Ahobilam


Ahobilam is a village and holy site in the Allagadda mandal of Kurnool district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is surrounded by picturesque hills of the Eastern Ghats with several mountain hills and gorges. It is the centre of worship of Narasimha, the lion-headed avatar of Vishnu, to whom the nine Hindu temples and other shrines all dedicated. The main village and a temple complex are at Lower Ahobilam. Upper Ahobilam, about 8 kilometres to the east, has more temples in a steep gorge.
The temple consists of nine shrines to Narasimha, located around a 5 KM circle. In addition to the nine shrines, there is a temple for Prahaladavarada Varadhan in the foothills of the mountain. Due to security reasons and the difficulty in performing daily worship, many of the utsava vigrahas of the nine shrines are kept in this temple. To visit the entire group still involves some relatively arduous walking.
The main Narashima temples at each site were built or expanded by the kings of Vijayanagara in the 15th and 16th centuries, then sacked by the Mughals in 1578, then restored and expanded at various times, up to the present day. As they stand, they are a mixture of work from all these periods.

History

Ahobilam is traditionally regarded as the place where Vishnu in the form of Narasimha killed the rakshasa Hiranyakashipu in order to save his devotee Prahlada. The legend says that Narasimha emerged from a rock pillar to kill the rakshasha. The moment is represented in a number of murti in the various temples. Also, Garuda prayed for a vision of Narasimha in the form of Avathara, to fulfil his wish, and settled in nine forms across the hills in Ahobilam.

Geography

Ahobilam is located at. It is located in Nallamala Forest, along the Eastern Ghats.