![]() The place where the Lord actually abides in the hills is Venkatachala. These hills in course of time came to be known as Tirumala while the town at the foot of the hills is known as Tirupati. Names of the Seven Hills at Tirumala, Tirupati The Tirumala hills that are presided over by Lord Balaji comprise of seven peaks or Shikharas which have the following names. ![]() From the early Pallavas, Cholas and Pandyas to the Vijayanagar Emperors and the East India Company of the British in India, almost all the kings and chieftains that ruled the land patronized this temple of Seven Hills. The image of Lord Balaji at the temple is said to be an Udbhavamurthi (spontaneously manifested) and does not conform to any known Agama traditions. ![]() ![]() To substantiate this story there is a temple for Varahaswamy on the bank of the Pushkarini tank at the left side of the main temple entrance at Tirumala. Lord Vishnu manifested Himself there as Srinivasa or Venkatesa to stay on the earth for the welfare of the mankind. The story goes that Lord Vishnu as Varaha (the boar) decided to make the earth as His abode and Garuda brought down the hill of Vaikuntha to the earth for His residence. THE temple of Sri Venkateswara (Balaji) at Tirumala, Tiupati in Andhra Pradesh is perhaps the most popular of all the Hindu temples in our country. This essay originally appeared in the June, 1999 issue of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams’ illustrated monthly ‘Sapthagiri’ which is revised here.
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