Tirumala Rama idol is one of the deities in the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple

Tirumala Venkateswara Temple

Tirumala Venkateswara Temple ), is a Hindu temple in the hill town of Tirumala, near Tirupati in the Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh, South India. It is around from Chennai, from Hyderabad, and from Bangalore....

, Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...

. While the temple is dedicated to worship of lord Vishnu

Vishnu

Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....

 as Venkateswara, it contains the idols of some of Vishnu's other avatars: Rama

Rama

Rama or full name Ramachandra is considered to be the seventh avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism, and a king of Ayodhya in ancient Indian...

 and Krishna

Krishna

Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...

. The idol is usually accompanied by his consort Sita

SITA

SITA is a multinational information technology company specialising in providing IT and telecommunication services to the air transport industry...

 and his brother Lakshmana

Lakshmana

Lakshmana was the brother and close companion of Rama, and himself a hero in the famous epic Ramayana...

.

Legend of the idols

The Vasishta Ramayana relates that Sri Rama appeared to Sage Viswambara on the banks of as the Vaigai river. The sage was performing penance to get a vision of Sri Rama. In his vision, Rama and Lakshmana are seen with their bows in a standing posture, talking to Sugriva

Sugriva

In the Hindu epic Ramayana, Sugriva , also spelled Sugreeva or Sugreev, was the younger brother of Bali, whom he succeeded as ruler of the vanara or monkey kingdom Kishkindha. Ruma was his wife. He was the son of Surya, the Hindu deity of the sun...

, Angada

Angada

Angada , in the Indian Ramayana epic, is a vanara who helped Rama find his wife Sita and fight her abductor, Ravana. He was the son of Bali and Tara and the nephew of Sugriva. Angada and Tara are instrumental in reconciling Rama and his brother, Lakshmana, with Sugriva after Sugriva fails to...

 and Hanuman

Hanuman

Hanuman , is a Hindu deity, who is an ardent devotee of Rama, a central character in the Indian epic Ramayana and one of the dearest devotees of lord Rama. A general among the vanaras, an ape-like race of forest-dwellers, Hanuman is an incarnation of the divine and a disciple of Lord Rama in the...

. The vision depicts the act of Rama granting protection to Vibhishana

Vibhishana

Vibhishana or Bibhishan is a character in the epic Ramayana. He was the younger brother of the demon Ravana. Though a half-demon himself, Vibhishana was of a noble character and advised Ravana, who kidnapped and abducted Sita, to return her to her husband Rama in an orderly fashion...

, brother of Ravana

Ravana

' is the primary antagonist character of the Hindu legend, the Ramayana; who is the great king of Lanka. In the classic text, he is mainly depicted negatively, kidnapping Rama's wife Sita, to claim vengeance on Rama and his brother Lakshmana for having cut off the nose of his sister...

. Rama tells his monkey-king friend Sugriva

Sugriva

In the Hindu epic Ramayana, Sugriva , also spelled Sugreeva or Sugreev, was the younger brother of Bali, whom he succeeded as ruler of the vanara or monkey kingdom Kishkindha. Ruma was his wife. He was the son of Surya, the Hindu deity of the sun...

 that he was granting protection to Vibishana as well as extending his friendship to the Lanka prince. In the vision, Sugriva is seen with folded hands praying to Rama to reconsider his decision, reminding that Vibishana was Rama was accepting "the deadly enemy's brother" as a friend. Hanuman is seen with his right hand covering his mouth, in a stance of paying respect to Sri Rama. The monkey-prince Angada is seen pointing his finger towards the southern sky indicating the arrival of Vibhishana.

Having seen this vision, Sage Viswambara orders for the panchaloha idols of Rama and Lakshmana with the idols of Sugriva, Hanuman and Angada in the same postures as seen in his vision and installed these idols on the banks of the river and worshiped them. After being worshiped for a long time in that place, Sri Rama appeared in the dream of a devotee asking him to take the idols to Tiruvengadam (then the name of Tirumala) as the Vaigai city was experiencing strife and unrest. The idols were brought to the foothills of Tiruvengadam and shown to Ramanuja

Ramanuja

Ramanuja ; traditionally 1017–1137, also known as Ramanujacharya, Ethirajar , Emperumannar, Lakshmana Muni, was a theologian, philosopher, and scriptural exegete...

 and Tirumalai Nambi who were studying the Ramayana

Ramayana

The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...

 at that time. In an act considered divine coincidence, Ramanuja and Tirumala Nambi were studying the chapter of the epic related to Vibhishana seeking refuge with Sri Rama, who accepts him against the wishes of Sugriva and others.

Ramanuja and Tirumala Nambi were struck at the coincidence and decided to make an idol of Sita. After performing the ritual of celestial marriage between Rama and Sita, the idols were installed in the newly constructed hall, Ramar Medai (Rama's elevated platform) in the Tirumala temple.

Rama idol

The idol of Lord Rama in Tirumala is referred to as Sri Raghunatha, Lord of Raghu (clan). Lord Rama is seen in a stanaka (standing pose) and is described as being in the madhyama tala and tribhanga pose. The left arm of the idol is raised to hold his bow and the right arm slopes downwards to hold the arrow. The face is tilted to the right side slightly and is capped by a crown that accentuates the tilt. The feet are set wide on a lotus pedestal with the left foot overshooting it.

The idol is usually seen with a bow in the left hand of the Lord and a crescent end arrow in the right arm. The bow is curved at the edges and on the top side has five bells.

Sita idol

The idol of Sita is always seen on the right hand side of Lord Rama. The idol rests on a lotus pedestal and has the right arm by the side and the left arm holding a lotus bud. The idol of Sita does not have a crown.

Lakshmana idol

The idol of Lakshmana is always placed on the left hand side of Rama. The idol is a smaller but mostly similar replica of Lord Rama. While the posture (madhyama tala and tribhanga pose) is similar to his elder brother, the idol differs from Lord Rama in a few ways. The head is held erect and is not tilted. The feet are set closer to each other and rests fully on the pedestal. The idol is seen with the head slightly bent downwards, as mark of respect to his elder brother.

Hanuman deity

The deity of Hanuman is usually kept sideways on to the right side of Lord Rama. The idol stands on a pedestal and has Rama's favorite disciple in a wide-eyed expression indicating his ever-present enthusiasm to serve his Lord. In addition, the right hand is bent at the elbow and touches the mouth in a posture than conveys Hanuman's mark of respect for Rama. The left hand is in the Katyavalambita pose (left palm closed and resting on the waist and the outer side of the palm is seen to the onlookers)

Deity history

There are no records on the exact date when the idol was consecrated but the earliest record of the deities in any inscription dates to 1476 A.D. However, it is widely agreed that the idols might have been installed Ramarmedai (Rama Hall) was built in 1245 A.D. and hence the name of the room.

A different school of thought believes that the idols were installed by Sri Ramanuja

Ramanuja

Ramanuja ; traditionally 1017–1137, also known as Ramanujacharya, Ethirajar , Emperumannar, Lakshmana Muni, was a theologian, philosopher, and scriptural exegete...

.

Seva to idols

The idol of Sri Raghunatha does not receive main attention in the daily prayers of the temple. Even the daily naivedyam to the idol is offered to the main deity

Tirumala Dhruva Bera

Tirumala Dhruva Bera is the name given to the idol of Lord Venkateswara in Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, Andhra Pradesh. Dhruva Bera is the official terminology used for the main deity of a temple with the exact translation being The Immobile image and as the name suggests, the idol is stationary...

 before attributing it to the Rama idol. The same practice is followed for the Krishna idol

Tirumala Krishna Idol

Tirumala Krishna idol is one of the idols in the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, Andhra Pradesh. While the temple is dedicated to worship of lord Vishnu as Venkateswara, it contains the idols of some of Vishnu's other avatars - Krishna and Rama...

 in the temple. During the annual Koil Alwar Thirumanjanam (cleansing of the temple), the idols are removed from the garbha griha (sanctum sanctorum) and replaced after the place is cleaned and consecrated with holy spices.

The Rama idol receives direct offerings outside the garbha griha on occasions.

• Teppotsavam: During the annual Teppotsavam (float festival), the first day is dedicated to the idols of Lord Rama. The idols are bought to the Swami Pushkarini (holy lake to the north of the temple) and taken on a float to the mandapam in the middle of the lake for prayers.
• Vasanthotsavam
  Vasanthotsavam
  Vasanthotsavam is an annual Seva celebrated in Tirumala to celebrate the arrival of spring season.Vasantotsavam is the combination of 2 words - "Vasantha" and "Utsavam"...
  
  : During the annual festival, the idols of Lord Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Hanuman join Malayappa swami
  Malayappa swami
  Malayappa swami is the current utsava murti in Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala. Malayappa swami is worshipped during religious ceremonies and processions wherein it would be innapropriate to use the main deity...
  
   and consorts and Krishna idol
  Tirumala Krishna Idol
  Tirumala Krishna idol is one of the idols in the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, Andhra Pradesh. While the temple is dedicated to worship of lord Vishnu as Venkateswara, it contains the idols of some of Vishnu's other avatars - Krishna and Rama...
  
   on the third day on a procession around the four streets surrounding the temple and returned to the vasanta mandapam.
• Rama Navami
  Rama Navami
  Ram Navami also known as Sri Ram Navami is a Hindu festival, celebrating the birth of Lord Rama to King Dasharatha and Queen Kausalya of Ayodhya. Ram is the 7th incarnation of the Dashavatara of Vishnu. Years later Lord Rama was married to Sita on the...
  
  : In the morning, Snapana Thirumanjanam (turmeric abhshekam) is performed to the deities. After special prayers, the idols of Lord Rama, Sita, Lakshmana are bought on a procession on the Hanuman vahanam around the temple to mark the celebration of Rama Navami. After the completion of the procession, Purana Pravachanam (reading the history and lineage) is performed in the sanctum sanctorum outside the Bangaru Vakili (golden gate). On the day after Rama Navami, Sri Rama Pattabhishekam (Coronation of Sri Rama as the King) is performed On Chaitra Shukla Dasami .