Tirumala Tirupati
Coordinates: 13 ° 40 ′ 59.5 " N , 79 ° 20 ′ 54.3" E
Tirumala Tirupati is an important Hindu temple complex in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh near Tirupati , which annually attracts millions of pilgrims . It is dedicated to Venkateshvara , who is considered a form of the god Vishnu .
Traditional belief is that the stone statue of Shri Venkateshvara - the most important deity of the temple - is not a man-made statue, but a "self-made" statue in which the god has manifested himself. The abhishekha (holy bath) ceremony is performed every Friday . The statue is ritually bathed; after the bath, the deity is rubbed with oil. Part of the daily ritual is the putting on of robes ( Alankarasaranam ). The giving of food to the deity is called naivedya . Only arachakas (priests) are allowed to be present in the sanctuary . The cooked food is then distributed to the pilgrims as prasada . Most of the day is dedicated to darshan , where pilgrims approach the statue to pray to God and seek blessings.
The spiritual background of the festivals and rituals celebrated in Tirumala is secured by the teachings of one of the main schools of Vishnuism according to the important teacher Ramanujacharja as well as by the holy scriptures of the Hindus. Especially in the Puranas (see e.g. Padma Purana and Narada Purana) there are extensive descriptions of the history of the temple's origins and the appearance of the figure Venkateshvara, as well as its outstanding significance. Bathing, feeding and dressing deities does not come from the world of popular religion, as is sometimes mistakenly assumed, but is explained in detail in the classic Vedic writings such as the extensive standard work "Hari Bhakti Vilas". The temple also offers a wide range of Sanskrit recitations for pilgrims interested in classical texts.
After Mecca, Tirupati is the most visited place of pilgrimage in the world. The maintenance of the religious events and their officials is financed by voluntary donations. Many pilgrims have their hair sheared and donate the hair for sale to wig makers around the world. Church taxes are not levied. The pilgrims donate a lot, often small bills and coins. These donations are meticulously sorted in the temple administration. The temple visitor can observe this as these rooms are glazed. There are no restrictions for western travelers - regarding access to the temples - as is often the case in southern India. This is due to the traditionally rather open and tolerant attitude of the Vaisnava tradition in Sri-sampradaya towards birth differences of all kinds. The Tirupati Temple is still run by priests of the millennia-old disciples of Sri-sampradaya in the succession of Ramanujacharya, who himself campaigned for a universal love of God that must be openly accessible to all people, regardless of their caste, race or nationality.
literature
- Thalapaneni Subramanian Naidu: The Sacred Complex of Tirumala Tirupati . Institute of South Indian Studies, Madras 1993
