I began to pursue my Content Writing passion when I enrolled as the Content Writer / Instruction Designer for the Harivara Organization a few years ago. It is a religious organization that organizes poojas and rituals for the devout. In line with that , I wish to write about the World Famous Tirupathy Temple and Lord Venkateshwara from the way I see them. This article is dedicated to the feet of Lord Shreenivasa .
Om Namo Narayana ! – Can it get any more divine? Every time one utters these words, the tongue yearns to repeat it for its sweet aftereffects on the psyche of the chanter. The ears want to hear the utterance of this mantra , for its greatness and thus begins one’s endless cyclic obsession with this the blessed name - Om Namo Narayana !
The endless skies and oceans, the vast spread of land - they all search for his whereabouts but in vain. How can you locate a single drop in an ocean? All the ends of this world are encompassed by Maha Vishnu . Any expedition in search for a single source of his presence , will send us into a trance , an incomparable state of bliss just due to the mere imagination of his svaroopam or form .When one conjures up a mental image of him while chanting his name, words fail to describe the tranquility the mind experiences.
One ceases to be taken in by worldly desires , if they realize that the Lord lives in them and if one gets lost in trivial pursuits , it will pollute his presence. Such is the greatness of Lord Vishnu, the thousand eyed one with a thousand names. If one is sent to a hopeless pursuit of finding the Lord in this big wide world, it’s beyond his reach . Hence the Lord acceded to present himself in various tangible forms across Earth and thus the temples came to existence.
One of these blessed energy centers being the Tirumala-Tirupathy comes with its share of legends,history and greatness.The purpose of this temple dates back to a legend that goes like this. The celestial sage Naradha once wanted to confirm the recipient of the fruits of a sacrifice. The rishi Bhrigu was selected for this purpose and he began to perform the audacious task of choosing the receiver. Lord Shiva and Lord Bhrama were oblivious of the Rishi’s presence and then came the turn of Lord Vishnu who was spending time with his wife Goddess Lakshmi. Rishis or sages are used to receiving a traditional welcome note glorifying their yogic brilliance but when even Lord Vishnu himself appeared to ignore his presence, the rishi kicked the chest of Lord Vishnu. As much this will disturb a Narayana devotee they must understand that Gods and rishis reserved mutual respect for each other and this was all a part of the plan conceived by the Lord.The lord, who is known as ‘Karuna saagara’ recognized the rishi instantly and began to offer his respect by massaging his feet, in the process of which he destroyed an eye which was famously present in the rishi’s feet as a punishment.Perceiving the Lord’s act of humility as a personal insult to her honor, Goddess Lakshmi descended from the heavens much to the Lord’s dismay . He felt the pain her of absence instantly like a fish without water. In a bid to seek her out and clarify himself , the Lord took birth as Srinivasa. This birth made him endure much pain and Lord Bhrama and Shiva assumed the form of a cow and fed him milk and kept him physically strong .This was admonished by a cowherd which enraged the lord and made him curse the Chola king who was later pardoned and let off with his daughter Padmavathy to be given in marriage to the lord as a token of respect. When Lakshmi came to know off this, her call of love affected the Lord to such an extent that he assumed a statue of himself in the very same spot where the Tirumala temple stands today , followed suit by his two wives Lakshmi and Padmavathy who symbolically occupy the left and right sides of the Lord’s chest thus being in union with the Lord.
Tirumala , the place above the seven hills was the chosen place by the Lord and is also known as Sapthagiri. The seven hills are Vrushabhadri – Hill of Nandi,Anjanadri — Hill of Lord Hanuman,Neeladri – Hill of Neela Devi ,Garudadri – Hill of Garuda, Seshadri – Hill of Sesha,Naraynadri – Hill of Narayana and finally Venkatadhri – Hill of Lord Venkateshwara.The temple is known for the gold adorning the temple structures and the lush green ambience that surrounds it. The inner chambers of the temple also presents a gold kissed ambience throughout. The climate largely remains cool and the cool winds offer a solace to the legs if they were tired after one obsessively roams about the place.
Tirumala Tirupathy devasthanam or TTD has a well organized society in itself with a plethora of services being offered . It is managed by the local officials and devotees who take up service in the Holy place of Tirumala. From free wholesome Meals provided to the devotees in the Annadanam Complex on a day to day basis, to free sanitary and accommodation facilities, free medical aid and free bus services , one can experience an overwhelming sense of gratitude by all the love they get from that place. The sounds of chants and hymns, smell of prasadams and hot milk brings about a satisfied look on the devotees’ faces . All this forms a picturesque impression of the Lord's treatment towards anyone that visits the place.
A signature feature of the TTD is the laddu prasada of the Lord. The laddu was administered as the official prasadham of Lord Narayana. In fact,it will not be much of an exaggeration when we say the number two purpose of visiting TTD will be for this laddu , originally shaped in the form of a globe.The smell of the laddus, the taste and sheer quantity they are produced add to its prominence .
One has to mention about the Hundi donation of TTD. The lord is said to have borrowed a huge amount of money and wealth from Lord Kubera for his marriage and gave a promise to Kubera to repay him the full loan with interest till the Kali age ceases to exist. It’s the reason why he is also known as 'vaddikasu priya'. The devotees offer money in the form of cash, gold , jewellery whenever they visit the Lords 'Ananda Nilayam' in Tirumala , as an act of surrendering their love for wealth and other worldly things. People often take oaths to fulfil their desires and on successful fulfillment of their desires they pay a visit to the Lord in TTD and take part in the various forms of service and worship.
Apart from the main temple , there are other places to visit like papansam , Varaha swamy temple, pushkarini , srivari padalu among others. The climate of the place, the sheer dominance of hordes of people from various places , the cleanliness of the entire place , the marriage of nature , hills , mountains , humans and technology all together make the place a world of it's own.
It is an endless voyage as one gets to describe the greatness of the Lord Balaji and this temple stands as a must visit haven for any man who lived on Earth and realizes his partnership with Lord Vishnu.
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