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Origin of the name

Lord Narasimha rock statue backyard Simhachalam temple

Simha : Lion; Adri or Achala : Hill (one which cannot be moved, viz. hill).On the top of the hill is the famous temple which is said to be the abode of Varaha Narasimha Swami,and hence the hill is called (nara) Simhachalam.

Significance [

It is one of the eighteen "Narasimha Kshetras" the shrines of Lord Narasimha in India. The maindeity inside the temple sanctum gives "nijaroopa darshan" (holy appearance in true form) for onlytwelve hours in a year. On Akshaya Tritiya day, the rest of the time, the deity is coveredwith Sandalwood paste. The darshan described as 'Chandana yatra' or 'Chandanotsavam' falls everyyear in Vaisakha maasam (May).

Legend

Hiranyakasipu was a Rakshasa king. He was one of Vishnu's Dwarapalakas or gatekeepers inVaikuntha(heaven), Jaya, and Vijaya. They were cursed by Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanathana andSanathkumara, because the gatekeepers did not allow them to take darshan of Mahavishnu. As aresult, the gatekeepers were reincarnated three times. The other palaka was born as his brotherHiranyaaksha.

Hiranyakasipu decided to perform austerities (tapasya) to appease Lord Brahma which would allowhim to become immortal. However, Lord Brahma said that it was not possible. Hiranyakasipu askedLord Brahma to grant him a boon that he could be killed: neither by animal nor by man, neither in themorning nor in the night, neither by astra (throwable weapon) nor by shastra (handy weapon), neither

in sky nor on the earth. Hiranyakasipu wanted the entire world to worship him. However, his son,Prahlada, was a disciple of Lord Narayana and always expressed his devotion (bhakti) towards Him.Despite warning him several times, Hiranyakasipu could not alter Prahlada's devotion.

Hiranyakasipu became infuriated and engaged in numerous attempts to have Prahlada killed,including the act of throwing him off a mountaintop. Vishnu, however, rescued Prahlada by movingthe mountain and creating a small path. It is said that the Simhachalam temple was built in the exactplace where the Lord stood to protect Prahlada. Most significantly, God's feet are not shownanywhere at the temple, as it is said that the feet are buried inside the earth. Lord Narayana came torescue Prahlada on Garuda. When Lord Narayana jumped to save Prahlada from Garuda, his feetsunk deep into the earth.

History [

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Lord Varaha stonecarved statue at Simhachalam temple

It has Sri Varahalakshmi Narasimha Swamy as the presiding deity. The deity at Simhachalam, thelion-man incarnation of Lord Mahavishnu is usually covered with sandalwood paste whole year andcan be seen without sandlewood for only 12 hours . [1] The original shape of the deity inthe tribhanga posture has two hands with the head of a lion on a human torso. An inscription dated as

far back as 1098 AD of the Chola King Kuloththunga provides some clue as to its antiquity. Anotherinscription shows a queen of the Eastern Ganga of Kalinga (ancient Odisha ) (1137-56 AD) coveringthe image with gold while a third inscription says the eastern Ganga King of Odisha, Narasimha Deva,built the main/central shrine in 1267 A.D. With more than 252 inscriptionsin Oriya and Telugu describing the antecedents of the temple, it is an important historical monument.

Sri Krishna Deva Raya after defeating the Gajapati ruler of Odisha Gajapati Prataparudra Dev visitedthe shrine twice in 1516 AD and 1519 AD and offered numerous villages for maintenance of bhogam(worship) along with valuable jewelry of which an emerald necklace is still in the temple. For the lastthree centuries the royal family of Vizianagaram , "The Pusapati Gajapathi's" have been the temple'strustees. Giripradhikshana (circumambulation), which is situated around the hill ranges (~40 km) from

Hanumantha vaka/MVP colony to Simhachalam, is done by pilgrims during the auspicious days.Crowds of elderly people/youth/children are observed walking the 40 km stretch overnight. They visitthe temple after the long journey and give their offerings to the deity.

It is said that during an invasion, when the Muslims were about to destroy and plunder the temple, apoet, Kurmanatha, implored Lord Varaha Narasimha to save his temple and the Hindus. In responseto his fervent prayers, a huge swarm of copper hornets suddenly appeared and attacked the invadingarmy, driving them out of the city. The swarm disappeared behind a hillock after driving out theMuslim armies. That hillock is now known as Tummedala Metta (Tummedala=of hornet,Metta=hillock).

The sacred Pushkarini bathing tank

The Simhachalam temple faces west, unlike so many others which face east. An east-facing

entrance, according to religious belief, brings prosperity, while a west-facing one brings victory.

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The hilltop road and the location of the eastern ghat ranges are beautiful and picturesque. The hillsare densely populated with trees like cashew, shrubs and mango groves. The forestry is protectedand well-conserved. The greenery attracts tourists and nature lovers.

There is also the Simhachalam railway station at Gopalapatnam, which is also a stop for some

express trains.The neighbourhoods near the pilgrimage include Srinivasanagar, Prahladapuram, Sainagar colony,Simhapuri colony, Simhapuri Layout and many other housing areas.