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Home , Seshachalam Hills, Vaishnavism

Namo Venkatesa…..

It is a blissful opportunity to praise and serve Lord Balaji. I am

blessed by Lord to live in , studied in His

Colleges at Tirupati and served His Temple as bank officer. All

Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams colleges of Lord Balaji begin their day

routines by praying Lord Balaji with Stotram. This is an

inspiration to the students to continue their daily studies with all

discipline. The residents of Tirupati look at hills and pray for

His blessings as soon as they wake up in the morning. The city of

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కుమా쁍 Tirupati always wears a festival look as it is situated at the Lotus Feet of

Lord Balaji. It is most common to put „‟ as prefix to the names

of children to seek the blessings of Lord Sri Venkateswara Swamy.

Even many put their name as „Venkateswara‟. I am also blessed like that

since I too have „Venkata‟ as prefix to my name. When a child is born

the common practice is tonsuring before one year at Tirumala Hills and

seek the blessings of Lord Balaji. On passing of school final, many

students prefer to have tonsuring at Tirumala Hills. I always believe that

Tirumala is „Kaliyuga Vykuntam‟ and it is His blessing to see Lord

Balaji and recite „‟ „Govinda‟.

Tirumala Balaji Temple is one of the ancient temples in the

world, built in 300 BC! The temple has seven hills, which are

considered as heads of „Adisesha‟, a seven headed Snake ! Lord

Venkateswara is self-manifested in Tirumala which makes it the only

shrine of self-manifested in the entire universe. All other shrines

have idols those are effigies of the God after he has manifested at

respective places at the behest of staunch devotees. But, here

Venkateswara stands at Tirumala in the form of a shaligram. The diety

stands on Padma peetam- Lotus platform, endorned with dhoti, various

ornaments like kausthubham, various flowers, with snake carvings on

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కుమా쁍

Temple History

Tirupati Balaji temple has its origin in , an ancient , which advocates the principles of equality and love, and prohibits animal . The sanctum sanctorum, which houses the awe-inspiring idol of the Lord of the Seven Hills, is situated in the main temple complex of Tirumala.

The ancient and temple of Sri Venkateswara is located on the seventh peak, Venkatachala (Venkata Hill) of the Tirupati Hill, and lies on the southern banks of Sri Pushkarini what is known popularly today as Tirupati Balaji Temple. The main temple complex of temple houses awe-inspiring idol of the Lord of the Seven Hills and is worshipped by millions of devotees all over the world. The devotees

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కుమా쁍 flock the temple in large numbers and make offerings in large quantity making it the richest temple in . The temple has a long history and has acquired significance in Indian religious lore.

The way to Tirumala Temple by climb is 3600 steps, 8 km long climb, with the steps not uniformly distributed. The initial stages a 2000 step climb, in a space of 1km. Following that is a 7 km long walk, with a few steps in-between here and there and a 2km long walk along the road included, and then a 500 step climb after that. And then you reach the top. Average time is about 3 and a half to 4 hours (if elders are there).

Vishnu in the form of Lord Venkateshwara at Tirumala Venkateshwara ( & Telugu), also known as Venkatachalapathy or Srinivasa or Balaji, is the supreme God believed to be a form of the Hindu Lord Vishnu. He appeared in this Yuga Yuga for saving the people who have fallen deeply and are deluded in three modes of material nature.

Lord Venkateshwara means supreme God who destroys the of the people in this material world. The exact period in which the temple was founded is not known, and tradition has it that the temple is Swayambhustala, meaning that it came into existence on its own without anyone constructing it. Vishnu, in the form of Venkateshwara, is much worshipped at Tirupati temple.

Venkateshwara is the presiding deity at the Tirumala temple complex, believed to be the richest of all the Hindu shrines in the world. The temple is situated in southern in Chittoor district. It

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కుమా쁍 Legends associated with the Temple

There are many legends associated with the origin of this age-old temple. The larger than life statue of the main deity is said to have formed on its own, making it one of the eight „Swayambhu Kshetras‟ (self-manifested image) of Lord Vishnu. Many ancient texts, including the Rig Veda mention the existence and prominence of the temple. Written texts, which are dated back to the Mauryan and era, refer the temple as „Aadhi Kshetra‟. In fact, many other texts and theories link the history of Tirupati Temple to Lord Varaha, one of the ten of Lord Vishnu. According to a legend, Lord Varaha created the entire Seshachalam Hills so that Adisesha, the seven-headed snake on which Vishnu rests, could rest on earth. Interestingly, Seshachalam Hills has seven peaks, which are said to be the representation of the heads of Adisesha.

As far as the construction of the temple is concerned, King Thondaiman of Tondaimandalam kingdom constructed the precincts and the towering gateway (Gopuram) of the temple. He also made sure his subjects worshipped the Lord regularly.

The construction of the temple too has many legends associated with it. One such legend has it that Lord Vishnu appeared in King

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కుమా쁍 Thondaiman‟s dream and asked him to construct the temple. The temple was later expanded by various kings and emperors who ruled over the place. Starting from 300 AD, the Tirupati Temple was built over a period of time. One of the earliest recorded evidences state the generosity of Pallava queen Samavai; she had donated precious jewels and 23 acres of land for celebrating the major festivals of the temple. During the , the temple was developed further as many Chola Kings embellished it with riches. When the took over, diamonds and gold were donated to the temple. , one of the famous Emperors of Vijayanagara, visited the temple on multiple occasions and contributed to the construction of the temple.

After the decline of the Vijayanagara Empire, the temple was patronised by several kings until the advent of the East India Company. When the British took over the temple, they leased it for various purposes to different tenants. The East India Company then bestowed the administration of the temple to the chief priest of Hathiramji Muth. The Hathiramji Muth administered the temple until 1933, after which the „Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam‟ (TTD) took over the administration of the temple. In 1966, a court order transferred the administration of the temple to the government of Andhra Pradesh. This order was rolled back in 1979, when the administration of the temple was vested to the members of TTD. A committee, including a couple of members representing the government of Andhra Pradesh, was formed for running the day-to- day administration.

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కుమా쁍 KSHETRA PALAKA SILA (BIG ROUND STONE)

To the north east corner of the altar, under the flagstaff porch, there is a one and half feet high stone slab. This is called „Kshetrapalaka Sila‟. It is said that this stone slab marched around the temple for providing security to the Shrine at night.

Priests used to keep the keys of the temple on this stone slab every night after closing the temple and collect them to open the temple in the morning, after saluting it.

Interesting story of kshetra Palaka Sila of Tirumala

There's a 'KshetraPalaka Sila'(A holy big stone which is believed to be Lord ) near Gogarbham Dam and TTD have consecrated a

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కుమా쁍 small Shiva Temple here. Lord Shiva is the Kshetra Palaka of Tirumala Divya . Means He is the Protector here and in the daily temple also he has a place as the god os Eesanyam(North-East) direction and the daily , Lord Shiva receives the and offerings. Bali is a in which the Astadikpalakas and the adhi devathas of all doors(7), and in the end the big Bali Peetam and Dvajasthambam will receive the Sesham(the remaining rice). This Bali is carried out after every Food Offering i.e. I Bell, II Bell and Night Bell.

You can find this Kshetra Palaka Sila (a part of it in the from of Bali Peetam) to the North East Corner in the Dvajasthambam enclosure). There's a legend behind this Kshetra Pala, Lord Shiva. In the Olden days this big Kshetra Palaka Sila is residing at the Mada Streets North-East corner or Eesaanyam. And it is said to be a live stone. The Archakas after closing the doors of Temple, including the Main Door, while coming to their residence in the North Mada Street, will hit this big rock with the 'Kunche Kola' or the divine Temple Keys, three times and then this rock will start rotating like a ball and wander around four mada streets there by protecting the temple safely that means this big rock of Lord Shiva will never allow any person to enter in to the four mada streets once the doors were closed and Archakas intimate this to this rock by hitting. And when the time for Suprabhatham reaches, again the Archakas come from their residence and hit this rock three times informing the commencement of Suprabhatham, then it rests in Eesanyam. Once while it was rotating (Protecting) around four mada streets killed a man who come that way and the then administers of the Temple, decided to consecrate this fixedly at the Gogarbham Dam,

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కుమా쁍 SNAPANA MANDAPAM

The pavilion that you notice after crossing the golden gate is known as „Snapana Mandapam‟. Every day after Thomala , the idol of Koluvu Srinivasa Murthy is brought here and placed on the golden throne and his court is held. During this court, almanac is recited; the affairs of the day, the details of income and the expenditure of the previous day are reverentially presented to the Lord. The golden throne that is used during this court is stored in the adjacent grilled chamber.

There are two rooms on either side of the golden door. In the right side room, the Hundi collections are kept. In the left side room, the Lord‟s jewels that is, the crown, the conch, the chakra, necklaces made of diamonds, gems, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, topazes and so on are kept.

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కుమా쁍 LORD ‟S MANSION (RAMULAVARI MEDA)

Immediately crossing Snapana Mandapam, there is a very narrow passage, which is known as Lord Rama‟s mansion. There are two raised platforms on either side of this passage. Earlier, idols were kept on these platforms. At present these idols are placed inside the room. Yet the name has remained the same.

SAYANA MANDAPAM

In this room, there is a golden cot with silk mattress hung by silver chains on which the Lord‟s idol is seen relaxing, hence the name „ Mandapam‟. In this room the offerings are kept in front of the Lord. These offerings are never taken beyond this threshold of the Sanctum.

KULASEKHARA PADI

The threshold in front of the Lord is called Kulasekhara Padi. Kulasekhara was a Vaishnava devotee. He had made a humble request to the Lord, to transform him to a stone threshold in front of Lord so that he will have a glimpse of divine beauty every day! Hence, this threshold was named after him.

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కుమా쁍 ANANTALWAR CROWBAR

Anantalwar, one of the chief disciples of Sri Ramanujacharya, pioneered “Pushpa Kainkaryam” in Tirumala and became one of the prominent and ardent devotees of Lord Sri Venkateswara.

However, to examine his devotion, the Lord went on to test him. In this interesting story, Sri Ramanujacharya, the great Acharyapurusha who revived the rituals in Tirumala temple, while teaching his disciples about the greatness of Tirumala told them that, the Lord was very fond of adorning himself with flowers as he is “Alankarapriya”. He asked if anyone of them was capable of growing a garden in Tirumala braving the chill climate and insects, to present flowers to the Lord. Anantalwar,

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కుమా쁍 said he is prepared to do that and went to Tirumala with his wife.

In a bid to develop a beautiful garden for the Pushpakainkaryam of the Lord, Anantalwar initially wanted to dig a pond to water the plants. He wanted to do this task without taking the help from outsiders. The Lord felt happy about the couple‟s dedication and decided to help them. He approached the couple as a 12-year old boy but Anantalwar refused to take his help.

On a fine day, the boy helped Anantalwar‟s wife who was a full term pregnant and this gesture of the boy enraged Anantalwar. Out of anguish, he threw a crowbar upon the boy. It hit the chin of the boy and blood oozed and dripped offs his chin. When Anantalwar went to the temple to the Lord, he saw blood oozing out from the chin of the Lord and then he realised, the boy was none other than the Lord himself.

He realised his mistake and immediately applied camphor to the Lord‟s chin. Lord was pleased with his devotion and said that the scar will remain forever and camphor will be applied to cover the mark. This ritual is carried out even today.

The crowbar used by Anantalwar is also displayed on the Northern Wall of the main entrance.

Sri Varahaswamy Temple is located on the banks of Pushkarini River, which faces the Sri Venkateswara Temple in Tirumala. The

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కుమా쁍 Sri Prasanna Venkateswaraswami Temple, Appalayagunta

The Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy temple is located at a distance of about 17 KM's, from the temple town Tirupati. This makes the temple adequately separated from the main temple town, but still easily reachable through private or public travels. It stands apart from the other entire temple in the sense, at which it depicts the Lord Venkateswara Swamy in the 'Abhaya Hasta Posture‟, which is considered the ultimate blessing posture. The Lord's blissful posture is pleasant and rewarding for a devotee who wants to divulge deep into the Swami's realms.

Significance of Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy Temple

This is the place where the Lord Venkateswara Swamy graced the conglomeration of Sri Siddeshwara and other sages on the occasion of his marriage. As the temple was the place for the Lord's union with his consort Sri Ammavaru, here he is considered the most

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