TIRUPATI: The Place Where the Almighty Resides!
Tirupati is located in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh. It has a population of about 374,260, making it the ninth most populous city in Andhra Pradesh.
Tirupati is considered as one of the holiest Hindu pilgrimage sites because of Tirumala Venkateswara Temple. It is mostly referred to as the “Spiritual Capital of Andhra Pradesh”.
Many educational institutions and universities are set up at Tirupati. Tirupati was awarded best heritage city for the year 2012-13 by government of India.
The word ‘tirupati’ has been derived from the word ‘tripathi’. In Sanskrit literature ‘tri’ refers to –’lord of tripathi’. It is basically divided into 2 towns lower Tirupati and nearby Tirumala as upper Tirupati.
There are many places to visit in Tirupati some of them are:
Temple of Venkateswara Tirumala
At the 7th peak of the Venkata Tirupati Hill, lies the historic and holy temple of Sri Venkateswara. This temple almost covers an area of 2.2 acres. It is a great example of Dravidian temple architecture.
The idol of Venkateswera stands to a height of eight feet under the gold gilded dome called the Ananda Nilaya Divay Vimana. This Idol is believed to be Swayambhoo . The deity bears a clear resemblance of Goddess Lakshmi on the right side of his chest. The idol’s arms hold a (conch-shell) sankha, (disk) chakra, one of the lower arms is turned inward, the palm of his lower right hand is turned outward offering blessings.
The unique appeal to the deity is given by precious stones. It is firmly believed that the deity is so benevolent that he grants the wish of anyone who offers him something.
Many devotees prefer walking since it offers aesthetic feelings. The walk up the hill which takes two to four hours of steady climbing that covers about 4,000 steps.
Only the believers of Hindu are allowed to enter the innermost parts of temple.
This is one of the wealthiest temples in entire sub-continent with an average of 25 thousand deities.
Swami Pushkarini Lake
Within the premises of lord Venketeswara there lies a beautiful lake called ‘swami pushkarini’. Swami Pushkarini Lake holds much religious significance. It is believed that in this holy lake of the almighty in Vaikuntha, lord took his bathe along with his consorts.
This lake is so pure that it shares its credentials with Ganges and many other sacred rivers. It is said that taking a holy bathe in this tank would wipe out sins, evil and bless its deities. Doing daily rituals and prayers on the banks here is believed to cure abnormalities of the body.
TTD Gardens
This is a sprawling expansion of 460 acres of landscape gardens under the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam, TTD gardens is a flamboyant location in Tirumala. Almost 500 kilograms of flowers are supplied daily to the various temples in and around Tirumala. This garden is responsible for the beautification of the temples on special occasions apart from providing the routine demands for flowers. Apart from beautiful flowerbeds, there is also a pond in which lotuses are present.
There are many more places to visit in Tirupati but the ones I described are a must!
