CHENNAI: The Maha Kumbabhishekam and Punar Prathistapana Mahotsava of Udupi Sri Puthige Matha’s Chennai branch, located at Srikara Anjaneya Raghavendra Swami Sannidhanam, Mylapore, was held on Thursday.
His Holiness Sri 1008 Sri Sugenendra Theertha Swamiji of Udupi Sri Puthige Matha and His Holiness Sri 1008 Sri Ragumanya Theertha Swamiji of Bhimanakatte Matha (Theerthahalli) performed the consecration ceremony and blessed the assembled devotees.
Preparations for the Kumbhabhisekam ceremony began on Monday with a number of pujas including vasthu puja , rakshogna homa and ankura prathista .
Pujas and homas were conducted in the following days and on Thursday morning, both the pontiffs consecrated the Chennai branch of the Udupi Sri Puthige Matha and reinstalled the deities in new location within the premises.
The branch has three deities — Garuda Vahana Laxmi Narayana (Srikara-main deity), Anjaneya (called as mukhya prana) and Sri Raghavendra Swamy Brindavanam.
All these three deities were installed three years ago and now have been relocated into a new place within the same premises after the Maha Kumbhabhisekam.
While 800 devotees attended the Maha Kumbhabhisekam on Thursday, about 2,000 devotees visited the premises since the consecration process began on Monday. The newly consecrated Sri Puthige Matha’s Chennai branch is located at No 8, Salai Street, Mylapore.
Sri Madhvacharya established eight mathas ( ashta mathas ) in Udupi and nearby villages to collectively manage Sri Krishna Matha. The eight mathas are Palimaru Matha, Adamaru Matha, Krishnapura Matha, Puthige Matha, Shiruru Matha, Sodhe Matha, Kaniyooru Matha and Pejavara Matha.
The eight disciples of Acharya Madhva originally stayed together in the Sri Krishna Matha, sharing the daily worship amongst themselves, with disciples getting a period of two months. In 1532, Sri Vadiraja created the paryaaya system of rotation and changed the term to two years.
Eight mathas known as Udupi Ashta Mathas were established in the vicinity of the Krishna Matha. Each of the Mathas was given a period of 2 years to manage the Krishna Temple.
The lineage following Sri Upendra Teertha is the one that we today know as Sri Puthige Matha and the main icon illuminating Sri Puthige Matha is the Lord Panduranga Vittala given by Acharya Madhva.