Page 108 - Shri Venkateswara Book

from their sins. I will elevate them to Vaikuntha
(the spiritual world) to live eternally with Me.”

Then Srinivasa stepped on the altar of the temple
and manifested the vigraha (deity form) of Sri
Venkateshwara, the Lord who purges one of all sins.
He is also known as Lord Balaji.

The glories of the Tirumala Tirupati

Balaji temple

Many great acaryas (spiritual teachers) such as
Sankaracharya have come to worship Lord Balaji. The
great Vaisnava acarya, Ramanuja, has declared that
according to the Vedic scriptures the seven mountains
called Tirumala Tirupati are Vaikuntha (the spiritual
world) on earth. Ramanuja lived in Sri Rangam, a holy
town where Lord Ranganath (Vishnu) is worshipped.
He spent his time singing devotional songs and the
poetic hymns of the Alvar saints. He was always in
a trance of ecstatic love for Lord Ranganath. Once,
while reading the glories of Tirumala Tirupati Balaji,
he decided to visit the sacred mountains where
the Lord resided. Accompanied by his disciples, he
journeyed there on foot.

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