AHOBILAM

AHOBILAM

Facts to File How far : 363 km from Hyderabad, 262 km. from Tirupati and 74 km from Nandyal (Kurnool dist) How to go : Air: Hyderabad & Tirupati are the nearest airports. Rail: Nandyal town (74 km. on Guntur-Hubli line) and Cuddapah ( 118 km. on Madras-Bombay line) are the convenient railheads. Bus: 34 km. from Allagadda, which is connected by state buses from Hyderabad, Tirupati, Chittoor, Cuddapah, Kurnool, Nellore and Madras. Where to stay : Lakshmi Nilaya Tourist rest house, TTD Choultry and Arya Vysya Choultry at lower Ahobilam. What to see : Prahladavarada Narasimha temple, Alwar Koneru and Nine forms of Lord Narasimha. Ahobilam, which is known as Singavel Kundram, is dedicated to Lord Narasimha, the lion form of Lord Vishnu, which he took to kill the demon Hiranyakashyapa. Of the many places of Narasimha worship, this place is unique, being the only place where all the nine forms of Lord Narasimha are worshipped. Hence it is also called Nava Narasimha Kshetra. The temple is divided into two parts- the lower Ahobilam and the the upper Ahobilam. The lower Ahobilam is the abode of the Prahladavarada Narasimha, the form of Lord Narasimha blessing Prahlada. This temple lies in the center of three Praakaras built in Vijayanagara style. About a furlong from this temple is the Alwar Koneru, a drinking water lake. An ascent up the hill leads to upper Ahobilam, the lord here is Ahobaleswar. A 9 km. hillpath cutting across virgin hills and forests with several waterfalls and exquisite scenic beauty takes one to Ahobaleswar temple, located at the western side of a sacred stream known as Vavinasi (one who checks ego), which joins the river Krishna.