Shopping at Natural Nirvana

Tirupati

Pop: 190,000 Area Code: 08574

 Tirupati is 170km northwest of Chennai, in Andhra Pradesh near the Tamil Nadu border, at the bottom of the Tirumala Hill. In Tirupati there is the important Sri Govindaraja Swami Temple, Kothanda Rama Swami Temple and the famous Kapileswara Temple, which is dedicated to Lord Siva. In Tiruchanur, five km from Tirupati, is the Padmavathi Temple, dedicated to the consort of Lord Venkateswara (Balaji).

The temple of Sri Venkateswara or Tirupati Balaji is situated above the actual city of Tirupati in the hilltop town of Tirumala. There is a steep staircase up the hill to Tirumala, used by pilgrims wishing to show their devotion by making the climb; otherwise standard transportation is readily available.

Information
The AP State Tourist Office (4818) is located on Govindaraja Car Street, near the Bhima Deluxe Hotel. There is also the AP Tourism Regional Office (23208), 139 TP Area, near III Choultry. There are tourist counters at the railway station and airport. They conduct a daily tour from 9 am to 4 pm for Rs 150.
The TTD Information Centre (22777) is at 1 New Choultry.
Two helpful books that have good practical information about Tirupati and the local temples are the TKT History of Tirupati, by Viruraghava Charya, and the Tirupati Yatra Guide.
Heavy rains can be expected in Octo­ber and November.
You can change money at the Indian Bank (22199), 214 Gandhi Rd.
The Head Post Office is on Gandhi Rd. Postal Code: 517501.
Foreigners’ Registration Office (20503), Intelligence, 499 Reddy Colony.

Tours
There is a four-hour bus tour of the local temples, available twice daily, at 10 am and 3 pm. It leaves from the Govinda Raja Swamy Choultry, which is located on the opposite side of the tracks from the railway station. This tour includes the Padmavathi Temple and Govindaraja Temple.
There is a Local sightseeing tour departing from the APSRTC Central Bus Stand (10 am to 5 pm) that goes to Sri Kalahasti, Padmavathi Temple, ISKCON (Hare Rama Hare Krishna), Govindaraja Temple, Chandragiri Fort, Kapila-teertham, and Sri Venkateswara Temple.
There are two daily tours to Tirupati (Tirumala) from Chennai, one run by the Tamil Nadu Tourist Development Corporation and the other by ITDC. The tour lasts at least 15 hours, much of it traveling to and from Chennai. The tour allows for a two-hour wait for ‘special darshan’, which on weekends and holidays can take much longer. This means the tour, which is supposed to last from 6 am to 9 pm, may not return until midnight or later. The fare includes breakfast, lunch, and the Rs 30 ‘special darshan’ fee.
APTDC has a weekend tour to Tirupati from Hyderabad. The tour leaves at 4 pm on Friday and returns on Monday at 7 am. The tour includes ‘special darshan’ and accommodation. You can take the bus only one way.

Govindaraja Temple
In this temple there are two main shrines. In the northern shrine is Sri Govindaraja, who is Lord Vishnu lying on Ananta. He is considered to be Lord Venkateswara’s brother. The other main shrine has Deities of Sri Parthasarathi (Krishna as the charioteer of Arjuna), Rukmini and Satyabhama (Krishna’s wives).

Parts of the inner shrine date back to the 9th and 10th centuries. The original temple had Sri Parthasarathi on the main altar. Sri Ramanuja added the Sri Govindaraja Deity around 1130.
To your left, as you enter the first gopuram (gate) of the temple, is a temple dedicated to Lakshmi. She is seated on a lotus in her four-armed form, holding a lotus in each of her upper hands, while her other two hands are in poses of abhaya, fearlessness, and varada, benediction. Situated above the door of this temple there is a carving of Lakshmi holding a lotus in her hand.

Near the first gopuram there is a shrine dedicated to Vedanta Desika. There is also a memorial for three of the Alwar devotees—Tirumallisai Alwar, Namm Alwar, and Kurattalwar—near the Vahana-mandapa, and another nearby shrine is dedicated to Sri Ramanuja. On the left of the second entrance is a Kurma Deity, Lord Vishnu as a tortoise.

This is a big temple. It has a seven-storey gopuram, built in 1628. There are carvings depicting the pastimes of the Ramayana and Lord Krishna’s pastimes on the second gopuram. This temple is located just off the main road, near the Bhima Hotel and the Tirupati railway station. The temple tower is hard to miss, but the rest of the temple is set back from the road.

Sri Venkateswara Museum
There is a good museum right next to the Govindaraja temple. It has many sculptures, Deities of Krishna, and other interesting displays. There is also a photo exhibit of the important 108 Divya Desam Vishnu temples that were immortalized in songs by the Alwar devotees. Open 8 am to 8 pm.

Kothanda Rama Swami Temple
About two km from the Sri Govindaraja temple is the famous Kothanda Rama Swami Temple built in 1481. Sri Chaitanya had darshan of Lord Ramachandra Swami. The main festival of the year is in March-April, for Lord Rama’s appearance day.

ISKCON (Hare Krishna) Temple
The ISKCON temple (08574-20114), Vinayaka Nagar (Driver’s Quarters), is located at the foot of Tirumala Hill, on a piece of land given by the TTD. The Deities here are Radha-Govinda. The temple has a beautiful small garden. The temple is open 4.30 am to 1 pm and 4.30 to 8.30 pm. This temple is included in the daily bus tours of Tirupati.
There is a good guest house next to the temple that has very nice, clean rooms with hot water for Rs 150. It is best to book a room in advance. Prasada is usually available during main meal times. From downtown it costs about Rs 75 by auto-rickshaw to get to the ISKCON temple and back, with an hour waiting time.

Padmavathi Temple
In Tiruchanur, five km from Tirupati, is this large temple dedicated to goddess Padmavathi, the consort of Lord Venkateswara (Balaji). A visit to Tirupati is not considered complete without seeing Sri Padmavathi. Sri Padmavathi is seated in Padmasana, holding a lotus in both of her upper hands. Her lower hands are in poses of abhaya, fearlessness, and varada, benediction. Also in this temple are the Deities of Sri Krishna, Balarama, Sundararaja Swami, and Surya-narayana Swami. It is traditional to first worship Sri Krishna and then to take darshan of Sri Padmavathi.

Non-Hindus are technically not allowed in the temple. To enter you may be asked to sign a paper testifying to being a Hindu. There is a short wait to see the Deity, or for Rs 5 you can enter a special darshan line.

Once a year there is a large festival that celebrates the marriage of Lord Venkateswara to Padmavathi Devi. Padmavathi Devi arrives at Tirumala on the back of a splendid elephant decorated with tilaka of solid gold as Lord Sri Venkateswara comes out to meet her.

The main festival, Brahmotsavam, is in Nov/Dec. The ninth day of this festival is the appearance day of Sri Padmavathi. On this day Lord Sri Venkateswara presents his consort birthday gifts, which are brought from Tirumala on a magnificently decorated elephant, covered with jewels and pearls.

In the Area
At Kapila-teertham, a sacred tank two km from Tirupati, is the Kapileswara Siva Temple where the sage Kapila was granted darshan of Lord Siva and his consort. Bathing in Kapila-teertham is supposed to extinguish all sins. This temple is situated in an attractive surrounding.

At Narayanavanam, 36km from Tirupati on the road to Chennai, is a temple dedicated to Lord Kalyana Venkateswara Swami. It is believed to be the place where the marriage of Lord Venkateswara and the goddess Padmavathi originally took place. After marrying Sri Padmavathi, Sri Venka­teswara stayed here for a while before going to Tirumala.

Chandragiri Fort, 11km southwest of Tirupati, is where the third Vijayanagar capital was located in the 16th century. There is a small museum there, which contains weapons and sculptures. Open daily except Fri 10 am to 5 pm.

Where to Stay—Lower
Gopi Krishna Deluxe, by the railway station, has rooms with attached bath for Rs 90/125.
Vasantha Vihar Lodge (20460), about a minute walk from the railway station, has basic rooms for Rs 80/110.
New Bhimas Home is a decent place with rooms for Rs 200. If the other places in town are full, there is a good chance there will be a room here.
Bhimas Hotel (25744) is a suggested place with rooms for Rs 175/300, deluxe rooms for Rs 400, and A/C rooms for Rs 600.
The two-star Bhimas Deluxe Hotel (25521; fax 25471), 34/38 G Car St, has comfortable, clean rooms for Rs 400/450 and Rs 650/700 with A/C. Both these places are a five-minute walk from the railway station and have vegetarian restaurants.

Where to Stay—Middle
The new Bhima’s Paradise (25747; fax 25568), Renigunta Rd, a little out of town, has a pool and is spotlessly clean. Rooms with bath and TV are Rs 550 and Rs 800/900 with A/C.
Hotel Vishnu Priya (25070), opposite the Central Bus Stand, has rooms with TV for Rs 500/600 and A/C rooms for Rs 900/1000.
The well-managed, three-star Hotel Mayura (25925, fax 25911), 209 T P Area, 1km from the railway station, is one of the best places in town. It has rooms with bath for Rs 550 and Rs 750/850 for an A/C room. They change money. It has a good vegetarian restaurant. They accept major credit cards.
Near by is the Oorvasi International Hotel (20202), Renigunta Rd, which has rooms for about the same price.
Hotel Guest Line (28800; fax 27774), 14-37 Karakambadi Rd, 3½ km from station, is a good place with clean, well-furnished A/C rooms for Rs 950/1200 to Rs 2000 for a suite. It has a pool and health club. It has a 24-hour veg restaurant that serves thalis for Rs 30.
Quality Inn Bliss (25793) is a very clean, good place with rooms for Rs 650/800. Accepts major credit cards. You can reserve a room in Chennai (044-825-9090). It has the A/C Navrattan veg restaurant which serves South and North Indian food (7 am to 11 pm) and the Khazana which has Andhra cuisine, Chinese, Continental and Indian.

Dharamshalas
There is free accommodation at two dharamshalas (unfurnished rooms) connected with the two main temples in Tirupati—Sri Govindaraja temple and Sri Kodanda Rama temple. There are furnished rooms at Sri Venkateswara Dharamshala, SV Guest House, Sri Padmavathi Guest House, and the TTD (Alipiri) Guest House for Rs 30 to Rs 150 a night.

Where to Eat
Lakshmi Narayana Bhavan, across from the bus stand, is a good place
Bhimas Hotel, 42 G Car St, is a good veg place.
Surya Restaurant, in the Hotel Mayura, is a good veg restaurant serving both North and South Indian dishes.
Sri Oorvasi International has a high-class, recommended vegetarian restaurant.
Bharani Restaurant, at the Bhima’s Paradise, Renigunta Rd, has South Indian snacks and North Indian dishes.

Travel
Air The Indian Airlines office (25374; Airport: 75336) is at the Hotel Vishnupriya, opposite the Central bus stand. There are daily flights to Bangalore ($80) and flights to Chennai ($35, Tu, Thu, Sat), and Hyderabad ($75, Tu, Thu, Sat). The airport is 15km from the city center.

Train  There are four express trains daily going between Chennai and Tirupati. Tirupati to Chennai  Saptagiri Exp #6058 (5.30 pm, 3½ hr), Tirupati-Chennai Mail #6054 (10.05 am, 3¼ hr), Shatabdi Exp #2036 (7.45 pm, 2½ hr). Chennai to Tirupati Shatabdi Exp #2035 (5.45 am, 2½ hr), Saptagiri Exp #6057 (6.25 am, 3½ hr), Chennai-Tirupati Mail #6053 (1.50 pm, 3 hr).

As Tirupati is a popular pilgrimage place, there are express trains that go to many locations in India, especially in the South. There is a direct train to Mumbai, the Tirupati-Mumbai Exp #7494 (9.40 pm, 24 hr) on Monday and Friday. On other day to get to Mumbai you first take the Saptagiri Exp to Chennai (wait 45 minutes) and then take the Chennai-Mumbai Exp #6010 (10.20 pm, 30½ hr). The total travel time is 35 hours.

Hyderabad Rayalaseema Express #7430 (7 pm, 16½ hr); Mysore Tirupati-Mysore Exp (10 pm, 12 hr); Tiruchirappalli Tirupati-Tiruchirappalli Exp #6801 (3.40 pm, 12½ hr). The Tirupati-Puri Exp #8480 (2.50 am, Sat) goes to Puri (22½ hr) via Vijayawada (11 hr) and Visa­khapat­nam. The Tirupati-Howrah Exp #7480 goes daily to Calcutta via Visakhapatnam, Khurda Road (for Puri which is another two hour train ride away) and Bhubaneswar. There are two other trains daily to Vijayawada. There is one train a day to Madurai (19 hr), and two trains daily to Chidambaram and Tiruchirappalli. The Tirupati-Madurai Exp #6799 (3.40 pm) goes to Madurai (19 hr) via Tiruchirappalli (14 hr), Thanjavur (12 hr), and Chidambaram (9½ hr). The Cochin-Varanasi Exp #7089 (1.45 pm, Sat) goes to Varanasi (38 hr) via Allahabad (35 hr).

Bus  The APSRTC Central bus station (22333) is about 2km from the railway station, on the same road. Express buses from Tirupati to Chennai depart at 9.45 and 11.15 am, and 12.15, 2.45, 3.10 and 8.30 pm.

There are express buses (bus #802) from the Thiruvalluvar Bus Station in Chennai (4 hr) at 8.15 am, 3.30 pm and 8.30 pm. The express buses can be booked in advance. There are many other local buses, which can take a long time. The train from Chennai is much more comfortable. There are daily tour buses from Chennai that go and return the same day.

You can take direct buses to Hyderabad (14 hr, 10 daily), Tiruchirappalli (9½ hr, 4 daily) via Vellore (2½ hr), Madurai (5 daily), Vijayawada (hourly) and Bangalore. It is better to take a train to Hyderabad.

There are some direct buses to Kanchipuram (3 hr). There are also regular buses that go to a small town by Tirupati (20 min), from where you change to another bus to Kanchipuram.

If you know of a vegetarian restaurant that is not listed here, or if you would like to help update our listings, please e-mail us at: vrupdate@hotmail.com

Vegetarian Fast Food Options

World Vegetarian Restaurants Guide

Amazing Colon Cleaning Program

Our own Vegetarian, Vegan, Alternative & Spiritual Sales Shop

Please Help Support This Site and buy our own USA Vegetarian Restaurants Book

Please check out our Natural Nirvana Store, which we started to help pay for the maintenance of this Website. Natural Nirvana is dedicated to selling vegetarian, spiritual and alternative products. We sell only animal-friendly and cruelty-free clothing, gifts, health foods, books and beauty products.

!! DVD Kurma Great Vegetarian Dsihes Cooking Videos Set for just $49. Individually each video costs $14.95.for a savings of over $100

24 Devotional DVD Set for just $99 Individually each video cost $14.95 for a savings of over $200

Fantastic Natural Herbs from the Amazons
(Best source of natural herbs in the world)

Infomation on Partnering with John Easterling &Amazon Herb formulas
Make a steady Income distruibuting natural herb products

Amazon Herbs Articles

Good News from the Amazon An interview with John Easterling

Interview with Sherrill Sellman

Journey to Porveneer
by Kosa Ely

How the Amazon Rainforest
Can Improve Our Relationships
By “Amazon John” Easterling

Returning to our Roots The Evolution of Environmental Consciousness
by Kosa Ely

CamuC Serum
Nature’s Ultimate Recipe for Glowing, Youthful Looking Skin

VEGAN BAGS
Hemp Bags
Vegetarian & Animal Rights Message Bag
Hemp Backpacks
Indian Quilted & Embroidered Bags
Ecolution Bags
Splaff Bags

CLOTHES
Vegetarian T-Shirts
Animal Rights T-Shirts
Vedic Gods T-Shirts
Hemp Gloves
Vegan Message Hats
Animal Rights Beanies
Hemp Hats
Vegetarian Message Hats
Indian Men Clothing
Indian Women Clothing
Scarves
Indian design Stoles
Indian Sarongs
Sacred Threads Tops
S. T. Dresses
S. T. Pants
Sacred Threads Children Clothing

Bedding & Pillows (beautiful)
Indian Bedspreads
Indian Design Quilts
Indian Design Pillows

FOOD
Raw Foods
Vegan Foods

AYURVEDIC MEDICINES
Ayurvedic Medicines
Neem Products
Ayurvedic Books
Herbal Vedic
NeemAura
AyurvedicSupplements
Ayurvedic Incense
Organic South Neem
Ayurvedic Soaps
Ayurveda Toothpaste
Ayurveda Massage Oil

VEGAN HEALTH
Vegan Vitamins
Vegan Herbal Remedies
Massage Oils
Sport Supplements
Vegan Protein
First Aid Products
Cold Medicines
Olbas
Well-In-Hand
Skin & Blemish
Herbal Salves & Balms

VEGAN BODY CARE
Vegan Soaps
Vegan Shampoos
Vegan Hair Spays
Vegan Toothpaste
Tongue Cleaners
Neti Pots
Vegan Perfumes
Vegan Sun Care
Lip Balm
Contact Len Cleaner
Skin Treatments
Men's Products
Dental Floss
Natural Mouthwashes
Vegan Hair Removal System

INCENSE & OILS
Incenses
Essential Oil
Vegan Candles

VEGAN BELTS & WALLETS
Vegan Wallets
Hemp Belts
Vegan Belts
Hemp Guitar Straps

VEGETARIAN & VEGAN BOOKS
Vegan Books
Vegetarian Books
Vegan Cookbooks
Vegetarian Cookbooks
Restaurant Cookbooks
Raw Food Book

VEG COSMETIC
Eyeshadows & Liners
Nail Polish
Blush
Lip Stick
Mascara
Powders
Nail Polish

VEDIC & SPIRITUAL
Mandala Publishers
OM Jewelry
Krishna Photos
Radha & Krishna Dolls

JEWELRY
Anklets
OM Jewelry
Nose Rings & Studs
Toe Rings
Astrological Gems
Earrings
Pendants
Silver Tulasi Beads
Neckbeads
Necklaces
Silver Jewelry
Gold Jewelry

BUTTONS STICKER
Animal Rights Buttons
Vegan Patch
Jam Bands Stickers
Jam Band Stickers (20 stickers for $5)

SPIRITUAL BOOKS
All Books
Holy Places
Vedic Scriptures
Mandala Publishing
Art Books
Kurma Cook Books
Bhagavat Gita
Caitanya Mahaprabhu
Children
Srimad Bhagvatam
Spiritual Biography
Vedic Coloring Books

SPIRITUAL MUCIC
Bhajans
S. Prabhupada Bhajans
Kirtana
New Age
Musical Instruments
Spiritual Lessons
Audio Vedic Books

VEGETARIAN VIDEO
Vegetarian Cooking
Vegetarian

SPIRTUAL VIDEO
Devotional Movies
Interactive CDs
Vedic Puppet Shows
Vedic Art & Culture
Indian Music Lessons
Bhativedanta Swami Prabhupada

Spiritual Photos & Art
Krishna Posters
Krishna Pictures
Vedic Gods Photos
Vedic Gods Posters

OTHER PRODUCTS
Putumayo World Music
Pet Products
Outdoor Neem
Air Garcia T-shirt

Bob Marley Reggae
Hats
Shirts
Key Chains
License Plates
Scarves
Books