Chintalarayaswamy Temple or Sri Chintala Venkataramana Temple is a Hindu Vaishnavite temple situated at

Tadipatri Tadipatri is a city in Anantapur district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh at the border of Nandyala district and Kadapa district. It is a Selection Grade Municipality City Council. Tadipatri is a headquarters of Tadipatri mandal in An ...

, a town in the

Anantapur District Anantapur district, officially Ananthapuramu district, is one of the eight districts in the Rayalaseema region of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The district headquarters is located in Anantapur city. It is one of the driest places in South ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. The Temple is dedicated to

Venkateswara Venkateswara (, ), also known as Venkatachalapati, Venkata, Balaji and Srinivasa, is a Hindu deity, described as a form or avatar of the god Vishnu. He is the presiding deity of Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala, Venkateswara Temple, Tirupati. Hi ...

, a form of

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

, who is referred to as Chintala Venkataramana. The temple was built by Pemmasani Timmanayudu II of the

Pemmasani Nayaks The Pemmasani Nayaks were a prominent Telugu Hindu warrior clan who rose to power in the 14th century, primarily controlling Rayalaseema in Andhra Pradesh. They belonged to the Kamma community. They initially served the Kakatiya dynasty and la ...

. It is situated on the bank of the Penna River, which passes through the town. The temple has granite sculptures and is classified as one of the Monuments of National Importance by

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexander ...

(ASI). The temple has a ''Garuda Mandapa'' built as chariot with rotating granite wheels, which is similar to the one found in the Vithala Temple of Hampi.

Etymology

According to legend, the presiding deity

was found in the Tamarind (

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of South India ** Telugu literature, is the body of works written in the Telugu language. * Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Tel ...

: Chinta) tree and hence got the name Chintala Venkataramana.

History

The Temple was built during the reign of

Vijayanagara empire The Vijayanagara Empire, also known as the Karnata Kingdom, was a late medieval Hinduism, Hindu empire that ruled much of southern India. It was established in 1336 by the brothers Harihara I and Bukka Raya I of the Sangama dynasty, belongi ...

in mid 16th Century by

Pemmasani Timmanayudu II Pemmasani Timmanayudu II was a member of the Pemmasani Nayaks. He was the son of Pemmasani Ramalinga I and a contemporary of Vira Narasimharaya and Krishnadevaraya. After the death of his father, Timmanayudu went to inform the Vijayanagara Emper ...

, a contemporary of Vira Narasimharaya and

Krishnadevaraya Krishnadevaraya (17 January 1471 – 17 October 1529) was emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1509 to 1529 and the third ruler of the Tuluva dynasty. Widely regarded as one of the greatest rulers in Indian history, he presided over t ...

. Timmanayudu built this temple after

is said to have told Timmanayudu in a dream that a temple should be constructed for him at Tadipatri. Timmanayudu appointed two archakas and a chief-priest, and he gifted lands to the temple. The Chintalarayaswamy Temple is considered one of the finest examples of Vijayanagara architecture. The initial structure may belong to the Saluva dynasty, but the entrance towers belongs to the Tuluva dynasty. The temple was built in the Dravidian style.

Gallery

File:Chintalarayaswami Temple-Dr. Murali Mohan Gurram (1).jpg , Chintalaraya Temple with Vimanams File:INTRICATE STONE ART,TADPATRI,AP - panoramio.jpg , A huge pillar with a person riding the Yali File:Chintalarayaswami Temple-Dr. Murali Mohan Gurram (8).jpg , A wall with sculptures File:NARTAKA MUDRA VENKATRAMANA TEMPLE TADPATRI AP - panoramio.jpg , Nartaka Mudra File:Chintalarayaswami Temple-Dr. Murali Mohan Gurram (6).jpg, A idol depicting deity File:Elephants,tadpatri temple AP - panoramio.jpg , Elephants

References

Hindu temples in Anantapur district Archaeological sites in Andhra Pradesh Venkateswara temples {{hindu-temple-stub

Etymology

History

Gallery

See also

References