tirumala Temple. Chikka Devaraja Wodeyar (1672-1704) the greatest of the dynasty and regarded as the real founder of Modern Mysore made a provision for ghee lamp, Sahasranamarchana and food service in the temple. Dodda Krishanaraya Wodeyar who succeeded him issued a copper plate grant dated 1730 granting the revenues of certain villages.

When Hyder Ali usurped the throne of Mysore from Chikka Krishnaraja Wodeyar in 1761, he did not disturb the religious grants of his predecessors. According to the Raja Vamsa Valli, Hyder Ali replaced the gifts to the Tirumala Temple like gold vessels and umbrella with pearl pendants, which have been gifted by the rajas and had become old and damaged with new one and made his gifts in the shape of gold and Silver ornaments and large gold vessels for food offerings to be used in the temple.

As the English took the side of the Nizam in his war against him, Hyder opposed the English with great ferocity and conducted a devastating raid on the Carnatic in 1769. In the course of their raid Abdul Wahab handed over Chandragiri to Hyder Ali who however, did not lay violent hands either on the shrine or of its revenues.

Willks, the historian of Mysore writes that Hyder, more than half-Hindu way of life had induced him to grant un qualified protection of the sacred Temple of Tirupati, only nine miles distant from Chandragiri, to the extent of not even interfering with the payment of a tribute to Muhammad Ali for similar identity. In 1782 Hyder died at Narasingarayapeta near Chittoor where lies his tomb, Tippu, his son and more turbulent, does not appear to have threatened Tirupati in the course of his campaigns against the Marathas and the English.