In
Hinduism, Venkateshwara (also spelled as Venkateswara, Venkateshwer
or Venkatachalapathi) is a much-worshipped form of Vishnu. He is
also known as Balaji or Lord Venkateswara. He is also worshiped
with the name Tirupati Thimmappa all over Karnataka by traditionally
Shiva worshipping communities.
Vishnu, in the form of Venkateshwara,
is much worshipped at Tirupati temple. Venkateshwara is the presiding
deity at the Tirumala temple complex, believed to be the richest
of all the Hindu shrines in the world. The temple is situated in
southern Andhra Pradesh in Chittoor district. It is around 120 km
away from Chennai. The presence of seven hills influenced alternate
names for the diety: Edu kondala vadu in Telugu and as Elumalaiyan
in Tamil both of which mean Lord of the Seven Hills.
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