In Āgamic temple theology, every principal temple houses two primary mūrtis: the mūlavar (also dhruva-bera) — the immovable, permanently installed stone image consecrated at the heart of the sanctum — and the utsava-mūrti (also utsavar or kautuka-bera) — a moveable metal image, typically of pañca-loha (five-metal alloy), that is taken out for processions and festivals. While the mūlavar is identified with Bhagavān's absolute, unchanging presence, the utsava-mūrti embodies His grace in reaching out to devotees beyond the inner sanctum.
The utsava-mūrti is dressed, decorated, and taken in elaborate procession (thiruveedi purappadu) on a vehicle (vāhanam) — each day of a festival may feature a different mount, from the golden Garuḍa to the celestial horse, the elephant, or the chariot. This procession is the visible heart of Sri Vaishnava temple festivals; it is precisely in these moments that crowds gather for maṅgaḷāśāsanam — offering blessings to the Lord. The utsava-mūrti also receives pūjā in the tirumāḷigai (sanctum forecourt) and blesses devotees during namaskāram sequences.
In the 108 Divya Desams, the utsava-mūrti often carries a separate iconic name. At Śrīraṅgam, the mūlavar is Raṅganātha and the utsavar is Namperumāḷ; at Tirumalā, the mūlavar is Śrī Veṅkaṭeśvara and the utsavar is Malayappa Svāmi; at Kāñcīpuram, the mūlavar is Varadarāja and the utsavar is Dēva Perumāḷ. The annual Brahmotsavam and Pankuni Uttiram festivals in these temples are organized primarily around the utsava-mūrti's processions, which can last ten to twenty-one days.