Ahobilam Narasimha Swamy Temple
Aho veeryam! Aho shouryam! Aho baahu parakrama!
Naarasimham param deivam Aho bhilam! Aho balam!
Meaning: Oh! What a great valour he has! Oh his great gallantry! Oh those great powerful shoulders of the greatest of the Gods Lord Narasimha and what a mighty cave it is! And what a mighty divine strength He has!
According to Legend it is believed that Narasimha manifested himself in a natural rock cave. Ahobilam, in Tamil also known as Singavel Kundram, is dedicated to Lord Narasimha, the lion form of Lord Vishnu, which he took to kill the demon Hiranyakashyapa. Ahobilam is also called as Nava Narasimha Kshetra as all nine forms of lord Narasimha are worshipped.
Ahobilam Temple is divided into two parts- the lower Ahobilam and 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. hill path 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.
Lord Narasimha Swamy took Nine Different forms in this Hill.
Ahobila Narasimhaswamy
Bhargava Narasimhaswamy
Chatra Vata Narasimhaswamy
Jwala Narasimhaswamy
Karaancha Narasimhaswamy
Malola Narasimhaswamy
Pavana Narasimhaswamy
Varaha Narasimhaswamy
Yogananda Narasimhaswamy
Each of these nine forms has a beautiful story woven with strands of myth, fancy legends and epic tales, all these nine temples are around the Nallamala Forest range. A few temples can be reached through trekking. Some temples are inside the cave. Some temples are very difficult to trek to. The Nallamala hills are personified as Adisesha with his Head at Tirumala, Middle at Ahobilam and the Tail at Srisailam.
How to Reach Ahobilam Temple:
Ahobilam is located 74 Kilometers from Nandyal (Kurnool District, Andhra Pradesh), 363 Km from Hyderabad and 262 km. from Tirupati (Chittoor District). Hyderabad, Tirupati and Chennai Airports are convenient to reach this holy place. There are number of buses run by APSRTC to reach this temple from Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Tirupati, Chittoor, Cuddapah, Kurnool, Nellore and Madras. This is located 34km from Allagadda.
Nandyal Town (74km on Guntur-Hubli Line) and Cuddapah (118km on Chennai- Mumbai line) are the convenient Rail Heads.
Ahobilam is the major pilgrimage site in south India and is one of the 108 Vaishnava Divyadesams. Prahladavarada Narasimha temple, Alwar Koneru and Nine forms of Lord Narasimha are the places to visit near this temple. There are number of Guest Houses and Hotels available to stay near this Temple.