A pleasurable road trip took us to this heavenly place.

 

Due to the pandemic, visiting temples even in our own city has become scary, all the more due to the careless crowds at the temples. We miss visiting temples; we miss faraway holidays, by air or train for fear of contracting COVID-19. So we go on short road trips once in a while to secluded beautiful places and are enjoying our lives. The fear is such that we carry our own food on these short trips. If we can’t think of any such beautiful temple or place, we just go for a long ride within our city and return home without stopping anywhere even for a cup of coffee!

One such pleasurable recent road trip was to Sri Kshetragiri Venkateshwara Swamy Devasthanam on 12th September 2021 that is last Sunday. The temple is located on a hill, close to Ghanpur in Medchal District. As you get on the narrow Temple road and the Ghat road you are surrounded by greenery. From the hilltop, you see vast stretches of greenery and a beautiful view of Shamirpet Lake and a continuous strong wind that could blow away children!

Kshetragiri temple is a Swayambhu (self-manifested) temple of Sri Venkateshwara Swamy with a history of 350 years. The idols of the God with his consorts, chakra, conch and other Gods are in the form of carvings in the cave surrounded outside by huge rocks. However, the image of God is now partially hidden by the life-size idol of Sri Venkateshwara Swamy which was consecrated 20 years ago by Chinna Jeeyar Swamy in the newly developed temple. All the daily and festive rituals are first carried out to the Swayambhu idols and then to the new idol of Sri Venkateshwara Swamy. Outside this temple are temples of Sri Anjaneya Swamy, Sri Veerabhadra Swamy and a Goshala.

Sri Shiva Sharma is the Pradhana Archaka of this temple and Sri Gautama Sharma is the Upa Pradhana Archaka, who narrated the Sthala Puranam of the temple to us. You can listen to him in the attached video.

Attached are pictures and a video of this ancient temple and the beautiful places surrounding it which I wish would convey to you the divinity, peace and beauty of this place.

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