Tirumala Tirupati venkateswara swamy darshan
I am reposting an old post of mine as a tribute to Lord Venkateswara in the year 2019 and with a view to be of some assistance to his devotees.
This was my third visit to Tirupati. The first was after my marriage where we hardly had any time to know what was happening around us. The second was for the mundan ceremony of my first child and that too passed away with little time to understand the setting. This third visit of mine for the mundan ceremony of my second child was far more enlightening. To begin with, I was amazed by the scale and grandeur of the entrance to the abode.
It was one of the grandest entrances that I have seen and was truly spectacular. As we progressed on our journey to Tirumala, I was struck by the roads which were so neat and tidy and, to top it all, there were no potholes at all. The concerned department must be working very hard to ensure this.
I also for the first time in my life saw the sign “No Open Urination – Fine Rs. 25”. It was mind boggling to see such a sign in our country where this practice is so prevalent. At least the major cities could take a cue from this.
On reaching our destination I was fascinated by the use of technology to root out corruption. At the local TTD counter in our city I booked a room online. The clerk took my photo using a webcam and my fingerprint using a scanner. When I reached Tirumala, my details were already in the system and after verification my room was allotted.
Such a wonderful system obviously leaves very little scope for middlemen, agents or touts in room allotment. Though not everything can be perfect, the effort was clearly visible.
Then there was the mundan ceremony where the waiting time in the free Kalyanakatta was upwards of six hours. The temple administration had opened a few more Kalyanakattas which charged a nominal fee of Rs. 10. We managed the ceremony in about half an hour.
Thereafter we went for darshan. It was heartening to see that the administration had commenced a separate darshan for children below one year of age along with their parents called Supadham Darshan. Incidentally, Supadham Darshan is also available for Defence personnel, TTD employees, newlyweds and NRIs.
Inside the queue there was a fair amount of pushing and pulling, but once we entered the temple the rush became overwhelming. The day I went I realised how stampedes take place during religious processions. People who had waited for seven to ten hours could not wait another few minutes for peaceful darshan.
The sight of the Lord was divine and I was mesmerised for the few seconds that I could stand before Him.
Thereafter I was gently moved aside by a temple usher and I came out looking for the Hundi. Outside I saw the huge signs reading “Srivari Hundi” and offered my prayers there. After collecting the prasadam and laddus, I was impressed by another thoughtful arrangement.
Every laddu counter displayed the official weight of the laddu and digital weighing machines had been installed outside each counter so that devotees could verify the weight if required. This again reflected an efficient use of technology and transparency.
The collection of the laddus technically marked the completion of our sojourn and we returned to our room after dinner. Meals are not available in many of the guest houses and one often has to rely on nearby restaurants which are usually crowded though reasonably priced.
The temple also serves free meals to thousands of devotees every day through Annadanam. I also noticed refreshments being distributed free of cost to devotees standing in the queue.
All in all, I returned from this trip as a happy man. Whatever little misconceptions I had about malpractices in Tirupati management were reasonably dispelled by what I observed during this visit. I certainly look forward to my next trip.
