SIMHACHALAM TEMPLE
AT
VISAKHAPATNAM
Simhachalam Temple, dedicated to the Lord Narasimha, an incarnation of
Lord Vishnu is located in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. The ancient temple was
built on top of the hill known as Simhachalam or Simhadri. This temple of Lord
Vishnu is one of the eighteen “Narasimha Kshetra” in India.
The Main deity is Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy. The Idol of Sri Narasimha
Swamy is in the tribhangi posture, with hands and the head of a lion on a human
torso. The Idol is usually covered with sandalwood paste for the whole year.
During the annual ritual of “nijaroopa darshan”, the deity can be seen in his
holy appearance in true form. This nijaroopa darshan seva lasts for 12 hours
and the deity is covered again with sandalwood paste on the day of Akshaya
Tritiya.
The Simhachalam temple is unique in that it faces west. According to
religious beliefs an east-facing entrance of a temple brings prosperity, while
a west-facing entrance brings victory.
The temple is situated among the hills in the midst of cashew trees, shrubs,
and mango groves. Many pilgrims take up giri pradhikshana (circumambulation) of
the hill during auspicious days. The temple’s location in pleasant surroundings
is an additional attraction here. The deity here is popularly called as
Simhadri Appanna.
According to a common belief this temple was built at the place where
the Lord Vishnu appeared in his Narasimha avtar to save his devotee Prahlad.
Narasimha avatara is a lion-man incarnation of Lord Vishnu.
As per the legend, Lord Vishnu’s two gatekeepers at Vaikuntha,“Jaya” and
“Vijaya” were cursed by three devotees of Lord Vishnu as they were not allowed
to take darshan. Hence, the two gatekeepers Jaya and Vijaya reincarnated three
times as antagonists of Lord Vishnu as they were cursed by the devotees. In one
of the three Incarnations, Jaya and Vijaya took birth as Hiranyaksha and
Hiranya Kasyapa.
In this incarnation, Hiranya Kasyapa was Prahlad’s father. Hiranya
Kasyapa used to punish Prahlad for worshipping Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu took
the incarnation as Narasimha, a combination of man and lion and rescued Prahlad
from Hiranya Kasyapa at this place. The place where the Lord Vishnu put his leg
on the earth to save Prahlada is known as Simhachalam.
The most popular festivals celebrated are Nijaroopa Darshanam and
Chandanotsavam. Chandana yatra’ or ‘Chandanotsavam’ is celebrated when the
deity is covered again with sandalwood paste after nijaroopa darshan which is
conducted during Akshay Tritya. Millions of devotees visit the temple during
this festivals. Laadoos are distributed as prasadam to the devotees along with
free food known as annadanam.
By Air
Vishakhapatnam airport is the nearest aiprort, which is situated at 10
km.
By Train
The nearest railway station is Visakhapatnam which is located at 7 km.
By Bus
Simhachalam is 20 km away from Visakhapattanam Town. The temple can be
reached from Visakhapatnam by buses or taxis.
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