Must visit Sripuram temple in Vellore

One of the most beautiful ‘man-made’ temples is Golden Mahalaxmi temple in Sripuram,Vellore. I say man-made because unlike some other historic temples, the diety has no history or fable attached.

The drive from Bangalore via krishnagiri is pure pleasure if not for the frequent tolls which sometimes test your patience with the long queue of vehicles waiting. We had to go through 4 tolls.

Bangalore -> Hosur -> Krishnagiri -> take left towards Vaniyambadi -> Vellore

If you go through the Vellore town, the route is very confusing. You can ask the locals for way to Sripuram. After a while you can see the signages. There is another route without touching the Vellore town. But for that you have to watch out for Sripuram signage on the right near Abdullah puram.

This temple warrants a visit purely for its beauty. The temple is situated in a large compound. The free darshan will take minimum 3 hrs since they make you walk through a last queue complex. Special darshan costs Rs 250 per adult. This is faster and you can complete the darshan within an hour. Nothing is allowed inside except the wallet with money.

The first thing that you see after entering the complex is the thoranas and a well maintained garden. The main complex is in the shape of star (Sri chakra). The temple is in the middle of a round pond (reminds of golden temple of Amritsar). The walls of the temple are covered with gold and so is the diety. The whole complex is a beautiful piece of art with intricate designs.

It is said that around 1500 Kilograms of gold was used for this temple. There is a special lighting system which makes the temple glitter at night.

We started at 5.30 am on a Saturday, reached the temple by 8.30 am. Started back by 10 am and reached Bangalore well in time for lunch.

One can also visit the Vellore fort on their way back which is not too huge but will  still take an hour to cover.