Tirumala Venkateswara Temple
13.68318479.348412Koordinaten: 13 ° 40 '59 "N, 79 ° 20' 54" E
Tirumala Tirupati is an important Hindu temple complex in the state of Andhra Pradesh (South India ), which attracts millions of pilgrims every year. It is dedicated to the deity Shri Venkateshvara.
The traditional belief is at the stone statue of Shri Venkateshvara - the main deity of the temple - Whether they are not a man-made statue, but a "self -created - " statue, in which the God had manifested. Every Friday the Abhishekha ceremony ( holy bath ) is performed. The statue is ritually bathed; after the bath the deity is rubbed with oil. Admission must be paid for this ceremony. Part of the daily ritual is the creation of garments ( Alankarasaranam ). The gift of food to the deity is called Naivedya. Only Arachakas (priest) to be present in the sanctuary. The cooked food is then distributed as prasada to the pilgrims. The biggest part of the day is the Darshan reserved, in which pilgrims approach the statue to realize the presence of the deity in itself.
The mythological background of the most celebrated in Tirumala festivals and rituals are recruited from the popular religion, less from the Hindu literature. The bathing, feeding and dressing the deities comes from the world of folk religion. However, the temple offers an equally rich variety of Sanskrit recitations for the interested to classical texts pilgrims.
The temple organization in Tirumala is a good example of the coexistence of religious and business (which is not already seen in India as a contradiction ). The conversation of religious events and their officials is funded by entry fees. Who can pay very little, have to wait longer if the crowd is large; sometimes a few hours. Church tax is not applicable. The pilgrims donate a lot, often small bills and coins. These donations are sorted meticulously in the temple administration. This may observe the temple visitors, since these spaces are glazed. Many pilgrims can shear the hair, which then sold the temple as part of vows. The temple makes this so-called temple hair an annual turnover of 250 million euros, which flow into a foundation. The hairs are used in large part for hair extensions.
For western travelers, there are no restrictions - access to the temples on - as is common in southern India. This may be due to the fact that the temple complex off the usual tourist routes lies.