High on my list of places to visit in India were the Ellora caves.  Lynn and I left Hampi and met up with Zeeshan at the airport.  We got up early for our day exploring Ellora. 

We arrived at the caves, a World Heritage site since 1983 with hundreds of caves but only 34 of which are able to be toured. One of the aspects that sets Ellora apart from other similar sites is that there are Jain, Buddhist and Hindu caves located here. This area was a large stop on the Silk Road trade route so there was a lot of money available for such architecture. While built from volcanic rock, which is very strong, the lava was a slow layering so there aren’t dinosaur fossils and other such archaeological artifacts.

The first cave you see upon entering the grounds is massive and impressive.  Officially known as Cave 16, the temple was carved directly in the mountain rock, from top to bottom.  It was first carved into a square block, then they started working on the details, again from the top.  The logistics and planning, not to mention the pressure not to make a mistake, must have been amazing.  This cave was built between 735-773 AD, during the reign of two kings and is a Hindu temple.

Words cannot describe the massiveness of this endeavor. At first you just enjoy the temple and its surroundings.  Then it begins to dawn on your that this beautiful structure was carved from a single rock, connected to a hill.  I don’t think I still fully appreciate the mastery involved.

I am starting with photos looking from the top down, rather than follow my usual pattern of the order of my visit. These two photos are compliments of Lynn.

These views below are from the center of the temple, where you climb to explore inside.

Entering the massive temple (it can hold 200 worshippers) you are first struck by the remnants of painting on the walls and the carved guards at the entrance. While hard to see on the photos below, one guard is looking in, while the other looking out – making sure all angles are protected.

Inside you can start appreciating the details and artistry!

The inner sanctuary, deliberately simple in its design, is the Shiva Linga.  The round bottom represents Parvati the wife and her uterus.  Here milk was poured over the Shiva Linga which blessed it, then it poured through the channel to the bowl located outside the temple for people to drink.

Archeologists have decided not to restore the painting because it would not be the original

At first, I thought the dark ceilings and ruts in the floor were due to wear and tear as well as age.  However, we learned that in the 18th century, people lived in the temple because it was safe (there were a lot of wars in the area).  The black ceilings are from their fires and the worn holes from cooking, a built-in mortar for chilis!  Our guide, who is an archeologist and historian, was mortified by this but I can’t help but understand.

Before this site became a UNESCO supported location, the grass lawn we see from the royal box was a parking lot.  Needless to say the CO2 fumes did a lot of damage in this balcony and other parts of the temple.

In this compound you will actually find five temples, the main one and four small shrines which surround the main temple.  There are five to represent the five elements.  Since dancing is a way to connect with God in Hinduism, the walls are adorned with dancing figures.  While waiting for Lynn to get her perfect photo, I was able to notice the intricate carvings and other details on the outside walls.

Our visit to cave 16 started in the right corner, where you can see the best view of the whole temple from the ground. This temple, 33 m high, sits in the enveloping arms of the surrounding rock wall.  When being built, 200,000 cubic tons of rock was excavated from here.  I wonder what they did with it!

As I sat to admire the view, more and more detail kept popping up, observations and impressions that kept building upon each other throughout this visit.  Our guide said every time he comes here, he notices something new.  I believe him!

Last, and certainly not least, we walked to the back of the temple. It was here I started to understand the immenseness of the structure.

I end our foray into Cave 16 with some fun moments.

Next, we visited the Jain caves, chronologically the newest caves built in the 10-11^th centuries.  Like with the other caves, these were built from the top to bottom, then carved from the front to the back.  Like Buddha, the founder of Jainism got fed up with his materialistic life, achieved enlightenment, and started his religion.  Most of the three caves we visited had images of Manatunga, who wrote many of the Jain prayers.  Also present are images of Lord Mahavira, considered by many to be the founder of Jainism. 

The first cave, Number 32, had an inner courtyard like that in Cave 16.  There was a central temple, with a surrounding gallery.  There was a column of victory of good over evil, but not one of glory (something I feel Jainism doesn’t strive for).  The elephants were here as well, seemingly a symbol for all religions in India.

For me, while not the engineering masterpiece of Cave 16, caves 33 and 34 had a spiritual warmth to them. Nestled into a corner added to the ambiance of worship.  In these caves, you went from hall to hall, so in essence, you visited both caves in one go.

Each of the chapels had the same design, a large open space with a central altar.  The altar has the founder sitting in the lotus potion flanked by disciples.  The wall surrounding this altar reminded me of a Russian Orthodox iconostasis, with a prescribed depiction of key designs, events or disciples.

We explored five chapels. The first two were smallest, one with a lotus on the ceiling.

I call this next chapel the dark room, with its blacker stones and deeper carvings.

The next two chapels were the most elegant.

One had a slab on the floor in the center of the room.  Archaeologists believe precious items might have been stored there.

The other chapel did not have the slab on the floor but had some evidence to indicate that this was used as a home in the 18^th century as well.

Being intrigued by all the columns in these chapels, I decided to dedicate a section of this blog post to my favorite photos.  The Greek influence on columns in India started after the invasion of the Indus valley by Alexander the Great in 325 BC.

I also felt that some of the remnants of the carvings or frescos looked like modern art.

Without a doubt, my most favorite part was seeing the incomplete statue above.  One can see how the artisan started and would work their way down deeper into the rock.  This would have been a full body had it been completed.

The earliest caves in the area are the Buddhist ones, built in the 6^th century.  We only visited one of these caves, with its stunning vaulted ceiling and beautiful acoustics.  Why only visit one?  This is why:

The Buddhist compound, which housed a monastery as well, was chosen due to the abundance of jade in the rocks. I saw quite a bit of jade and some quartz but didn’t see the malachite that can be found here as well.

The hill was dotted with temples, caves and dormitories and I kept looking at the grassy hilltop and wondered what was underneath! I also wondered if the carved simplicity was due to the age of the caves and a lack of technological knowledge, or in keeping with a monastic theme.

That said, the one cave we entered (cave 10) was spectacular.  The cathedral ceiling while simple in design had an artistic elegance and beauty.  I was mesmerized in the temple, a feeling supported by the music playing.

I think it is fitting I leave our visit to the caves with the peaceful music resonating in the stunning acoustics of the temple cave.

As we headed back to the car we passed the expected monkeys, and I had to agree with this fellow.  It is WAY too hot to move.

There were a few other things we did that day, after cooling off in the car’s AC.

We visited a silk sari store where we saw how fabric was created.  The silkworms for these shops are in Bangalore where the weather is more suited to their growth. Since most of the weaving work is done by women in their homes, the looms here are for education purposes.  It takes two people one month to make the material for one sari. I did learn there are two forms of sari fabric: Himroo and Paithani.

Himroo, Persian for ‘close to your soul’, is a complicated method that involves intermeshing various silk threads made from gold, silver and cotton.  This is of Persian origin with most of the designs on this fabric being Persian figurative motifs.   This fabric was originally meant for royal families.

Paithani is another style believed to have started in the Riveda period (1500-1000BC) but thrived in the 18^th century due to patronage from Peshwa Empire.

We shopped (Lynn bought saris which she wears regularly) and Zeeshan did the male ‘sit and wait’ thing.

Here you can see the work in progress.

Hampi is known as the City of Gates.  The city and surrounding area has over 1600 surviving ruins, including various gates, check posts, and other structures used for defense and access.  We passed or went through 7 of them.

A highlight for Zeeshan was visiting the tomb of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb Alamgir.  This is the son of the man who built the Taj Mahal.  The simplicity of his tomb is in direct contract to the extravagance of the Taj and symbolizes the values of this great emperor.  Emperor Aurangzeb Alamgir did not spend any money from the state treasury and lived off of the prayer caps he made and the Korans he copied.  He did a lot of good during his lifetime and is a revered historical figure.

Next are some photos of scenes from our drives around Ellora.

Our day ended at the Mini Taj, the tomb of Aurangzeb’s wife, built by his son between 1651-61. A little more grand than the father’s not as grand as the grandmother’s!

While the simplicity of the tomb was nice with the marble floral motifs surrounding you, the gate house had the most interesting inlay.

The street art under the overpass was stunning, I especially loved the peacock but that close up didn’t come out.