Sri Venkateswara Temple of North Carolina — Attraction in Cary

The SV Temple in Cary is a beautiful and spiritually uplifting place with many positives. One of the highlights is the small Shiva temple, which houses Lord Shiva, Ayyappa, Subramanian, Ganesha, and the Navagrahas. I appreciate that they accept traditional offerings like coconuts, fruits, and milk, keeping the rituals authentic.

The main temple features Lord Balaji as the primary deity, and the sanctum radiates peace and devotion. I’ve also had priests from this temple perform ceremonies for my family, including a housewarming and car pooja, and they’ve done an excellent job in those contexts.

However, my rating is three stars due to several issues: • Priest behavior: While knowledgeable, some priests can be a bit rude. For example, my younger child accidentally spilled the theertham (holy water), and the priest was visibly upset with me. Kids will be kids, and a little patience would go a long way. I’ve also noticed certain priests showing a bit of greed for money—though I don’t believe this reflects the temple institution as a whole.

• Crowd management: The temple often gets very crowded, and the flow of devotees isn’t handled well.

• People’s behavior: Many visitors can be rude, jump the line, and completely ignore basic civic sense—much like the unruly behavior you might see in crowded places back in India. This really affects the overall temple experience.

• Volunteer support: Volunteers can sometimes be more annoying than helpful, not really addressing visitors’ needs effectively.

• Parking challenges: Parking is often full, and you may need to drive around to find a spot. The ongoing expansion and construction work probably add to the congestion.

Overall, this temple offers a rich and authentic South Indian temple experience with beautiful deities and rituals, but it requires a lot of patience—both for the crowds and the behavior of...

I had been visiting the Sri Venkateshwara Swamy temple in Cary almost every week for past 9+ years. 3 years ago I gave the temple a 5 star rating, today I changed it to a 1 star rating. For the past 1 year my temple visits have become more and more unpleasant for the following reasons: There is no Serene atmosphere any more as groups of people keep singing bhajans and songs with total disregard to other devotees’ privacy and space. I go to temple to pray in quietude. Silence in temple would greatly help. Far too many events and activities are going on in the temple which gives a feeling that you are in a fair (Santa in Telugu and Mela in Hindi). It also had made it hard to find a proper parking spot as most of the additional parking area is located on grass and dirt with a dirt road leading to those areas, devotees use the same road to walk to temple after they park their vehicles. This is causing chaos as vehicles and pedestrians are sharing the same road. Failing management and rude staff. During the temple hours it is unacceptable that Sri Venkateshwara Swamy darshan times are limited. When you are in line for darshan and reach the inner sanctuary in front of the Swamy and about to pray and do namaskar, in a couple of seconds you will hear loud voices continuously saying “ Keep moving”, “Keep moving”. This can test your patience and and test your control over your feeling of anger when some volunteer is yelling for you to move even though you are moving quickly, I go to temple to pray, and not come out from there with an angry mood. All of the above will not prevent me from going to the temple, I will find a time either early or late in the day when it is less chaotic. This temple was built from donations by devotees and every devotee has the right to question the way things are run by the...

I've spent most of my life in New Jersey and have visited many temples there, which have specific dress codes. I understand the importance of these rules, but I was wearing shorts that extend below my knees—similar to pants. I went to this temple on my birthday at my mother's request, having recently moved to North Carolina for college, and I live on my own. I forgot my wallet because my friend dropped me off right after class.

When I arrived, I was told I couldn't enter due to my shorts, despite them being almost like pants. In New Jersey, I've seen temples that allow people of all ages to wear shorts, especially during festivals. I believe that visiting a temple should be about finding peace and connecting with God, not about attire. I was frustrated that I couldn't pray for even five minutes simply because of my clothing. They offered to sell me a dhoti for $5, but without my wallet, I couldn't buy it.

I enjoy visiting temples, but this experience—especially on my birthday—has left me feeling disheartened. I doubt that God cares about what His devotees wear, as even those in torn clothes can come to pray sincerely. While I recognize that rules are in place, many temples I've visited in New Jersey are more accepting, allowing individuals to participate in worship regardless of their attire.

If the management is concerned about the temple's reputation, I urge them to reconsider their approach. Instead of turning away devotees for wearing shorts, perhaps they could provide dhotis for free instead of charging money & making it a business, as not everyone may have the means to purchase them. I've visited temples in India where people can wear a variety of clothing—shorts, track pants, jeans—while still enjoying a peaceful prayer. I don't understand why temples in the U.S. have stricter rules. Please consider...