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| Simhachalam |
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| The word Simhachalam means the hill of the lion. refers to
the 11th century temple of Lord Narasimha - an incarnation of lord Vishnu. It
has been hailed as the most famous and the best sculptured shrine Millions of
devotees from round the world visit this temple every year. It has Sri
Varahalakshmi Narasimha Swamy as the presiding deity. Simhachalam temple is
known as the second richest temple (after Tirupati) for earning a revenue. A
famous pilgrim centre Simhachalam, also known as Simhagiri, devotees coming over
here steadily growing and this is the west facing temple. According to religious
belief, An east-facing entrance brings prosperity while the west - facing one
brings victory. |
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| There is a Trekking route available for trekking lovers from
Madhavadhara side, two hours climbing to temple premises with steep natural
stone steps and a beautiful view of Vizag city and at the other side the temple
view from hill top. The presiding deity in this most revered temple gives
'Nijaroopa Darshan' (holy appearance in true form) for only 12 hours in a year,
on all the remaining 364 days and 12 hours, the Lord is covered with sandalwood
paste. The real shape of the deity can can be viewed only during Chandanayatra
Festival (March-April). |
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| The local people believe that an ancient image of Sivalinga was
converted into Varahanarasimha form (the present idol of the temple) by
Ramanuja, the founder of the Visistadhvaitham of Hinduism. It signifies the
celebration of Kamadahana (burning of the god of Love) festival. The origins of
the temple are shrouded in mystery. |
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| The artwork here has elements of similarity with that of
Konark. Elephants, flowers and plants are portrayed in plenty. This temple
boasts of a beautiful stone chariot drawn by horses. Within the temple the
Kalyana Mandapa has 16 pillars with bas reliefs depicting the incarnations of
Vishnu. Narasimha, the man lion incarnation of Vishnu is seen in several
depictions throughout the temple. |
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| Elephants, flowers and plants are portrayed in plenty and the
artwork here has elements of similarity with that of Konark. The outer walls of
the sanctum depict images of a royal personality (said to be King Narasimha) in
various postures. |
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| Simhachalam is 707 km from Hyderabad. |
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| Simhachalam is 16 km from Visakhapatnam Airport. |
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