Kodandarama Temple, Vontimitta – History

Kodandarama Temple, Vontimitta – History

The temple is believed to be built by Kumara Kampana, son of Emperor Bukka Raya I (1356 – 1377 CE) of the Vijayanagara Kingdom from the Sangama Dynasty. The temple also received patronage from Matli dynasty. The Matli kings constructed the Sanjeeviraya temple in front of this temple. There are two inscriptions of King Sadasivaraya (1542 – 1570 CE) of Vijayanagara Kingdom on two slabs set up near the eastern gopura of the temple.

One inscription dated to 1554 CE records a gift of the lands and villages for daily worship, monthly festivals and offerings. Another inscription of King Sadasivaraya dated to 1558 CE records the gift of villages for daily worship and construction of prakara walls, gopuras and mandapas. Another inscription of King Sadasivaraya dated to 1559 CE records a gift of land registers a gift of land for the daily worship.

An inscription of Matla Anantaraju, son of Matli chief Yallamaraja dated to 1589 CE on the prakara wall records about the settlement of a dispute between Balija and Vadla Kammaras (carpenters) of Vontimitta. The Balijas did not allow the Vadla Kammaras to sit on the ratha of the god during the festival. Anantaraju ordered that the Vadla Kammaras should be allowed to sit on the ratha as the same custom was followed at Tirupati.

Bammera Potana (1405 – 1470 CE), a resident of Vontimitta wrote his magnum opus Maha Bhagavatham in Telugu language and dedicated it to Rama. A stone image of Potana is placed in the maha mandapa. Another poet Ayyala Thipparaju, the court poet of Praudha Devaraya (1423 – 1446 CE) who wrote Sree Raghuvira Satakam was also native of Vontimitta.

Ayyalaraju Ramabhadra, the grandson of Thipparaju was one of the Ashtadiggajas of Emperor Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara Kingdom. Vavilakolanu Subba Rao, known as Andhra Valmiki for translating Valmiki’s Ramayana into Telugu also spent his time here. The saint-poet Annamacharya is said to have visited the temple and composed and sang kirtans in praise of Rama. 

Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, a French traveler who had visited this temple in 1652, appreciated the elegance of the temple's architecture. The administration of the temple is entrusted to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) by the Government of Andhra Pradesh. The TTD board had passed a resolution on 29 July 2015 to get the temple under its administrative control.