Sripuram Golden Temple

Golden Temple, Vellore

The Sripuram Golden Temple is a sight to behold, and it is situated in Tirumalaikodi at Southern Vellore, Tamil Nadu. The golden temple sits inside a spiritual park or ‘Spiritual Oasis’, and a star path leads the visitors towards it. The main feature of the temple has to be that it is covered in real gold foil and it is regarded as the biggest and the only temple to do that. The inauguration took place on 24th August 2007, and it was inaugurated by Narayani Amma. The chief deity of the temple is Sri Lakshmi Narayani or Maha Lakshmi, who is the Goddess of wealth in Hinduism. Sashasra Deepam or one thousand eight lamps is a ceremony that is performed in the temple every morning and in the evening. Pilgrims enjoy the beautiful natural park when they visit the temple. The best time to visit the temple is every day as the body decided to keep it open 365 days in a year.

Sripuram Golden Temple – Timings and Entry Fee 

The General Darshan of the temple takes place from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM. The Abhishekam is from 4:00 AM to 8:00 AM and the Aarti Seva is from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM. The temple remains open throughout the year. If someone wants to avail the Divya Darshan Seva, then they will need to pay INR 100. The Seva happens during Sundays and Saturdays. There is no entry fee levied for entering the temple or the park.

History and Architecture of the Sripuram Golden Temple 

The thought of building the temple came to Narayani Amma in a vision, and they decided to construct the temple which took seven years. It was finally inaugurated in 2007. Every part of the temple has been covered with real gold foil which was handmade using real gold bars. The temple is notable for the human-made sculptures, the roof and intricately decorated pillars. The temple sits in a plot of over 100 acres which includes the park as well. The charitable trust that built the temple is called Sri Narayani Peedam.   In all, around 1500 Kg of gold was utilised to cover the insides and the outsides of the temple. While building the temple, the depictions were taken from the sacred Vedas. When someone is entering the temple, they will notice that the path leading to the temple which is shaped like a start. The shape is regarded auspicious just like a Sri Chakra. The main idea behind it was to bring relaxation and truth to the visitors. The length of the path is 1.8 Km. Messages of truth and righteousness are present on the path to the temple, this helps in the transformation of the human being to be a better person. Visitors will find Goddess Mahalaxmi sits inside the Golden temple. There is a huge lush green park that surrounds the temple, and there is also an Eco-pond ‘Sarvatheertham’ which was created by bringing water from all major rivers present in India. There are about 20,000 different species of plants present in this park.

How To Reach Sripuram Golden Temple 

The golden temple is 6km away from the city centre which can be reached via a private taxi, cab or auto. There are frequent buses that ply through the city. To reach Vellore, you can either take a bus from major cities or train. The nearest railway station is Katpadi Junction which is about 20.6km from the temple. You can take a bus from here for a cheaper commute.