A large number of Gowda Saraswat Brahmins had moved over to Hosdurg and the adjacent areas from Goa more than five centuries ago in their quest for a safe settlement to preserve their faith, culture and vocation. These people remained united and engaged themselves in various vocations like trade, agriculture, Government service, etc., to eke out their livelihood throughout their hard-fought struggle for existence, the Saraswaths never lagged in discharging their duties to the Samaj, the Almighty and their Preceptor. They successfully withstood the onslaught of the regional languages and their mother tongue, Konkani, has a place of pride among them. Being alien to the culture, mode more of worship, language etc., of the local people the Saraswaths remained isolated from the mainstream and they held on to their tradition, religious practices and so on. In the early years of their settlement here, the Saraswathi had to trek over to Kasaragod to worship at Sri Varadaraja Venkataramana Temple belonging to the community. One had to cover this distance of thirty miles on foot and yet the Saraswaths paid regular visits to this temple to quench their spiritual thirst. In the middle of the nineteenth century, the Samaj members resolved to have a temple of their own in Hosdurg and embarked on this noble work unitedly. Late Subraya Kamath and his brother Manjayya Kamath donated the site and with the generous help of money, material and manual labour from every section of the Samaj a modest temple came up under the leadership of the late Subraya Kamath, Narayan Kamath, Sheshagiri Kamath and Ramachandra Nayak whose families are together known as “Chowguli family”. The management of the temple was decided to be vested in the Samaj at Hosdurg and a democratic set-up was evolved for its administration. The Samaj members who were mostly the followers of Sri Kashi Math Samsthan respectfully requested the then Matadhipathi Srimad Bhuvanendra Theertha Swamiji to guide them in the matter of the Prathishta of the deity and to consecrate the new temple. Impressed by the ardent desire and faith in God of the Shishyavarga of Hosdurg the Swamiji graciously agreed to their request. Swamiji offered to install the idol of Lord Lakshmi Venkatesh, surrendered to him by the people at Innoli in Nandavar Village of South Canara for performing Thrikala Poojas and other due rituals. This idol was being worshipped at the Innoli temple with pomp and piety for a long time, with a daily nivedyam of one murah of rice. It is said that as hard times fell upon our Samaj at Innoli even the daily poojas could not be properly performed and as a last resort the idol was entrusted to the safe custody of Srimad Bhuvanendra Theertha Swamiji for performing the poojas. The Swamiji accepted the idol and used to perform all daily rites regularly. On the auspicious day of Vaishakh Shuddha Thritheeya of Raktakshi nama Samvatsara of Shalivahana Shaka 1786, (1864-65-A. D). His Holiness Srimad Bhuvanendra Theertha Swamiji duly performed the Prathishta of Sri Lakshmi Venkatesh and prayed for the welfare of the Samaj and the progress of the temple. The heartfelt entreaty to the Almighty by the most virtuous and righteous Preceptor, that the Lord must be pleased by whatever nivedyam is offered by the devotees of Hosdurg and forgives them for mistakes or lapses, has stood the Samaj members in good stead as is evidenced from the steady progress achieved by the Samaj in general. We gratefully believe that God’s grace and the blessings of the Swamiji will continue to shower upon us. This temple was known as Varadaraja Venkataramana Temple Hosdurg, until the Second Punah Prathishta in 1960 perhaps because of our association “With the Samaj temple with the same name at Kasargod. After the Second Punahprathishta, the temple is known as Sri Lakshmi Venkatesh temple after the chief Prathishta.