Tirupati Balaji Temple
After the Shree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, Tirupati Balaji is positioned as the richest pilgrimage centre of India. About 50,000 to 100,000 pilgrims visit this temple daily. The well-known temple of Hindus is Tirupati Balaji. This place faces so many crowds on special occasions and festivals, like the annual Brahmotsavam. It consists of deity of Lord Venkateswara which is a living form of lord Vishnu. Venkateswara, Govinda, and Srinivasa are other names of Balaji.It is dedicated to the Supreme God Shrimann Narayan/Maha Vishnu. The shape and style of the temple is traditional.
Tirupati Balaji Temple Location
Tirupati Balaji is situated in the hill town of Tirumala which is near Tirupati in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh. It is sited around 600 km (370 mi) from Hyderabad, 138 km (86 mi) from Chennai and 291 km (181 mi) from Bangalore.
Tirupati Balaji Temple Etymology
This temple is called as Tirumala Venkateswara Temple. The word tirumala consists of two words i.e.
- Tiru- means ‘Holy' or ‘Sacred'
- Mala- means hills/ mountain
The complete meaning of tirumala is holy-mountain. The word Venkateswara consists of three words i.e.
- Vem- stands for all the links with one's own sins
- Kata- stands for will be cut off in total to the one who surrenders to him
- Eswara- stands for Supreme God
Tirupati Balaji Temple Myth
During Sagar manthan there was origin of Kaalkoot Vish (poison) and 14 stones. Inthese stones one of them is Goddess Lakshmi. All angels, devils and people are attracted towards the beauty of Lakshmi and wanted to get married with her but she didn’t like them and put the garland onto the neck of Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu had given her the place at his chest.
Once upon a time a yajna was organized on the earth for world’s welfare. At that time the problem was arises that who will take the yagyaphal whether it is Brahma, Vishnu or Mahesh.Rishi Braghu was appointed to do the selection of most suitable for the purpose among the three lords. First of all Rishi Braghu had approached Brahma and then Mahesh but he hadn’t selected him. At last he reached Vishnulok. There Vishnu was slept on the bed of Shesh Naag and he hadn’t seen Braghu. In anger Braghu had hit the chest of Lord Vishnu. Unlike the expectation Lord Vishnu had softly capture his leg and asked in a submissive manner-“Is your leg hurted”? Rishi Braghu was impressed by his behavior and had granted yagyaphal to him. The evident of this episode is the wife of Vishu- Goddess Lakshmi who has got angry as it is the place of her residence. She also got angry on Vishnuji as instead of punishing Rishi braghu he had apologized against him (Rishi Braghu). As a consequence of it she had left Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu searched her a lot but unable to find her. For searching her Lord Vishnu has taken the birth on earth with the name of Sriniwas andincidentally Goddess Lakshmi had also taken the birth on the earth with the name of Padhyawati. They both had got married and Rishi Braghu had apologized against her and had given blessings to her. She had forgiven him.
At the time of marriage Lord Vishnu had taken wealth from Kuber as a credit for giving it as a gift of marriage to his (Lord Vishnu) wife to which he would return up-to the completion of Kalyug with interest. It is the saying that if any devotee gives money to Balaji then it help to burden out the credit of Kuber and in return Balaji do not allow him to go empty-handed.
Tirupati Balaji Temple Deities in the temple
The deities in the temple are enumerated in the following manner:
- Moolavirat or Dhruva Beram- The main stone of Lord Venkateswara
- Kautuka Beram or Bhoga Srinivasa- Lies near the left foot of Moolavirat
- Snapana Beram or Ugra Srinivasa-represent anger part of Lord Venkateswara
Tirupati Balaji Temple Worship
The idol of Balaji represents goodness. During the journey of Tirupati the mantra Ezhumalayanukku Govinda Govinda or Venkataramana Govinda (in Tamil), Yedukondalavada Venkataramana Govinda Govinda (in Telugu) or Om Namo Narayanaaya or Om Sri Venkatesaya Namah (in Sanskrit) use to be chanted. It is believed that the generous form of Vishnu is Lord Venkateswara which is residing on the earth to fulfill every wish of the true devotee. Tyagaraja and Annamacharya are the most beautiful kirtanas about Lord Venkateswara.
Thus, this temple is most visiting holy place. It is a habitation of fulfilling the wishes of the devotees. As devotees give his/her hairs and in return god will fulfill and eradicate his/her wish and sorrow.