Tirupati, Tirumala Andhra Pradesh

Tirupati is a major pilgrimage city located in the Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh. It is located at the foothills of the Eastern Ghats at a distance of 550 kilometres (340 mi) south of Hyderabad, the capital of the state and 150 kilometres (93 mi) north of Chennai.

Tirupati is famous for the Venkateswara Swamy temple dedicated to Lord Venkateswara, located about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north west of Tirupati in the Tirumala hills at an elevation of 853 metres (2,799 ft).

One of the most important pilgrimage centers in India, the temple draws millions of pilgrims and is the busiest pilgrimage centre in the world. Tirupati town itself has several temples and is famous for its red wooden toys, copper and brass idols. Also, the town is a major economical and educational hub in the southern region of the state.

Transport

Places to See:

Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu as Venkateswara (also known as Balaji and Srinivasa) attracts followers from a wide range of Hindu traditions.

Alamelu Mangamma Shrine in Alamelumangapuram also called Thiruchanoor

Padmavati Temple

Govindaraja Swamy Temple

Kodanda Rama Swamy Temple: Lord Rama, Sita and Lakshmana are the presiding deities of the temple. Lord Anjaneya Swamy is seen near the foot of Lord Rama. The temple is in the heart of the city. There is also another temple dedicated to Lord Anjaneya Swamy opposite to Kodhanda Rama Swamy Temple. Prasadams are offered daily to pilgrims.

Srinivasa Mangapuram

Kapila Theertham: This temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva and Parvati. There is a beautiful waterfall near the temple.

ISKCON Lord Krishna Temple - The temple has its own style of architecture with the towers coloured in gold and white. The carvings of Lord Narasimha Swamy, Lord Varaha Swamy and Krishna Leela are marvelous.

Glass painting works on the windows depicting Lord Krishna's playful acts and the ceilings decorated like Tanjore art reveals the colourful masterpiece in art work. Each pillar is decorated with ten avatars of Lord Vishnu.

The temple inside the sanctum has Lord Krishna with beautifully dressed Gopis. There is a beautiful park surrounded with lot of flowers, ponds, fountains and with Krishna Leela idols. The temple is on the way to Tirumala Hills.

Hanuman temple at Tirumala is where Hanuman's mother Anjana did penance.

Sri Venugopala Swamy Temple in Karvetinagaram, 40 km from Tirupati

Sri Kalyana Venkateswara Swamy Temple - Narayanavanam, 48 km from Tirupati

Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy Temple - Appalayagunta, 20 km from Tirupati

Parasurameswara Temple - Gudimallam, 20 km from Tirupati. Though a small village, historically it is very important, because it has a beautiful Siva Temple which is popularly known as "the Parasurameswara Temple." The main importance of the temple lies in the Linga which is housed in the Garbhagriha of the temple. This is supposed to be the earliest Linga discovered so far and it has been assigned to the 2nd or 1st century BC. The name of the temple is mentioned as Parasurameswara Temple in the inscriptions.

Sri Venkateswara Zoological Park is the second of its kind in the Andhra Pradesh. It has many species of animals and plants which are being conserved. Nearly 10 to 15 tigers are present in this zoo.

Regional Science Center is a science center and also has a planetarium which grabs huge amounts of crowd.

Excursions...........

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