Tirupati
Tirupati is a major pilgrimage and Cultural City located in the Chittoor district and Fourth Largest Urban Agglomeration of Andhra Pradesh, 56th in India. It is located at the foothills of the Eastern Ghats at a distance of 550 kilometres (340 mi) south ofHyderabad, the capital of the state, 250 kilometres (160 mi) east of Bangalore, and 150 kilometres (93 mi) north of Chennai.
Tirupati is famous for the Venkateswara Swamy temple dedicated to Lord Venkateswara, located about 20 kilometres (12 mi) north west of Tirupati in theTirumala hills at an elevation of 853 metres (2,799 ft). One of the most important pilgrimage centers in the World, the temple draws millions of pilgrims and is the busiest pilgrimage centre in the world.[1] Tirupati City itself has several temples and is famous for its red wooden toys, copper and brass idols. Also, the city is a major economical and educational hub in the southern region of the state.
History
The Tirumala hills are the world's second oldest rock mountains.
There is no clear history on the origin of the temple of Lord Venkateshwara, but it was maintained and upgraded by various kingdoms. These include the Pallava Kingdom around 4th Century AD, Chola Kingdom over a discrete set of periods from 2nd Century BC to 10th century AD and the latest one being Vijayanagara Empire around 17th century CE[citation needed]. Krishna Deva Raya the greatest of Vijayanagara Empire led the temple to great popularity by donating gold and other ornaments for the temple and constructing extended shrines. The place of Chandragiri, presently a village a few kilometers south west of Tirupati, was used as the secondary capital of Vijayanagara emperor[citation needed].
The site was an established center of Vaishnavism around 5th century A.D. during which Tirupati was praised by Alvars (Vaishnava saints); belonging to the Bhakti movement in Dravidian Land, who were known for their poems and literary works on Lord Venkateswara. Tirupati's significance in Southern Vaishnava tradition is next only to Srirangam, and the temple rites were formalized by the Vaishnavite saint Ramanujacharya himself, in the 11th century AD[citation needed].
Tirupati survived the Muslim invasions not only from South India but also from britisher a two times, unlike other temples such as the Meenakshi temple in Madurai and Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam. It is believed that during the invasions the deity of Sriranganatha from Srirangam was brought to Tirupati for safekeeping. To commemorate this event, a hall in Tirupati is still known as the Ranganatha Mandapam.
The Madras legislature passed a special act in 1933 whereby the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) committee was invested with powers of administration and control through a commissioner appointed by the Government of Madras. A Ryot Advisory Council was formed for the management of the estates of the TTD, and was assisted by a Religious Advisory Council with regard to religious matters[citation needed].
The first establishment of the City was near Kotturu, today's K.T. Road area. Later it was shifted near the temple of Govindaraja Swamy with the temple as the center of the city. It is today's railway station area. Now the city is expanded to nearby areas.
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