TIRUMALA - TIRUPATI (FROM CHENNAI)

At a distance of 1 km from Tirumala Bus Station, Lord Venkateswara Temple is an ancient and sacred temple dedicated to Sri Balaji, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Tirumala is the richest and most visited temple (of any faith) in the world. Tirumala is an ideal sacred getaway from Chennai to spend a weekend.

Tirumala, abode of Sri Venkateswara (also known as Balaji), is one of the most celebrated pilgrimage centers in India and it attracts millions of devotees every year. The temple is situated atop the Tirumala Hills which consists of seven peaks known as Sapthagiri at an altitude of 3,200 feet. The seven peaks represent the seven hoods of Adishesha, the serpent on whom lies Lord Vishnu. The temple lies on the seventh peak -Venkatadri.

The temple of Lord Venkateswara was built by the Tamil king Thondaimaan. The Pallavas of Kanchipuram (9th century), Cholas of Tanjore (10th century), Pandyas of Madurai and Vijayanagara Kings (14th & 15th centuries) regularly visited the temple .....

At a distance of 2 km from Tirumala Bus Station & 2.5 km from Tirumala Tirupati Balaji Temple, Sila Thoranam is a natural rock formation in the shape of an arch and it is the only one of its kinds in Asia. This is located close to Srivari Paadalu which is the highest point of Narayanagiri. Sila Thoranam is one of the best places to visit in Tirumala.

Sila Thoranam literally means garland of rocks. It is commonly known as Rock Garden. It is a natural stone arch which was found by archeologists excavating this area in 1980. This natural arch has two different types of rocks which are connected by a link. The arch like rock formation with a length of 25 feet and a height of 10 feet is said to be formed by weathering and wind erosion. The formation is categorized as pre-Cambrian and dates back to millions of years ago. The age of the rock itself has been estimated to be about 2500 million years, and the age of the arch is computed to be about 1500 million years.

It is said that .....

Situated at a distance of 2 Kms from Tirumala Bus Station & 3 km from Tirumala Tirupati Balaji Temple, Chakra Theertham is the site for a water body near Sila Thornam and is associated with an interesting legend. According to the legend, Lord Brahma wanted to observe penance and to clean this place, Lord Vishnu plunged his Sudershana Chakram, thus creating a crater. It is one of the famous places of sightseeing in Tirumala.

Visiting this site is considered as good as touching the Lotus Feet of the Lord, which will deliver the devotees from their travails. The waterfall here is an amazing sight to behold and is the location where the idol of Lord Venkateswara is brought during the Brahmotsvam celebrations.

At a distance of 4 km from Tirumala Bus Station & 5 km from Tirumala Tirupati Balaji Temple, Srivari Paadalu (also called Tirupada - Holy feet of the Lord) are located at the highest point of Narayanagiri and is situated near to Sila Thoranam. It is one of the important places to visit in Tirumala.

As per the mythology this is the place where Lord Venkateswara first set his feet on Earth. The foot print is available here and devotees visit this place at the top of Narayanagiri hill for the divine sight. The beautiful Tirumala temple complex and town is completely revealed from this spot. Near Tirupada there is a garden with a Shiva temple. The Srivari Paadalu now is protected with glass frame on a firm stone platform and pilgrims can't touch the foot prints.

The road to this place from the main temple of Tirumala is very scenic with dense forest filled with green vegetation. There are several cabs available to this place from the main temple, both shared and private. Pilgrims .....

At a distance of 3 km from Tirumala Bus Station & 5 km from Tirumala Tirupati Balaji Temple, Akasa Ganga is a sacred waterfall on the foothill of Venkatadri Tirumala. The waterfall is about 5 km from the main Tirumala Tirupati Balaji Temple and the Tirumala Nambi family is allowed to carry the holy water from the waterfall to the temple. It is one of the popular Tirumala places to visit.

This holy theertha is found it's rendering in the Vedas and it is believed that Akasa Ganga Teertham originates from the lotus feet of Lord Venkateswara. In ancient days, the priests of the temple carry the water all the way from this part of jungle to the temple in the morning hours. This custom is still continued today, though limited to special occasions. Recently, water lines were laid into the Lord Venkateswara temple to carry the water from Akasa Ganga for regular rituals of the deity.

Bathing in this water is really refreshing and is said to wash away the evils and confer good fortune. .....

Situated at a distance of 5 km from Tirumala Bus Station & 5 km from Lord Venkateswara Temple, Papa Vinasam is a pretty small waterfall whose waters are treated sacred and have healing powers. As the name denotes, Papavinasam is the place where all the devotees frequent with the belief that a holy bath would redeem them from their sins. Separate dressing rooms are available for both men and women. It is one of the popular attractions in Tirumala.

Since the waterfall is gushes from the top of a hill, it looks picturesquely awesome. Access to this lovely falls through the stony footpath also makes your trip quite enjoyable. Another fabulous site is the reservoir of the nearby dam, which restricts the water flow in the pond. A well maintained park and a garden attributes the charm of the scenic surroundings pretty well.

There are several cabs available to this place from the main temple, both shared and private. This place needs some walking for 5-10 mins.

At a distance of 1 km from Tirupati Railway Station & 22 km from Tirumala Tirupati Balaji Temple, Sri Govindaraja Swami Temple is one of the important temples in Tirupati, located in the heart of the city. It is one of the best places to visit in Tirupati city.

The original temple had Sri Parthasarathi as the main deity. Sri Ramanuja added the Sri Govindaraja deity in 1130 AD. Yadavaraya Dynasty made several gifts for decoration of the chariot and carrying necessary repairs of the temple. The temple came in for greater importance in 1506 AD during the rule of Vijayanagara Dynasty and from then onwards different rulers in a different way developed the temple.

This famous temple in Tirupathi is a remarkable achievement of the ancient south Indian architecture. It has an impressive outer gopura and an inner gopura. The inner most gopura is the earliest one, dating from the 14th century and has carvings that depict scenes from Ramayana and Lord Krishna's life. The temple has two .....

At a distance of 4 km from Tirupati Railway Station & 25 km from Tirumala Tirupati Temple of Lord Venkateswara, Kapila Theertham is a famous waterfall situated inside Kapileswara Swamy Temple at the foot of Sheshadri Hills in Tirupati. This is a unique waterfall where the water of mountain streams drop from a height of over 100 feet into a large pond in the temple premises. It is one of the must visit tourist places in Tirupati and a major pilgrimage site in Tirupati city.

Kapila Theertham temple is the only Shiva temple in the vicinity of Tirupati. It is also said to be one of the 108 sacred teerthas (springs) on Tirumala hills. The Siva lingam here is made of brass. A huge stone statue of a seated bull Nandhi, greets devotees at the entrance to the temple.

According to legend, Saint Kapila Maharishi was said to have lived here, worshipped and meditated in the cave in front of the .....

At a distance of 5 km from Tirupati Railway Station & 27 km from Tirumala Tirupati Balaji Temple, Tiruchanur also called as Alimelumangapuram is famous for Alimelu Manga Temple dedicated to goddess Padmavati, the consort of Lord Venkateswara. It is believed that pilgrimage to Tirumala is incomplete without a visit to Sri Padmavati Ammavari Temple at Tiruchanur.

According to ancient scripts, as Lord Venkateswara Temple at Tirumala was not easily accessible, a new temple called Tiruvalan Koil was constructed at Tiruchanur near Tirupathi to house Lord Venkateswara in 8th century by Pallavas. The temple was later dedicated to Padmavati Devi by Yadava Rayas in 12th century.

According to the legend, Lord Vishnu showed his reverence towards the sage Bhrigu, even though the sage had insulted Vishnu. In anger, Sri Maha Lakshmi immersed herself for 12 years here in pushkarini the banks of Swarnamukhi River and emerged from it in a Golden .....

At a distance of 12 km from Tirupati, 3 km from Chandragiri & 29 km from Tirumala Tirupati Temple of Lord Venkateswara, Srinivasa Mangapuram is famous for Sri Kalyana Venkateswara Swami Temple. This is one of the important temples near Tirupati town and is located towards Chandragiri town. It is one of the must visit Tirupati Temples

The ancient temple at this site was discovered by some devotees in 1540 CE. The present form of the temple came into existence by the relentless efforts of Chinna Thirumalaiyya, the grandson of Annamacharya. According to legend, Lord Venkateswara stayed here after his marriage with Sri Padmavati Devi. Once the marriage ceremony got over, Venkateswara paid a visit to the holy ashram of sage Agasthya located near the banks of the river Swarnamukhi in Chandragiri Hills. It is believed that sage Agasthya requested them to stay in his ashram for six months. Later, the location where the Lord stayed with his bride became a holy shrine and acquired the name, .....

At a distance of 15 km from Tirupati, 33 km from Tirumala Tirupati Balaji Temple, 147 km from Chennai, 238 km from Bangalore & 574 km from Hyderabad, Chandragiri is an ancient town and the seat of Yadavaraya Kings from 11th to 13th centuries and fourth capital of Vijayanagar Dynasty. Chandragiri along with Tirupati is one of the ideal Chennai weekend getaways and a major heritage / historical site in Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the prime Tourist places in Tirupati town.

Chandragiri near Tirupati is famous for the historical fort, built in the 11th century. Chandragiri was under the rule of Yadavaraya Dynasty for about three centuries and came into control of Vijayanagar rulers in 1367. It came into prominence during Saluva Narasimha Rayalu. Chandragiri was the 4th capital of .....