Archaeological surveys have indicated that the temple is indeed, several centuries old and belongs to the Sri Vaishnava tradition. The temple is close to 1200 years old. It is said that the temple was initially renovated by the great Raja Raja Chola. The foundation of the Sri Lakshminarayana Swamy temple is said to have been done during the 10th century AD.
Folklore suggest that a long, long time ago there were two sages by the names Suyagna and Lambakarna. The sages practiced intense sessions of meditation and penance. Lord Narasimhaswamy observed the continuous practice of tapasyas and yagnas performed by the two devoted sages. Pleased by their constant devotion, Lord Narasimhaswamy appeared in the dreams of the saitns, and indicated that he would reside over there, and would be pleased to have both of the sages along with him. Initially, the place was called Gajaranya Kshetra.
Locally, the prime deity Narasimhaswamy is known as Marehalli Mudukappa. The great lord is also called Sowmya Narasimhaswamy.