Munna Bhai: A PILGRIMAGE--------------

Last month I had been in a pilgrimage to Lord Venkateshwara temple at Tirumala. This was my second visit to that famous temple after a gap of 24 years. It is a considerable time gap indeed, particularly when I had spent good amount of time in South India. Ok, it was all God’s will. You may call it a “lay back” attitude of a typical Hindu who leaves everything to God’s will though the reality is lack of effort or call it “we shall see later” attitude.

But this pilgrimage for me was memorable one as I made the last part of journey from Tirupati to Tirumala by foot. The foot way is 11 Kilometers in distance. It takes roughly between 3 to 4 hours to reach Tirumala by this way. To start the journey, pilgrims have to get to Alipiri toll gate in Tirupati, where the steps to the Tirumala begin. Alipiri is a suburb at the foot of the hills and the starting location of an 11 k.m. hill climbing route. Alipiri route is the most common route and used by pilgrims on most occasions. The first hill consists of 2500 steps and is the most difficult to climb. After the first hill, it is crossing the valleys till we hit the Mokala Parvatam (Kneecap Hill) which consists of another 600 steps. Out of total distance of 11 k.m., a distance of 9 k.m. comprises of approximately 3500 steps.

I covered this distance exactly in three hours, started at early morning 5 AM and reached at 8 AM sharp. Of course, I have to help myself with one glass of lemon and sugar water, two cups of coffee, one bar of chocolate, nearly 150 gram of Pongol (soft rice prepared with dal and ghee) and several glasses of plain water.

For my Non-Indian friends, let me tell something about the temple and the Deity.

LORD VENKATESHWARA.

Sri Varaha purana (Hindu scripture) describes the incarnation and significance of the Hindu Deity Sri Venkateshwara Swami, also known as Balaji. Lord Vishnu, the second God of the Hindu Trinity (Brahma, Vishnu, Maheshwar), is said to have reincarnated as Venkateshwara Balaji at the request of the sage Narada. Bhoodevi and Shridevi are the two consorts of Balaji. Bhoodevi represents Mother Earth and Shridevi is the Goddess of beauty. The different attributes of the majestic and superbly executed idol of Lord Balaji symbolize the nature and manifestations of the Lord of the World. The ornamentation features and expressions of the Idol carry immense significance and are regarded as objects fit for meditation.The Lord's image has four arms, signifying the four stages that may be found in every form of development of life. It also represents dominion over four directions of space and thus the omnipotence of the Lord. The upper right arm holds Sudarsana Chakra (discus) and right arm holds Pancha-Janya (Conch). The lower right hand is in Varada hasta (boon giving) pose and lower left hand is in Katyavalambita pose, turned inwards.

IMAGE OF LORD VENKATESHWARA.

The temple is located atop Seshachala Hills often called as “YAEDU KENDALU” (Seven Hills). It is in the town of TIRUPATI, in Southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the richest Hindu temple and most visited religious centre in the world followed by VATICAN.