!Simhachalam Simhachalam, literally the hill of lion, also known as Simhadri, is in the Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh in India. It is a suburb in the outskirts of Visakhapatnam city. It is located at about 16 kilometres away from Visakhapatnam on the Simhachalam range of hills. It is famous for the Varaha Narasimha temple. The temple is Located on a hill 244 meters above the sea level, and is one of the most popular places of Hindu pilgrimage in the region. The deity of this temple is the man-lion incarnation of Vishnu. The temple was built by the Eastern Ganga rulers in the 13th century. This temple, in its architectural features, combines Deccan and Orissan styles. It is dedicated to an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. It is considered as one of the eighteen shrines of Lord Narasimha. The main deity housed in the sanctum sanctorum gives holy appearance in its true form just for 12 hours in the year. Rest of the time of the year, the deity is covered with sandalwood paste. The temple has exquisite sculptures. There are beautifully carved Natya mantapa with 16 pillars and the Kalyana mantapa with its 96 pillars. It contains a square shrine surmounted by a high tower, a portico in front with a small tower. The square sixteen pillared mandapam is facing the portico and has an enclosed verandah, all made of dark granite. All these are richly and delicately carved with conventional and floral ornaments and scenes from the Vaishnavite puranas. One of the pillars locally known as the Kappa stambam is believed to possess great curative powers. There is a stone car with stone wheels and prancing stone horses. The way up to the temple runs through the glen covered with pineapple fields besides mango, jack and other fruit trees.