The Summer Festival In Srirangam - Dharma's Revival After 600+ Years

Marking a summer festival today - an ancient one!

The town of Srirangam and the Sri Vaishnava community there would be celebrating a grand finale of the Chittirai (Chaitra) festival. 

• The Srirangam temple covers 160+ acres - It's largest functioning Hindu temple in the world!

• The car festival or utsava happening today has an interesting story behind it.

The day is named after a Vijayanagara Empire's viceroy. Viruppan Thirunaal, Viruppan's day, is named thus to commemorate the viceroy's role in saving and reviving the temple.

• Not many know that the Srirangam temple had been sacked by Ulugh Khan in 1311 as part of his invasion of Madurai.

• After lying in ruins for over 50 years, the temple was renovated and reconsecrated by the viceroys of Vijayanagara rules who liberated this region.

• The final day of Chaitra festival is this named after the man who revived this great temple.

• Ulugh Khan is a familiar figure in Indian history by the way. You know him as Muhammad bin Tughluq.

What we know about Virupanna Raya. He came after Gopannna Raya and continued the renovation works initiated by the former.

• The first Chaitra festival after the sacking by Ulugh Khan happened in 1383 CE under Virupanna.

• His grants to the temple included 12,000 gold coins and income from 52 villages.

• Record-keeping was quite meticulous. Even his domestic staff's humble contributions to the temple were recorded for posterity.

• While worship at the temple could be revived early, it took another 12 years from then to revive this festival. 

• Virupanna Raya was Bukka Raya's grand-son.

Other interesting facts: The conquests of Madurai by Vijayanagara forces have been recorded in poetic form in the work called Madura Vijayam

• The work was written by Ganga Devi, the wife of the invading commander Kampanna Raya.

• Ganga Devi writes in gory details about the destruction of temples in the region under the Madurai Sultanate. 

What to watch: The townsfolk of Srirangam would have also celebrated the 9th evening of the Chaitra festival yesterday. 

• The utsava involves our daiva Sri Ranganatha himself gallop (?) seemingly whimsically around the streets of the temple town. 

• You can watch a video of the utsava from previous years here.

Post script: The Thiruvarangam (Srirangam) temple is one of the few ones in India to have meticulously preserved its history in the form of a written narrative for 700+ years. 

• The Koil Olugu, as it is called, is a good source for historians researching the subject.