A Visit to Tirupati.....Balaji Temple

Tirumala Venkateswara Temple (Telugu: తిరుమల వెంకటేశ్వరస్వామి దేవస్థానము) is a famous Hindu temple of Lord Vishnu in the form of Lord Venkateswara located in the hill town Tirumala, near Tirupati in the Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is located 580 kilometres (360 mi) south of state capital, Hyderabad and 157 kilometres (98 mi) north west of Chennai. The temple is situated on Venkatadri, one of the seven hills of Tirumala, and hence is also known as the Temple of Seven Hills (Saptagiri सप्तगिरी in Sanskrit). The presiding deity of the temple, Lord Venkateswara, is also known by other names - Balaji, Govinda and Srinivasa.

The temple is reportedly the richest and the most visited place of worship in the world. The temple is visited by about 100,000 to 200,000 pilgrims daily (3 to 4 crore people annually on an average), while on special occasions and festivals, like the annual Brahmotsavam, the number of pilgrims shoots up to 500,000, making it the most visited holy place in the world.

According to legend, the temple has a murti (deity) of Lord Venkateswara, believed to have resided there for the entire Kali Yuga. In Sri Vaishnava tradition, the temple is considered one of the 108 Divya Desams.

Visit to Srikalahasti Temple ..Tirupathi..A.P

Srikalahasti (Telugu: శ్రీకాళహస్తి), is a holy town and a municipality near Tirupati in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located on the banks of the river Swarnamukhi. It is also informally and wrongly referred to as Kalahasti. Recently,it has been included in the TUDA (Tirupati Urban Development Authority) region.

It is one of the important ancient Shiva Kshetras (Shiva Temples) of South India. The Srikalahasti Temple occupies the area between the river bank and the foot of the hills and is popularly known as Dakshina Kailasam. The three lofty Gopurams of the temple are remarkable for their architecture. This temple was built during the period of King Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagar. A huge hundred pillared mantapam is another important feature of this shrine.

It is one of the ancient temples included in the Hindu pilgrimages and the site of a famous Shiva temple with magnificent gopurams and is fairly close to the famous hill temple of Lord Venkateshwara at Tirupati, one of the richest and famous temple cities in the world. It is also the origin of the popular textile painting art called kalamkari.

The 'Rajagopuram' or main gate of the 500-year-old Srikalahasti Temple in Andhra Pradesh's Chittoor District collapsed on 26 May 2010. Srikalahasti is popularly known as "Dakshina Kaashi".

Entrance of Srikalahasti Temple

Visit to Kanipakam Temple in Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh

"Kani" means wetland and "Pakam" means flow of water into wetland.

Washing legs in the pool outside the temple

Kanipakam (Telugu: కాణిపాకం), is a village located in Irala mandal of Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh in South India.

Visit to SRI KAPILESWARA SWAMY TEMPLE, Tirupathi, (A.P)

This temple is only temple of Lord Shiva in Tirupati.Pilgrims normaly proceed to Tirumala for Darshan after taking a customary dip in the temple tank.Located amidst beautiful foothills of Tirumala,the place is also known for its natural water falls.

Gopuram of the temple