Vedas Resources

27th May 2024 - Day 3 and last day of our Tirumala trip. The departure time of our flight from Tirupati to Hyderabad was 8.30 p.m. Morning we got down to Tirupati and had the darshan of Sree Govinda Raju Swamy and then we headed to Srikalahasti. As it was peak season, these temples were heavily crowded with devotees and being summer it was terribly hot. Somehow we managed to have the nice darshan of Sri Kalahasteeswara and Gyana Prasunamba Devi and then had free anna prasadam which was served hot. The free annadanam hall was not that clean and people of all classes sitting together which we found a bit difficult to adjust. As there are enough time in hand, we planned to visit the less known Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple at Thondamandu / Thondamanpuram which is the only temple in the world where Sri Venkateswara Swamy is in sitting posture along with Sridevi and Bhudevi on either side. It is known as Sridevi Bhudevi Sameta Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy temple which is on the way...

18th March 2025 - Day 7 and the last day of our Kerala trip. We got up before Brahma Muhurtam and after refreshing ourselves with hair wash, we dressed ourselves in traditional Kerala off-white costume - the dress code for visiting Sree Anantha Padmanabha Swamy temple - the world famous and world's richest Hindu temple in Thiruvananthapuram. Our stay was at Kovalam beach resort wherefrom it's a 30 minutes drive to the temple with toll gate on the way. We mostly visit the temples, particularly in south India, early in the mornings during Brahma Muhurtam only as it is highly auspicious. Moreover, I love the early mornings' ambiance in the South Indian temples. The aroma of fresh jasmine flowers, the fragrance of camphor, chandanam and agarbatti and the divine chanting take you to the divine world and you feel yourself spiritually elevated for a while. The surroundings outside the temples are equally enjoyable in the early hours with mouth-watering aroma of filter cof...

In Dec 2023, we went on a 5-day trip to Bengaluru. It was the first time we traveled in Vande Bharat Express from Kacheguda Rly station in Hyderabad to Yeshvantpur Rly station in Bengaluru. It was a good experience travelling in Vande Bharat express. We stayed in a decent hotel near IIM, Bengaluru. We reached Bengaluru on Dec 15, 2023 and spent the evening by strolling around the serene locality. On Day 2 evening we visited Meenakshi temple and spent the night in Meenakshi Mall. On Day 3 i.e. on Dec 17th 2023 we planned a day trip to Mysuru. We booked a round-the-trip cab from Bengaluru - Srirangapatna-Mysuru and back to Bengaluru. We started from our hotel at around 9 a.m and had a pleasant drive to Sri Rangapatna on the express way. We reached Sri Ranganatha Swamy temple at around 11.30 a.m. On reaching the temple road, we could see the striking gopuram from a great distant. There is a row of shops selling local items on either side of the road and some local vendors with mules ...

Sri Ranganatha Swamy temple is also known as Thiruvaranga Tirupati Periyakoil. It is located in the temple town of Sriirangam in Tamil Nadu. Rajagopuram About Srirangam Srirangam is located on an island in between the rivers of Kaveri and Kollidam - a tributary of River Kaveri. The small temple town of Srirangam is a part of Tiruchirapalli (Trichy). It is an important Hindu pilgrim place particularly for the Srivaishnavites. It is believed that this pilgrim place is one of the few self-manifested shrines (Swayam Vyakta Kshetra) of Lord Vishnu. Sri Ranganatha Swamy temple is the foremost among the 108 Divya Kshetrams / Desams i.e. the sacred shrines of the Vaishnavite sect. About the temple The temple is built across a vast area, in a typical Dravidian style of temple architecture. It is also known as Bhooloka Vaikuntham i.e. the Abode of Lord Vishnu on Earth. Inside the temple premises There are seven enclosures (i.e. prakaras) with 21 magnificent towers (gopurams) and huge walls. The ...

About Bhadrachalam Bhardrachalam is a small temple town in the Bhadradi district of Telangana. The town is famous for Sri Sita Ramachandra Swamy temple which is one of the most important Hindu temples dedicated to Sri Rama. The temple is situated on the banks of River Godavari in the Dandakaranya region and is visited by thousands of devotees from across the country. The temple has rich historical background. It was constructed in the 17th century by the then Tahsildar of the place named Kancharla Goppana. Later he became popular as Bhakta Ramadas as he was an ardent devotee of Lord Rama. The temple is located on a small hillock named Bhadragiri and the town of Bhadrachalam derived its name from Bhadragiri hillock. According to legend a great saint named Bhadra who was an ardent devotee of Sri Rama was blessed by Sri Rama and transformed himself into a hillock and placed the temple of Sri Sita Rama on his head. The temple has rich historical background and it is believed that the tem...

We went on a Tamil Nadu trip in October 2018 during Dussehra festival. We took the morning flight from Hyderabad and the landing at Chennai airport was at around 10.30 a.m. We proceeded to Quality Inn Airport hotel where we pre-booked an accommodation and went to one of our relative's house for lunch. On Day 1 of our Tamil Nadu trip first we went to Kapaleeshwar temple located in Mylapore. As it was Dussehra festival, the temple was heavily crowded. After having darshan, we proceeded to Parthasarathy temple in Tripliane. This is an ancient temple located in Triplicane, Chennai. Triplicane was originally known as Tiruvallikeni. This is a busy area in the heart of the city and is well connected with different areas of Chennai. Triplicane and Mylapore are historically much older regions than Chennai. Chennai (former name Madras) is the capital city of Tamil Nadu. It is one of the four important metros of India. Chennai is a cosmopolitan city with modern outlook yet the local people ...

A road trip from Hyderabad to Vikarabad enroute Mehdipatnam, Langar House, Chilkur, Moinabad, Chevella and Vikarabad to reach Ananthagiri Hills is an exciting experience. Ananthagiri is situated at an altitude with panoramic viewpoints and wandering about in the forests in this region would be a thrilling and adventurous experience. Ananthagiri is located at a distance of around 75 Km from Hyderabad and around 6 Km from Vikarabad in the Ranga Reddy District of Telangana. This is a mini hill range with rich forest surrounding the area which makes it an ideal eco-tourist spot particularly for trekking and walking in the forest. Anantha Padmanabha Swamy temple The place derived its name from Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Temple which is the main attraction of the place. The main deity of the temple, Anantha Padmanabha Swamy, is believed to be one of the incarnations of Lord Vishnu . As per Sthalapurana / local legend, it is believed that Markandeya Maharishi, a devotee of Lord Shiva, selected ...

Srikurmam temple is one of the lesser known Hindu temples in India. The main deity of the temple is Srikurmanadha - the 2nd incarnation of Sri Maha Vishnu's Dasavataram. The deity of Srikurmanadha in the temple is a 'swayambhu' (i.e self-appeared) one. The shrine is believed to be more a million years old and the only 'Swayambhu' temple of Lord Vishnu, in the world. The outer structures of the temple was restructured several times. The present structure is 700 years old. The temple of Srikurmadha is one of its kind in the world. It is believed that the small village of Srikurmam is 20 lakhs years old. The village is located in the Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh. The uniqueness of the temple is that, it has two 'dhwaja sthambhas' i.e the flag posts in front of the main temple. The 2nd 'dhwaja sthambham' is in the West as the main deity is West-facing. Till 11th century C.E (Current Era), the main deity was East-facing. It is believed ...

SVS Temple, Aurora, IL Om Namo Venkatesaya! Yedukondalavada Venkataramana! Govinda! Govinda! These chanting reverberate in the sacred Hills of Tirumala. It would be a more thrilling / divinely experience to hear these chanting in a western country / on the other side of the world i.e the U.S. Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple in short known as SVS (Balaji) temple is located at 1145, Sullivan Road in Aurora (Greater Chicago), IL i.e Illinois state of the U.S. This temple is one of the must visit Hindu temples in the U.S. The temple is at a distance of approx 1 hour drive from Chicago, IL. The temple is an excellent weekend getaway for desi Indians in Chicago, IL. On entering into the temple, the taste buds of the visitors get stimulated with the mouth-watering aroma of the South Indian foods from the SVS canteen which is at the entrance. The appetite / urge for eating tasty South Indian idlies and dosas increases on entering the temple. Frankly speaking, it is these mouth-watering South Ind...

If you happen to visit the temple for the first time, you will be marveled to see the architectural magnificence of the temple. Lord Jagannath temple which located at Road N0. 12, Banjara Hills in Hyderabad is recently constructed by the Kalinga Cultural Trust / Odiya Community of Hyderabad. The temple resembles the Jagannath temple of Puri in Odisha. Artisans from Odisha have showed their architectural excellence by carving / sculpting beautiful structures on the temple walls depicting various Hindu mythological scenes and characters which include stories of Lord Krishna. The 'shikhar' or main tower of the temple measures 75 feet tall and is almost a replica of the Jagannath temple of Puri and is constructed with red sand stone brought from Odisha. The temple complex built in a vast / spacious area has other small temples of Lord Ganesha, Kashi Vishwanath i.e Lord Shiva, Shri Hanuman, Vimala Devi, Lakshmi Maa / Lakshmi Devi and Navagraha. Daily the temple opens at 6 a.m and cl...

Mangalagiri is a small temple town and fabric / textile town in the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh. It is located on Guntur-Vijayawada Road on National Highway 5. The town is closer to Viyayawada than Guntur. The place / temple is easily reachable from Vijayawada and Guntur by road. The town gained popularity due to the temple of Panakala Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy. The temple is located in the midway of a mountain in the Eastern Ghats. Mangalagiri is also famous for hand woven saris and fabric. The cotton hand woven saris and dress materials of Mangalagiri are unique. The small temple town of Mangalagiri dates back to 300 B.C.E. (Before Current Era). There are steep rocky steps to reach the temple of Panakala Narasimha Swamy on the mountain. There is also ghat road to reach the temple. As you reach the temple, you can see the entrance board, a paid shoe stand to your left and a couple of shops to buy flowers and other offerings to the lord. From the hill top, you can see the vi...

Visiting Tirumala on New Year's Day i.e January 1st and having the darshan of Sri Venkateswara Swamy on this day has become a sentiment for many devotees across the country. They feel blessed to have the darshan of Lord Balaji on New Year's Day. Tirumala is a world renowned pilgrim place and there are many places to visit in and aroun Tirumala. Trip planner for visiting Tirumala on New Year's day need to be done well in advance as it is not easy to get accommodation and seva darshan tickets. Devotees can make all the booking online from tirumala.org. Trains, Tirupati RS (Railway Station), Choultaries, private hotels, cottages, TTD guest houses and all other accommodations will be heavily crowded with pilgrims on Dec 31 night and Jan 1 morning. Many pilgrims climb Tirumala Hills. Pilgrims with advanced booking of accommodation can proceed to CRO (Central Reception Office). Darshan lines on the night of Dec 31st will be too long with serpentine bends. Pilgrims need to be stri...

The temple of Sri Varaha Narasimha Swamy is located in Simhachalam, very close to Visakhapatnam, one of the fast developing cities in the east coast of Andhra Pradesh. The city is known for its natural beauty and has much tourist potential, virgin beaches and pristine sea waters. The city lies on the main line of Howrah-Madras mail and is easily accessible. The local people are innocent, lovable and hospitable too. The ancient temple of Lord Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy at Simhachalam is one of the important temples of A.P. According to Hindu scriptures, Lord Narasimha Swamy is one of the 10 incarnations (Dasavataram) of Lord Vishnu. Narasimha Swamy has a peculiar beastly form with a lion's face and a human body. He emerged from a pillar when it was broken by the demon King Hiranyakashyipa - father of Prahlad who was a staunch devotee of Lord Vishnu. Simhachalam is one of the famous temples of Lord Narasimha Swamy. This 11th century temple is located on a hill and is at a...

SVS temple, Pittsburgh, PA is shown in many Telugu movies that are shot in the U.S. like Jeans. A road trip to Pittsburgh is quite enjoyable with scenic beauty of Penn Hills all around which is a real feast to the eyes. Road Tunnel Entrance There are good number of road tunnels in this route. Road Tunnel About the temple Sri Venkateswara Temple (S.V.Temple) in Pittsburgh, PA is one of the earliest traditional Hindu temples built in the U.S. It is located on Penn Hills in Pennsylvania state. Temple timings Monday - Thursday, Saturdays and Sundays - 9 a.m to 8.30 p.m (winters - 9 a.m to 7.30 p.m) Fridays - 9 a.m to 9.30 p.m (winters 9 a.m to 8.30 p.m) Almost all religious events / services / poojas are performed in the temple. Indians in the U.S can place online order for any of the daily pooja like aksharabhyasam, abhishekam, archana, annaprasana, car pooja and Satyanarayana Swamy Vratam. The place is quite calm and has ample car parking. S V Temple, Pittsburgh, P...