Dwaraka Tirumala Temple West Godavari, Andhra Pradesh,India

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Dwaraka Tirumala Temple

• Destination: West Godavari

Location

Dwaraka Tirumala Temple, also known as Sri Venkateswara Swamivari Devasthanam, is located at the Dwaraka Tirumala village in the West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. It is the holy abode of Lord Venkateswara and a popular pilgrimage centre of India. It is around 40 km from Eluru, its district headquarters. This place is also known as “Chinna Tirupati” by the devotees. Lord Venkateswara is also called as “Kaliyuga Vaikuntha Vasa” by the local pilgrims.

History of the Temple

This place was named after a saint Dwaraka, who found the self manifested idol of Lord Venkateswara after the great penance at Valmikam, an ant hill. The region is garlanded by two great Indian rivers namely Krishna and Godavari. Dwarka Tirumala is a very ancient temple according to the Puranas. It has its origin in Kruta Yuga. According to Brahma Purana, Aja Maharaja (Grandfather of Lord Rama) also worshipped Lord Venkateswara. He crossed the temple of Dwaraka when he was on his way to Swayamvaram of Indumati. He did not stop at the temple that time. The bride Indumati welcomed him but he had to face the fury of the kings who came for Swayamvaram in form of a battle. He apprehended that the battle was plunged on him for ignoring the temple on the way. Hence, he realises his mistake and pleaded for forgiveness to Lord Venkateswara. Suddenly, rest of the kings stopped the battle. Soon after that, he went to the temple and seeked Lord’s blessing.

Construction of the Temple

On entering the sanctum sanctorum, one can feel the divine and soothing atmosphere of the temple. There are two main idols under one Vimana Sikharam. One is the full statue and other one is the half statue of the upper portion of the Lord. The upper portion of the Lord in half statue is a self manifested idol located by sage Dwaraka. The idol is visible till the bosom and lower part is regarded to be submerged in the Earth. The saints thought that prayers are not complete without Lord’s holy feet, therefore Srimad Ramanuja, a social reformer during 11th century installed the full size idol of Lord Venkateswara at the back of the main idol.
There are many shrines dedicated to different forms of God in the temple complex. The temple has been rebuilt and renovated several times over the centuries. The magnificent structures of the temple like Vimana, Gopura, Mantapa and Prakara are attributed to be made by Dharma Appa Rao (1762-1827). The various Silver vahanas and golden ornaments were gifted by a beautiful queen, Rani Chinnamma Rao of Mylavaram, Krishna district (1877-1902). The main Rajgopuram exhibits five storeys and faces the southern direction. The other three ‘gopurams’ are illuminating the other three sides of the temple. The Vimana is in the form of Nagara style. The old Mukhamantapa has been restored and extended. The entire huge complex has been tiled with sandstone. A variety of flower trees and stones enrich the site with their peaceful and exotic appearance.

Best Time to Visit

October to April

Temple Timings

The temple remains open for pilgrims from 4AM to 9PM every day.
Darshanam timings are from 6AM to 1PM, 3PM to 5:30PM and 7PM to 9PM every day.

Official Website

For more details about the temple, visit www.dwarakatirumala.org .

Transportation

By Air

Vijayawada Airport is the nearest one, 80 km away from the temple and has well connected flights with major cities of India.

By Rail

The nearest railway station is at Bhimadole, 15 km away and lies on Vijayawada-Visakhapatnam rail route. But only passenger trains halt here. Major railway junction is at Eluru, which is well connected to major cities of India.

By Road

APSRTC runs regular bus services to Eluru from major cities of the state. After reaching Eluru, you can opt for a bus or hire a taxi to Dwaraka Tirumala.