For a devout Hindu, a personal visit to Tirumala fulfils a life’s spiritual aspiration. The religious sanctuary attracts thousands of Hindus from all over the world seeking divine blessings, on a daily basis.
Tirumala Through Time
In line with Vaishnava tradition in Hindu mythology, Tirumala is believed to be the only Vaikuntha on this planet and home to the revered Lord Venkateshwara, Lord Balaji, Lord Narayana and Lord Srinivasa.
Tirumala is surrounded by seven hills said to represent the Seven Hoods of Adi Sesha. References to Tirumala, known as Thrivengadam at the time, go back to ancient Tamil texts of the period between 500 B.C and 300 A.D. The Tirumala Balaji temple is said to be one of the 108 sacred shrines of the Vaishnava sect.
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The temples were further nurtured by rulers belonging to the Chola, Pandya and Pallava kingdoms. They were devout followers of the Vaishnava tradition and contributed to the management of the temples and propagation of the Hindu philosophy.
The temple continued to prosper with more followers visiting the temple complex under the Vijayanagara rulers, and subsequently the Maratha General Raghoji Bhonsle. Later, the management came under the British, who handed over the management to Tirupati Tirumala Devasthanam (TTD) in 1933. Ever since, TTD has been managing the temple complex and undertaking several social welfare activities in and around Tirupati.
For the devout, a visit to Tirumala goes far beyond a holy visit, it’s a deep spiritual journey to experience the divine. Each pilgrim experiences a personal connect with the Lord as he or she enters the holy sanctum for a personal ‘Darshan’.
So strong is the pull that over 70,000 pilgrims happen to visit Tirumala on a daily basis, with numbers more than doubling on special occasions.
Humble Submission to the Lord
Pilgrims reach Tirumala with humility and part of that humbling process is donation to the Lord. Parting with one’s precious assets and earnings by way of cash or jewellery, has been part of a long tradition through time. So much so, that last year alone, TTD set an all-time record by receiving Rs 1,065 crore from Hundi collections.
Tirupati Tirumala temple is said to be the second richest temple in the world, in addition to receiving the second largest number of pilgrims.
Given the large number of people visiting daily, TTD has streamlined the process of various Darshans through the day. Pilgrims who wish to visit Tirumala for Darshan need to buy the tickets that are available online, as a well as through physical counters. Tickets can be purchased 3 days in advance and upto a maximum period of 90 days in advance.
The Darshan / Sewa includes:
- Archananthara Darshanam
- Suprabhatham
- Nilapada Darshanam
- Archana Sewa
- Visesha Pooja
- Thomala Sewa
- Tirupavada Sewa
- Astadala Pada Padmaradhanamu Sewa
- Kalyanotsavam
- Sahasra Kalabhishekam
