The Bhagavad Gita is the most sacred, important Hindu
script that influences numerous people, and Gita Jayanti is the birthday of
Bhagavad Gita. This day falls on Shukla Ekadashi of the Margashirsha month.
According to the English calendar, this festival occurs during November or
December. It is that sacred day when Lord Krishna gave the immortal message to
Arjuna in Kurukshetra. Followers of Lord Krishna all over the world celebrate
this day.
OTHER TEMPLES IN TIRUMALA
Sri Varahaswami Temple :
Sri Varahaswami Temple in Tirumala is to the north of the
Sri Venkateswara Temple, on the banks of Swami Pushkarini.
According to legend, Tirumala was originally Adi Varaha Kshetra (the home of Sri Adi Varaha Swami), and it was with his permission that Lord Sri Venkateswara took up residence here.
According to the Brahma Purana, pilgrims should first offer
naivedyam to Sri Adi Varaha Swami, before visiting the Sri Venkateswara Temple.
Sri Bedi Anjaneyaswami Temple :
Sri Bedi Anjaneya Temple Sri Bedi Anjaneyaswami Temple is
located on Sannidhi Street, opposite the main temple.
Abhishekam is performed every Sunday and special offerings
are made on Hanuman Jayanti.
Darshan at Sri Venkateswara Temple
Vaikuntam Queue Complex
The entrance for darshan is through the Vaikuntam Queue Complex. The complex is a series of inter-connected halls that leads to the main temple. An efficient queue system ensures that pilgrims move in an orderly fashion through the Queue Complex, towards the main temple.
The halls in the Queue Complex are clean, spacious and airy.TTD provides a wide range of facilities in the Queue Complex:
- Food is provided for the waiting pilgrims free of cost.
- Milk, Coffe & Tea provided for waiting pilgrims free of cost.
- Medical aid
- Sale of photographs, calendars and other TTD publications
- Toilets
- Closed Circuit Television, through which devotional programmes and music are relayed
- Cloak rooms near the Vaikuntam Queue Complex entrance
- Places where footwear can be deposited, free of cost (at the entrance) .
Sarvadarsanam
Sarvadarsanam means 'darshan for all'. The timings for Sarvadarsanam are different on different days of the week.
On normal days, about 18 hours are allotted for Sarvadarsanam and on peak days, it is open for 20 hours.
Special Entry Darshan (Seeghra Darshan)
The cost of the Ticket is Rs.300/- per pilgrim. The tickets will be issued at VQC-I in a separate queue line with 4 counters, after taking the tickets, the pilgrims are directly allowed for Darshan. Seeghra Darshan tickets will be issued on all the Sarva Darshan timings.
The darshan timings are the same as that for Sarvadarsanam.
Special Entry Darshan Timings ( Seeghra Darshan )
| |
| MONDAY | 7:00 AM TO 5:00 PM |
| TUESDAY | 8:00 AM TO 2:00 PM |
| WEDNESDAY | 9:00 AM TO 2:00 PM |
| THURSDAY | 9:00 AM TO 5:00 PM |
| FRIDAY | 9:30 AM TO 9:00 PM |
| SATURDAY | 7:00 AM TO 9:00 PM |
| SUNDAY | 7:00 AM TO 9:00 PM |
Divya Darshan
1. Divya Darshan facility is provided for pedestrian who come on foot to Tirumala through Gali Gopuram or Srivari Mettu.
2. Bio-metric counters are established on these foot paths, to facilitate free darshan, free accommodation (P.A.C) and free food facilities at Tirumala.
Special Darshan for Physically disabled and Aged
This special darshan is arranged for the physically challenged Persons/ Old aged people / Heart patients / Ostomy patients through P.H.Gate, Mahadwaram, Sri T.T., Tirumala in three slots every day i.e. 10:00A.M., 03:00P.M. and 10:00P.M. If necessary, such pilgrims can be accompanied by an attendant.
Sri Venkateswara Temple Programme
TIRUMALA
The temple of Sri Venkateswara or Tirupati Balaji is situated above the actual city of Tirupati in the hilltop town of Tirumala. This hill shrine is one of the eight holy places of Lord Vishnu, hailed as Swayamvyakta Kshetras (self-manifested). It is also acclaimed as the holiest of the celebrated 108 Tirupatis (Vaishnava Divya Desams) of the Lord.
The temple of Sri Venkateswara has acquired unique sanctity in Indian religious lore. The Sastras, Puranas, Sthala Mahatyams and Alwar hymns unequivocally declare that, in the Kali Yuga, one can attain mukti, only by worshipping Venkata Nayaka or Sri Venkateswara.
HISTORY :
All the great dynasties of rulers of the southern peninsula have paid homage to Lord Sri Venkateswara in this ancient shrine. The Pallavas of Kancheepuram (9th century AD), the Cholas of Thanjavur (a century later), the Pandyas of Madurai, and the kings and chieftains of Vijayanagar (14th - 15th century AD) were devotees of the Lord and they competed with one another in endowing the temple with rich offerings and contributions.
It was during the rule of the Vijayanagar dynasty that the contributions to the temple increased. Sri Krishnadevaraya had statues of himself and his consorts installed at the portals of the temple, and these statues can be seen to this day. There is also a statue of Venkatapati Raya in the main temple.
After the fall of the Hindu kingdoms, the Muslim rulers of Karnataka and
then the Britishers took over, and many of the temples came under their
supervisory and protective control.
In 1843 AD, the East India Company divested itself of the direct
management of non-Christian places of worship and native religious
institutions. The administration of the shrine of Sri Venkateswara and a number
of estates were then entrusted to Sri Seva Dossji of the Hatiramji Mutt at
Tirumala, and the temple remained under the administration of the Mahants for
nearly a century, till 1933 AD.
In 1933, the Madras Legislature passed a special act, which empowered
the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams(TTD) Committee to control and administer a
fixed group of temples in the Tirumala-Tirupati area, through a Commissioner
appointed by the Government of Madras.
In 1951, the Act of 1933 was replaced by an enactment whereby the
administration of TTD was entrusted to a Board of Trustees, and an Executive
Officer was appointed by the Government .
LEGENDS :
Sri Venkatachala Mahatmya is referred to in several Puranas, of which
the most important are the Varaha Purana and the Bhavishyottara Purana.
The printed work contains extracts from the Varaha Purana, Padma Purana,
Garuda Purana, Brahmanda Purana, Markandeya Purana, Harivamsa, Vamana Purana,
Brahma Purana, Brahmottara Purana, Aditya Purana, Skanda Purana and
Bhavishyottara Purana. Most of these extracts describe the sanctity and
antiquity of the hills around Tirumala and the numerous teerthams situated on
them.
The legends taken from the Venkatachala Mahatmya and the Varaha Purana,
pertaining to the manifestation of the Lord at Tirumala, are of particular
interest.
According to the Varaha Purana, Adi Varaha manifested Himself on the
western bank of the Swami Pushkarini, while Vishnu in the form of Venkateswara
came to reside on the southern bank of the Swami Pushkarini.
One day, Rangadasa, a staunch devotee of Vishnu, in the course of his
pilgrimage, joined Vaikhanasa Gopinatha, who was going up the Tirumala Hill for
the daily worship of Lord Venkateswara. After bathing in the Swami Pushkarini,
he beheld the lotus-eyed and blue-bodied Vishnu beneath a tamarind tree. Vishnu
was exposed to the sun, wind and rain and was only protected by the extended
wings of Garuda.
Rangadasa was astounded by the wonderful sight. He raised a rough wall
of stones around the deity, and started supplying flowers faithfully to
Gopinatha everyday for Vishnu's worship.
One day, Rangadasa was distracted by a Gandharva king and his ladies.
Consequently, he forgot to supply flowers to Gopinatha for Vishnu's worship.
The Lord then revealed Himself and told Rangadasa that He had been testing the
latter's continence, but Rangadasa had not been steadfast and had succumbed to
temptation.
However, the Lord accepted and appreciated Rangadasa's devoted service
to Him till then, and blessed Rangadasa that he would be reborn as an affluent
ruler of a province and would enjoy the earthly pleasures. He would continue to
serve the Lord, construct a beautiful temple with a vimana and high surrounding
walls, and thereby earn eternal glory.
Rangadasa was reborn as Tondaman, the son of the royal couple, Suvira
and Nandini. Tondaman enjoyed a pleasurable life as a young man. One day, he
set out on a hunting expedition on the Tirumala Hill, and with the help of a
forester, saw Vishnu under the tamarind tree. Tondaman returned home, deeply
affected by the vision of Vishnu.
Tondaman later inherited his father's kingdom, Tondamandalam. In
accordance with the directions given by Adi Varaha to a forester, Tondaman
constructed a prakaram and dvara gopura, and arranged for regular worship of
the Lord (according to Vaikhanasa Agama).
In the Kali Yuga, Akasaraja came to rule over Tondamandalam. His
daughter Padmavathi was married to Venkateswara. The marriage, officiated by
Brahma, was celebrated with great pomp and splendour.
How to reach :
Tirumala is just 22kms from Tirupati.Apsrtc
runs plenty of buses.Private operators also run Vehicles from Tirupati.
On foot : There are two ways from tirupati
1. From alipiri it takes 4-5 hours to reach
tirumala.Large number of devotees walk from this way to tirumala.There are
around 3600 steps to climb in this way.
2. From Sri vari mettu it takes 2-3 hours
to reach tirumala.There are around 2400 steps to climb in this way.
Vehicles are allowed from morning 4.00 to
night 11.00
Piligrims are allowed to walk from Morning
6.00 am.
SHIRDI SAIBABA TEMPLE TIMINGS
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4.15 am
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Bhupali
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4:30 am
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Kakad Aarti (morning)
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5:00 am
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Bhajan in Saibaba Mandir
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5.05 am
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Holy Bath of Shri Sai Baba
(Mangal Snaan) in Samadhi Mandir
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5:35
am
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Aarti
"Shirdi Majhe Pandharpur"
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5:40 am
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Darshan begins in Samadhi
Mandir
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9:00 am
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Abhishek Pooja
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7:00,9:00,10:00,11:00
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Satyanarayana Pooja
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11:30 am
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Dhuni Pooja with rice and ghee
in Dwarkamai
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12:00
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Mid day Aarti
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4:00
PM
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Pothi
(Devotional reading/Study) in Samadhi Mandir
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At Sunset
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Dhoop Aarti
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8:30 - 10:00 PM
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Devotional Songs in Samadhi
Mandir and other Cultural Programmes (if any)
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9:00 PM
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Chavadi and Gurusthan closes
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9:30 PM
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In Dwarkamai water is given to
Baba, a mosquito net is hung and the hanging lamp is lit
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9:45 PM
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Dwarkamai (the upper part)
closes
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10:30 PM
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Shej (night) Aarti, after this
, a shawl is wrapped around the statue in the Samadhi Mandir, a Rudraksha
mala is put around baba's neck, Mosquito net is hung, and a glass of water
kept there
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11:15 PM
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Samadhi Mandir closes after
night Arati
Palanquin Program is
arranged on every Thursday at 9.15pm
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SHIRDI SAIBABA MANDIR
Shirdi Sai temple is a beautiful shrine that was built over the
Samadhi of Shri Sai Baba. It was established in 1922 to carry out the services
of Shri Sai Baba. Shirdi is a town, located at Rahata Tahasil
in Ahmednagar District in Maharashtra State, India.
SAPTASHRUNGI DEVI TEMPLE - NASHIK
Saptashrungi Devi is Durga Devi. Saptashrungi Devi Temple is
located at Vani a place near the city of Nashik in the state of Maharashtra.
This temple is one among the 51 Shakti peethas located on the Indian subcontinent. The Devi is said be swayambhu (self-manifested) on a rock on the sheer face of a mountain. She is surrounded by seven (sapta-in Sanskrit) peaks (shrunga-in Sanskrit), hence the name- Sapta Shrungi Mata (mother of the seven peaks). The image of the Devi is huge-about 10 feet tall with 18 hands, holding various weapons. The idol is always coated with Sindoor, which is considered auspicious in this region. She is also known as Mahishasur Mardini, the slayer of the demon Mahishasur, who took the form of a buffalo.
HANUMAN TEMPLE - ARDHAGIRI
Sri
Veeranjaneya Swamy Temple is located one and a half km. up of the hill in
Aragonda village, Chittor District, Andhra Pradesh, 15 km away from
Kanipakam.
According to the local people the temple is 300 years old. Gradually, the inflow of devotees is increasing day by day. Philanthropists are contributing their mite to provide basic amenities.
LEGEND :
Hanuman brought Sanjeeva Parvatham in order to save Lakshmana during a war when Lakshmana fell unconscious. During the journey, half of Sanjeeva Parvatham fell, and the place where it landed came is known as Aragonda. This hill is famous with name "Ardhagiri" (Ardha means Half and Ge'ree means mountain). In Ardhagiri, it is believed that Sanjeevaraya Pushkarini (pond containing the holy water) never gets dried nor spoiled, even when kept for long periods of time. When devotees drink this theerham (or holy water) from the Sanjeevaraya Pushkarini, all types of diseases are getting cured.
TIMINGS :
The temple is open for public from 05.30 am to 1.30 pm and 01.30 pm to 9.00 pm.
ARDHAGIRI :
- About
3-5 thousand devotees visit the temple every day.
- Thousands
of devotees visit this on pournami day, and stay overnight.
- This
water is most powerful medicine for our health. Water has the green color
and sweet to taste.
- On
a full moon day temple opens till 11 pm.
HOW TO REACH :
Just 15kms from kanipakam can be reached through own vehicle or by bus.
HANUMAN TOK - SIKKIM
Hanuman Tok, dedicated to God Hanuman, is one of the most renowned temples located in Sikkim. Managed and maintained by a division of Army department of India, this temple is located at a distance of 5 km from Gangtok. With a total height of 7,200 ft, from the top of this hillock.
From White Hall, located on the Gangtok-Nathula highway, this temple is situated at a distance of approximately 5 km.
LEGEND :
According to the local legends, when Hanuman was flying with the “Sanjeevani” mountain to save Rama's brother Lakshmana he rested in the spot where his temple now lies for some time.
HOW TO REACH
11 KMS FROM GANGTOK,NEAREST AIRPORT IS BAGDOGRA IN WESTBENGAL, 124 KMS FROM GANGTOK.
BEST TIME TO VISIT :
SEPTEMBER TO MAY
Malai Mahadeshwara Hills
Malai Mahadeshwara Hills also known as MM Hills
is a temple town situated in the eastern part of Kollegal taluk, Chamarajanagar
district of Karnataka. The MM Hills is about 210 Kms from Bangalore and 142 Kms
from Mysore. The temple here in MM Hills is dedicated to Lord Mahadeshwara, the
incarnation of Lord Shiva.