Sri Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala
तिरुमला श्री वेंकटेश्वर मंदिर
📍 Tirumala, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh
On the seven hills of Tirumala, Lord Venkateswara (Balaji) is worshipped as the Kali Yuga form of Vishnu. It is one of the most visited temples in the world, famous for its laddu prasadam and hair offerings.
सप्तगिरि पर कलियुग के देव श्री वेंकटेश्वर — विश्व के सबसे अधिक दर्शन किए जाने वाले मंदिरों में।
इतिहास History
Inscriptions trace the shrine's patronage through the Pallavas, Cholas and Pandyas to the Vijayanagara empire; Krishnadevaraya visited several times and endowed it richly. The gold-covered vimana over the sanctum is called Ananda Nilayam.
Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) administers the temple today.
कथा The legend
When Lakshmi left Vaikuntha, Vishnu came to earth to find her and lived as Srinivasa. He married Padmavati, borrowing lavishly from Kubera for the wedding, and devotees' offerings in the hundi are said to help him repay that debt.
दर्शनीय Don’t miss
- The Tirupati laddu, GI-tagged since 2009
- Hair offering at the Kalyanakatta
- Climbing the Alipiri steps on foot
- Padmavati temple at Tiruchanur
उत्सव Festivals
मंदिर दर्शन Temple story
The secrets of Sri Venkateswara, from our YouTube series.
▶ Watch all 18 Temple Stories on YouTubePhoto: Nikhilb239 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons