For most of the Hindus, Tirumala is a haven on earth to visit at least once in a life time to get lard shree Tirumala Venkateshwara darshan, one of the Avatars of Lord Vishnu, located on top of Seshachala hills often called as "Yaedu Kondalu" (seven hills).
The word Tirupati means the Lord of Lakshmi and the word Tirumalai means Mountain of Highness in Tamil. Tirumalai is called as Tirumala in Telugu.
Tirumala hill is 3200 ft above sea level. It comprises seven peaks, representing the seven hoods of Adisesha, thus earning the name, Seshachalam. The seven peaks are called Seshadri, Vedadri, Garudadri, Anjandri, Vrishabhadri, Narayandri and Venkatadri (Adri in sanskrit means Hill).
Epic Importance of Tirumala Hills (The Seven Sacred Hills)
Lord Venkateswara is referred in Vedas, Tirupati is considered as Kaliyuga Vaikuntha (Heaven on the earth). The Tirumala hills are the world's second oldest rock mountains.
The venkatam hill is believed to be a part of the celestial mount meru brought to the earth from vaikuntam by Garuda (Lord's vehicle), say the puranas. The Hills are said to be a manifestation of Adi Sesha (the cosmic serpent). The Seven hills of the Tirumala are the said to represent the seven hoods of Adi Sesha.
The sacred temple of Sri Venkateswara is located on the seventh peak, Venkatdri and there are several legends associated with the manifestation of the lord in Tirumala. The shrine of the lord is very ancient and there are ample references to it in the early inscriptions belonging to the Chola and Pallava periods as well in the Sangam literature.
Tirupati survived the Muslim invasions of South India, unlike other temples such as the Meenakshi temple in Madurai and Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam. It is believed that during the invasions the deity of Sriranganatha from Srirangam was brought to Tirupati for safekeeping. To commemorate this event, a hall in Tirupati is still known as the Ranganatha mandapa.
Monday, December 29, 2008
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This blog is very informative..I came to know many unknown information...Irrespective of religion, any one can visit this blog as it is a treasure of India and the richest temple in the world..
ReplyDeletei am a muslim but still i feel very fortunate to visit Tirumala.i think that it is heaven on earth not only for hindus but also for all those people who respect other religions as i do.I am really thankful for the contribution of this blog that it makes to my knowledge.
ReplyDeleteMeenakshi Temple in Madurai is a master piece in the history of temples in India. Known as the "the city of nectar", Madurai is one of the oldest and second largest city in Tamil Nadu. It is Minakshi Temple is in at the heart of the city which dominates the whole Madurai.
ReplyDeleteThe beautiful and wonderful temples of South India are a great testimony to the rich cultural heritage of this region of India. The architectural brilliance of the temples is famous the world over and draws a great number of tourists every year. Meenakshi Temple is amongst one of these.
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