Andhra Pradesh Important Piligrims

Andhra Pradesh is a Southern state in India with rich culture and heritage and ancient history. There are good number of important pilgrim places in the state of Andhra Pradesh which unique in their own way and some of these piligrim places have become world famous. Here is a detailed list of important pilgrim places of Andhra Pradesh. Tirumala - the abode of Lord Venkateswara Tirumala is a world famous pilgrim place which is the abode of Lord Venkateswara popularly known as Balaji. Tirumala is a hill station with rich flora and fauna. This small temple town is located on the 7th hill named Venkataadri which is in a continuous row of seven hills in the Eastern Ghats of India and is in the Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh. This small temple hill station is heavily crowded round the year with thousands of pilgrims visiting the temple. If you are planning a trip to Tirumala to have the darshan of Lord Venkateswara, then you must follow the important travel tips to Tirumala to make your trip a comfortable one. To reach Tirumala Hills, you need to get down at Tirupati which is very well connected with all the important places of India by railways and airways. However you need to follow the important travel tips while travelling in the trains in Indian Railways so as to make your journey a comfortable one. The place is also well connected through roadways to most of the important places within the state and the bordering states as well. Being a world famous pilgrim place, it is easily reachable and there is no dearth for accommodation as well. You will find a good number of guest houses, cottages and choultries run by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD). There are even many private hotels with luxury as well as economy rooms. But the only problem is you have to book the accommodation well in advance at least 45 -60 days in advance due to the heavy pour in of pilgrims round the year, so that you can have a comfortable trip. In Tirupati, you can even visit the important temple of Padmavati Ammavaru at Tiruchanur. Goddess Padmavati is believed to be the wife of Lord Venkateswara and hence the pilgrimage to Tirupati would be considered complete after visiting the Padmavati temple at Tiruchanur. Srisailam Mallikarjuna Temple Srisailam is a small and ancient temple town in the Kurnool District of Andhra Pradesh. The place is famous for Lord Mallikarjuna's Temple which is one of the most important Shiva Temples of Andhra Pradesh. This place is located on a flat top in the Nallamala Range of mountains and is on the banks of River Krishna which made the place rich in natural beauty with hills, valleys, slopes and the river taking serpentine turns through the valleys. Besides the picturesque beauty, the temple is very sacred for the Hindus as this is one of the Dwadasa Jyotirlingas (Twelve Jyotirlingas) in India and is also one of the Ashtadasa Maha Shakti Peethams (Eighteen Maha Sakti Peethams) of the country. As this rare combination of Jyotirlingam and Maha Sakti Peetham which is one of its kind, Srisailam is considered holy pilgrim place for the Hindus particularly to the devotees of Lord Shiva. As the place is located on the flat top of Nallamala Hills, it is not easily accessible. Mahasiva Ratri is the most important festival of this place and Brahmotsavalu are celebrated on this auspicious day which is witnessed by thousands and thousands of devotees. To reach: Through airways: Hyderabad airport is the nearest one which is at a distance of 230 Km and from here you can take Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) buses that ply to Srisailam with good frequency. Or you can even book a private cab from Hyderabad to Srisailam. Rail route: The nearest railway station is Markapur which is 91 Km from Srisailam and it is in the Guntur-Hubli line on the South Central Railway. From here you can either take APSRTC buses to Srisailam or book a private cab. Via road: Srisailam is well connected to the important places of the state and there are good number of APSRTC buses that ply to this place. There are even buses of the State Road Transport Corporation from Karnataka and Tamilnadu as well. Sri Veera Venkata Satyanarayana Swamy Temple at Annavaram Annavaram is one of the holy shrines of India and is located in the East Godavari District of Andhra Pradesh. The temple of Sri Veera Venkata Satyanarayana Swamy is located on a small hill named Ratnagiri and is situated at a distance of 2 Km from the Annavaram Railway Station. The station is on the main line of the Howrah-Madras line almost all the trains halt at this station and hence is easily accessible. The place is lying close to the National Highway No.5 between Kathipudi and Tuni. Annavaram is at a distance of 80 Km from Rajamundry and 120 Km from Visakhapatnam. There are good number of APSRTC buses running from almost every corner of the state to Annavaram and these buses ply very frequently. And the nearest airport is Rajamundry. There is good accommodation facility with AC and non-AC rooms by the Annavaram Devasthanams and also there are private hotels which provide budget rooms with reasonably good facilities. In this temple Lord Vishnu is worshiped in the form of Sri Satyanarayana Swamy and hence almost all the important Hindu festivals are celebrated here. Mostly people across the state come to this place to perform marriages it is considered sacred and also to perform the special pooja to the Lord which is known as Satyanarayana Swamy Vratam - the special way of worshiping the Lord. Bhadrachalam Sri Raama Temple Sri Seeta Ramachandra Swamy Temple is one of the most important temples in Andhra Pradesh. The temple town Bhadrachalam is located on the banks of River Godavari which is in the Dandakaranya region of the Khammam District. The temple which was constructed in the 17th century has a rich historical background. The temple constructed was initiated by the then Tahsildar Kancharla Gopanna popularly known as Bhakta Ramadas - an ardent devotee of Lord Rama. The place is well connected with railways and roadways to all the important places of the state and is easily reachable. Sri Rama Navami is the most important festival of the temple when Sri Seeta Raama Kalyanam - the annual marriage function of the divine couple is celebrated with much fervor. The Chief Minister of the state offers costly dresses to the divine couple on behalf of the state government and this function which is aired live on all important TV channels is witnessed by almost the people of the entire state. Paapikondalu is the most important attraction of the place where you can enjoy a thrilling ride on a launch in the mighty River Godavari which takes turns and narrows down between the mountains caled paapikondalu. This is a real feast for the eyes to the Nature lovers. Simhachalam Temple near Visakhapatnam Sri Varaha Narasimha Swamy Temple at Simhachalam is located on a small hill which is around 800 m high above the sea level in Simhachalam near Visakhapatnam. The presiding deity of the temple is Lord Narasimha Swamy - one of the 10 incarnations (Dasavatarams) of Lord Vishnu. Simhachalam temple is very ancient that dates back to the 11th century A.D. Being closely located to Visakhapatnam, the temple is easily reachable through public and private buses as well. If you want to take APSRTC bus from Dwaraka (RTC) Bus Complex, you can take Bus Nos. 6A, 28 and 40 which start from RTC complex and directly take you to Simhachalam. Com One can also book a private cab which can be hired a reasonable price. The temple opens at 7 a.m in the morning and closes at 4 p.m in the evening. Again it opens at 6 p.m in the evening and remains open till 9 p.m in the night. Besides the celebrations of the important festivals in the temple, Chandanotsavam is the most important festival of this temple which is one of its kind and this festival is celebrated on the Akshaya Tritiya day or the gold rush day. On the usual days, the main deity of the temple is fully covered with coats of sandalwood paste and hence it appears much like a Chandan Shivalingam. Every year onChandanotsavam day in the early hours all the sandalwood coats are removed and on this special day, devotees are allowed to have a darshan of the main deity. The temple is heavily crowded on this day with long lines and is kept open till late night. Once again the main deity is embedded in coats of sandalwood paste and is not visible to the devotees. Kaanipakam Temple near Tirupati Sri Vara Siddhi Vinaayaka Swamy temple which is located in a small temple town of Kaanipakam is popularly known as Kaanipaakam temple. This small town is located in the Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh and as it is near Tirupati, the temple is easily reachable via road from Tirupati. There are good number of APSRTC buses frequently from Tirupati and other important places of the state. You can even book a cab to and fro from Tirupati while your stay at Tirumala Tirupati. The temple opens daily from 4.00 a.m in the morning and closes at 9.30 p.m in the night and many special poojas are performed through out the day. The stone idol of Lord Ganesha remains in a pool of water in a well. It is believed that the stone idol was small when it was found and it has increasing in size over a period of time. It is also believed by the devotees that this stone idol of Lord Vinayaka keep increasing in size. The temple was built in the early 11th century A.D by the Chola King.Ganesh Chaturthi - the Hindu festival dedicated to Lord Ganesha is celebrated with mcuh grandeur in this temple when it is crowded with devotees from the neighboring places. It is a belief for the Hindus that Lord Ganesha removes all the obstacles / difficulties from one's life and bestows the devotees with wisdom. Sri Kanaka Durga Temple in Vijayawada Sri Kanaka Durga Temple in Vijayawada is located on a small hill named Indrakeeladri. This temple of Goddess Durga Devi is one of the most famous and sacred temples in the state of Andhra Pradesh and India as well. The temple faces River Krishna and gives a beautiful view of the Prakasam Barriage from atop the hill. As it is one of the most important temples of Goddess Durga Devi, it is crowded round the year. Besides the important festivals being celebrated in the temple, Dussehra - the most important Hindu festival is specially celebrated in this temple. Brahmotsavaalu are celebrated during these nine days and each day the Goddess is decorated in a special form which adds to the beauty of the otherwise beautifully smiling face of the Goddess. Besides Dussehra, the month of Maargasira is also very special and auspicious in this temple when it is heavily crowded with devotees from every corner of the state. During this month which mostly falls in the month of December, devotees of the Goddess undertake a hard penance called Bhavani Deeksha and thus they religiously are under self-imposition for a period of 40 days to lead a disciplined life. All such devotees who are under self-imposition must make a visit to the temple and are relieved from theirDeeskha after the darshan of Durga Devi on the 41st day. This is known as Deeskha Viramana. The temple is heavily crowded during this period with the Bhavaanis and Indian Railways run special trains to deal with heavy rush of passengers to Vijayawada from all corners of the state. Vijayawada is one of the four major cities of Andhra Pradesh and it lies in the main Howrah-Madras line. Besides it is also one of the most important and biggest junctions in Indian Railways. Hence, the place is highly accessible and easily reachable. And also there is no dearth for accommodation in this city which is ever buzzling with activity. Sri Kanaka Durga temple opens for the devotees at 4.00 a.m on wards and closes at 9.00 p.m in the night. The idol of Sri Kanaka Durga has a special attraction with a beautiful smile on Her face which is ever pleasing. This makes the devotees more attracted towards the Goddess to seek her pleasant look and blessings. Basara Saraswati Temple Sri Gyana Saraswati Tempe which is one of the very few in the country is located in a small town called Basara in the Adilabad district of Andhra Pradesh bordering the state of Maharashtra. Sri Gyana Saraswati Temple at Basara is located on the banks of River Godavari. As per legends, it is believed that Sage Veda Vyasa visited this place when Goddess Saraswati appeared in front of this great sage on dedicated worship. And from then onwards, this small town is called by the name Basar. People not only from within the state but from the bordering state of Maharashtra visit the temple on special / important days mainly to perform Aksharabhyasam or the first writing of their children and thus seek the blessings of Goddess Saraswati. Most of the important Hindu festivals are celebrated in this temple particularly festivals like Guru Poornima - the festival dedicated to Sage Veda Vyasa is specially celebrated as this day is considered as the birthday of Sage Veda Vyasa. In addition to these important festivals, the celebrations of Basant Panchami or Saraswati Pooja are very important and is the most important festival of the temple. On this special day the temple is much crowded with devotees from within the state and the neighboring state as well to perform the first writings of their children. Though the place is remotely located yet it is easily reachable as it is situated at a distance of about 220 Km from Hyderabad. It is connected with rail route and bus route as well. Arasavalli Suryanarayana Temple Sri Suryanarayana Swamy Temple though located in a small town called Arasavalli in the Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh, yet it is one of the few temples in the country that is dedicated to Sun God. This is a very ancient temple which is mentioned in Padmapuranam - one of the ancient works. To visit the temple, you need to get down at Srikakulam from where you can take any private vehicle or bus to reach Arasavalli which is 1 Km away from Srikakulam. Visakhaptnam airport is the nearest airport to this place where from you can take APSRTC buses which ply frequently to Srikakulam. Almost all the Hindu festivals are celebrated in this temple. The four Sundays in the Hindu month of Maagha has special significance and on these Sundays, the temple is crowded with devotees. Besides all the celebrations of all these festivals Ratha Saptami - the important Hindu festival dedicated to Sun God is specially celebrated in this temple. As the place borders the state of Odisha, you can find the Kalingan style of temple architecture here. Besides these most important Hindu temples in Andhra Pradesh which are world famous, there are many other temples most of which these have gained important at the local level. However visiting these temples gives a real feeling of divine touch and also a visit to these temples helps in getting positive vibes. In addition to these important Hindu temples, there are almost 150 important Buddhist pilgrim sites in Andhra Pradesh.