Bharat, the land of spiritual bliss is strongly believed to be pervaded by the Lords, their deep imprints and a sense of divine presence, eternally available in the environment around.
The presence of deities is often felt in the structures called temples, which are the epitomes of the great, age old, rich Hindu Sanatana Dharma. Among the galaxy of temples, which are also the architectural marvels located in our country, the hill shrine of Tirumala is accredited as being the most visited temple in India and also in the world as a whole. Located on the picturesque Seshachalam Hill Ranges, this temple occupies a unique place in our great land of holy shrines.
Venkateswara Temple is a Hindu temple situated in the hill town of Tirumala at Tirupati in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh, India. The Temple is dedicated to Venkateswara, a form of Vishnu, who is believed to have appeared here to save mankind from trials and troubles of Kali Yuga. Hence the place has also got the name Kaliyuga Vaikuntham and the Lord here is referred to as Kaliyuga Prathyaksha Daivam. The temple is also known by other names like Tirumala Temple, Tirupati Temple, Tirupati Balaji Temple. Venkateswara is known by many other names: Balaji, Govinda, and Srinivasa.
Tirumala Hills are part of Seshachalam Hills range. The hills are 853 metres (2,799 ft) above sea level. The Hills comprises seven peaks, representing the seven heads of Adisesha. The temple lies on the seventh peak -Venkatadri, on the southern banks of Sri Swami Pushkarini, a holy water tank. Hence the temple is also referred to as "Temple of Seven Hills".
The temple is one of the eight Vishnu Swayambhu Kshetras and is listed as 106th and the last earthly Divya Desam.
The “Temple Legend” is made out of references from a range of ancient scriptures such as Varaha Purana, Padma Purana, Garuda Purana, Brahmanda Purana, Markandeya Purana, Harivamsa Purana, Vamana Purana, Brahma Purana, Brahmottara Purana, Aditya Purana, Skanda Purana and Bhavishyottara Purana.These extracts describe the sanctity and antiquity of the deity, temple and the hills around Tirumala, besides the numerous teerthams, streams and springs that abound them.
The legends taken from the Venkatachala Mahatmya and the Varaha Purana, pertaining to the manifestation of the Lord at Tirumala, are of particular interest.
According to the Varaha Purana, Adi Varaha manifested himself on the western bank of the Swami Pushkarini (temple tank), while Vishnu in the form of Venkateswara came in to reside on the southern bank of the Swami Pushkarini.
The temple is considered one of the eight Swayambhu Kshetras of Vishnu where presiding deity is believed to have manifested on its own. Seven other temples in the line are Srirangam Ranganathaswamy temple, Bhu Varaha Swamy temple, and Vanamamalai Perumal Temple in South India and Saligrama in Nepal, Naimisaranya, Pushkar and Badrinath Temple in North India.
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Source: Wikipedia and tirumala.org
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