Ellora caves

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The Hindu, Buddhist and Jain caves at Ellora were chiselled between the 4th and the 9th centuries. Ellora, considered amongst the finest examples of rock-cut architecture, dates back to the Rashtrakuta dynasty, about 1,500 years ago. Of the 34 caves, 12 are Buddhist, 17 Hindu and 5 Jain. Maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), The Ellora Caves were declared a World Heritage Site in 1983. Cave 15 is a Hindu monument that resembles some of the Buddhist caves in Ellora. It has a huge court that has been made of solid rock. An inscription in the cave traces the genealogy of the Rashtrakutas, who ruled in the region from 600 AD to the 10th century. The exterior of the two-storey cave boasts intricate carvings and the roof has been crowned by figurines of humans and animals. Visitors can make Cave 30 their final stop at Ellora. Though unfinished, it looks a lot like the renowned Hindu Kailasa Temple. It has been built in the Dravidian style of temple architecture and boasts a tower (shikhara). It houses images of 22 Jain tirthankars (saints) and that of Lord Mahavira seated on a lion throne. A beautiful rock-cut elephant adds to the charm of the cave.

However, recent research reveals that the site developed more organically with artists working on Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain caves simultaneously at certain times. [1] Artists did not work on caves according to their own personal religious affiliation nor did they work as specialists for only one type of cave. Close examinations of architectural elements and their ornamentation—as well as treatments of sculptural form and While the subjects of these panels can be identified quite easily, interestingly, many of the carvings in Cave 29 remain “unfinished” in one way or another. One of the most incredible aspects of rock-cut architecture is the fact that artists could create colossal sculpted programs without worrying about the structural integrity of the cave. Furthermore, the subdued lighting within these spaces surely contributed to perceptions of sculpted form materializing (or self-manifesting) from temple walls. Adding to this visual experience is the fact that most of Ellora’s carved architectural and sculptural elements were once painted (or were intended to be painted) with natural pigments. Recent examinations of these reliefs by art historian Vidya Dehejia and sculptor Peter Rockwell prompt us to consider processes of sculpting as well as premodern conceptions of “completeness.” [3] For example, in the Shiva destroying Andhaka panel, portions of the rock beneath Parvati have been left unfinished. These areas only reveal the marks of the point chisel—a preliminary to...

Religious devotion was not uncommon in ancient times, but tolerance was often much harder to come by. Happily, for curious travelers and religious devotees alike, the caves at Ellora offer a truly exceptional example of both. Covering an area more than 2 kilometers in size, the Ellora Caves are a massive and humbling tribute to faith and medieval-era workmanship in India. In fact, the term “caves” hardly does justice to the 34 Buddhist, Brahmanist and Jainist temples in Ellora, each painstakingly carved out of the mountainside and filled with delicate works of art. Sculpted Buddhas and other religious figures abound, along with intricately carved images in the walls and decorative fixtures on the temples, usually seen in traditionally masoned buildings, but hardly common for something excavated out of solid rock - particularly using the tools and workforce available in the 5th through 10th centuries, when these temples were created. It’s truly hard to believe that the temples are, in fact, vertically excavated out of stone. Many of them put much easier-to-construct buildings to shame with their elaborate design, demonstrating both the strength of religious conviction that went into their creation as well as the highly skilled craftsmen who participated. It is a feat that would be difficult to match even with modern techniques, and of course far less likely to be undertaken due to the cost and time it would take to create it. But the delicate excavation isn’t the only featu...

Formed from a single block of excavated stone, Kailasa temple is considered one of the most impressive cave temples in India. The enormous structure is one of 34 cave temples and monasteries that are collectively known as the Ellora Caves. Located in the western region of Maharashtra, the caves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site and include monuments dating between 600 and 1000 CE. While there are many impressive structures on-site, it's the megalithic Kailasa temple that is perhaps the most well known. Renowned both for its size and impressive ornamentation, it's not entirely clear who had Kailasa temple built. While there are no written records, scholars generally attribute it to Rachtrakuta king Krishna I, who ruled from about 756 to 773 CE. This attribution is based on several epigraphs that connect the temple to “Krishnaraja,” though nothing written directly about the ruler contains information about the temple. While scholars have yet to discover its true origins, a medieval legend paints a romantic picture behind the mammoth temple. According to a story written in Katha-Kalpataru by Krishna Yajnavalki, when a king was severely ill, his queen prayed to the god Shiva that her husband would be cured. In return for his health, the queen vowed to construct a temple in Shiva's name and fast until the The king quickly got better and construction began on the temple, but to the couple's horror, they realized it would take years for the shikhara to emerge. Luckily, a clever en...