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Introduction
Ajanta and nearby Ellora are two of the most amazing
archaeological sites in India. Although handcrafted caves are
scattered throughout India's western state of Maharashtra, the
complexes at Ajanta and Ellora - roughly 300 kilometres northeast of
Mumbai (Bombay) - are the most elaborate and varied examples known.
The caves aren't natural caves, but man-made temples cut into a
massive granite hillside. They were built by generations of
Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain monks, who lived, worked, and worshipped
in the caves, slowly carving out elaborate statues, pillars, and
meditation rooms.
Although all of the
caves at Ellora are stunning architectural feats, the Hindu Kailasa
Temple is the jewel in the crown. Carved to represent Mt.
Kailasa,
the home of the god Shiva in the Himalayas, it is
the largest monolithic structure in the world, carved top-down
from a single rock.
It contains
the largest cantilevered rock ceiling in the world.
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Mount Kailash.
Within the courtyard is the massive multi-level temple, its
pyramidal form replicating the real Mount Kailasa, the Himalayan
peak said to be the home of the Hindu god Siva. |
The scale at which
the work was undertaken is enormous. It covers twice the area of the
Parthenon in Athens and is 1.5 times high, and it entailed removing
200,000 tonnes of rock. It is believed to have taken 7,000 labourers 150 years to
complete the project.
The
rear wall of its excavated courtyard 276 feet (84 m) 154 feet (47 m)
is 100 ft (33 m) high. The temple proper is 164 feet (50 m)
deep, 109 feet (33 m) wide, and 98 feet (30 m) high.
Kailasa Temple, cave #16 at
Ellora, India
It consists of a
gateway, antechamber, assembly hall, sanctuary and tower. Virtually
every surface is lavishly embellished with symbols and figures from
the puranas (sacred Sanskrit poems). The temple is connected to the
gallery wall by a bridge.
Described as Cave 16, the Kailasa
Temple is considered
the pinnacle of Indian rock-cut architecture
The gigantic, 8th century Kailasa Temple at
Ellora, Cave 16,
was chiselled from solid stone. Click for bigger
image
Kailasa Temple, cave #16 at
Ellora, India
Dramatic sculptures fill the courtyard and the main
temple, which is in the center.
It must have been quite a spectacular sight when it was covered with
white plaster and elaborately painted.
Kailasa Temple, cave #16 at
Ellora, India
©
Courtney Milne
Unlike other caves at Ajanta and Ellora,
Kailasa temple has a huge courtyard
that is open to the sky, surrounded by a wall of galleries several
stories high.
The Kailasa temple is an
illustration of one of those rare occasions when men's minds,
hearts, and hands work in unison towards the consummation of a
supreme ideal.
Ajanta Caves
Ajanta (more properly Ajujnthi), a village in the
erstwhile dominions of the Nizam of Hyderabad in India and now in
Buldhana district in the state of Maharashtra
(N. lat. 20 deg. 32' by E. long. 75 deg. 48') is celebrated for
its cave hermitages and halls.
Located 99-km from Aurangabad, Maharashtra, Ajanta encompasses 29 rock-cut rooms created between 200 BC and
AD 650 using rudimentary hand tools. Most are viharas (living
quarters), while four are chaityas (temples).
The Ajanta caves were discovered in the 19th century by a group of British officers
on a tiger hunt.
Ajanta began as a religious enclave for Buddhist monks and
scholars more than 2,000 years ago. It is believed that, originally,
itinerant monks sought shelter in natural grottos during monsoons
and began decorating them with religious motifs to help pass the
rainy season. They used earlier wooden structures as models for
their work. As the grottos were developed and expanded, they became permanent
monasteries, housing perhaps 200 residents.
The artisans responsible for Ajanta did not just hack holes in
the cliff, though. They carefully excavated, carving stairs,
benches, screens, columns, sculptures, and other furnishings and
decorations as they went, so that these elements remained attached
to the resulting floors, ceilings and walls.
They also painted patterns and pictures, employing pigments
derived from natural, water soluble substances. Their achievements would seem incredible if executed under ideal
circumstances, yet they worked only by the light of oil lamps and
what little sunshine penetrated cave entrances.
The seventh century abandonment of these masterpieces is a
mystery. Perhaps the Buddhists suffered religious persecution. Or
perhaps the isolation of the caves made it difficult for the monks
to collect sufficient alms for survival.
Some sources suggest that remnants of the Ajanta colony relocated
to Ellora, a site closer to an important caravan route. There,
another series of handcrafted caves chronologically begins where the
Ajanta caves end.
Ellora Caves
Near Ellora , village in E central Maharashtra state, India,
extending more than 1.6 km on a hill, are 34 rock and cave
temples (5th–13th century).
Located about 30 Kilometres from Aurangabad, Ellora caves are
known for the genius of their sculptors. It is generally believed
that these caves were constructed by the sculptors who moved on from
Ajanta. This cave complex is multicultural, as the caves here
provide a mix of Buddhist, Hindu and Jain religions. The Buddhist
caves came first, about 200 BC - 600 AD followed by the Hindu 500 -
900 AD and Jain 800 - 1000 AD.
Cave 30: Chota (small) Kailasa Temple, Ellora
Of the 34 caves chiselled into the sloping side of the
low hill at Ellora, 12 (dating from AD 600 to 800) are Buddhist
(one chaitya, the rest viharas), 17 are Hindu (AD 600 to
900), and 5 are Jain (AD 800 to 1100).
As the dates indicate, some caves were fashioned simultaneously - maybe as a form of religious competition. At the time, Buddhism
was declining in India and Hinduism regaining ground, so
representatives of both were eager to impress potential followers.
Although Ellora has more caves than Ajanta, the rooms generally
are smaller and simpler (with exception of Kailasa Temple).
Visiting Ajanta and Ellora
One of India's greatest architectural treasures, the Kailasa temple attracts thousands of tourists annually.
Today, both Ajanta and Ellora are maintained by the Maharashtra
Tourism Development Corporation. The sites are open daily from 9
a.m. until 5:30 p.m., with guides available for hire. Visitors pay a small admission fee to enter the Ajanta site and
extra to attendants for lighting cave details. Entry is free to all
caves at Ellora except the Kailasa Temple.
A good base from which to visit Ajanta and Ellora is Aurangabad,
serviced daily by Indian Airlines and East West Airlines flights
from Mumbai (Bombay). The city has a variety of accommodations,
ranging from a youth hostel to five-star hotels.
At least a three-night stay in Aurangabad is advised, because
Ajanta
(100 kilometres northeast by road) requires a full-day
excursion and Ellora
(30 kilometres northwest) a half-day.
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Cave
Temple of Ellora
by James Burgess
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The book contains cave by cave discussion of
cave temples at Ellora which are reowned worldwide for their
architectural planning and beauty.
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Cover N/A |
The
Ellora monoliths : Rashtrakuta architecture in the Deccan
by K. V. Soundara Rajan
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Unfolding
a Mandala: The Buddhist Cave Temples at Ellora (Suny Series
in Buddhist Studies)
by Geri Hockfield Malandra
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Describes the 12 Buddhist caves at Ellora, India, and places
them in the context of Buddhist art and iconography. The
cave temples, dating from the early 7th to the early 8th
centuries, are interpreted as three-dimensional versions of
traditional mandalas, through which the devotees walked
during their worship. The chapters describe the caves in
chronological order, then interpret them as a peripheral
center of art and devotion. Photographs and diagrams occupy
nearly 200 pages.
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Ellora
(Monumental Legacy)
by M. K. Dhavalikar
This item will be published in November 2002,
however you may order it now.
Hardcover: 160 pages
Publisher: Oxford University Press; ISBN: 0195654587;
(November 2002) |
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Great
Architecture of the World
by John Julius Norwich (Editor), Nikolaus Norwich, Nikolaus
Pevsner
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Looking
at Architecture
G. E. Kidder Smith
New York: Harry N. Abrams, Publishers, 1990.
ISBN 0-8109-3556-2. LC 90-30728. NA200.S57 1990.
Kailasa Temple discussion, p38. photo, p38, 39. |
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Great Architecture of
the World
John Julius Norwich, editor.
London: Mitchell Beazley Publishers, 1975. photo,
p26. An accessible, inspiring and informative
overview of world architecture, with lots of full-color
cutaway drawings, and clear explanations.
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Book Description
A unique and sumptuously produced overview of architecture
through the ages, with extraordinary one-of-a-kind cutaway
drawings. Here is a brilliantly accessible chronicle of the
greatest monuments created by mankind, told by fourteen of
the most distinguished architectural historians and
beautifully illustrated with more than 800 original
diagrams, annotated drawings, and photographs-both a
browser's delight and a superb reference tool.
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Cover N/A |
The
Art and Architecture of India: Buddhist, Hindu, Jain
by Benjamin Rowland
Photo of interior, Ravana shaking Mount Kailasa,
p311.
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The
Sacred Earth
Courtney Milne Kailasa Temple, cave #16 at Ellora,
India
Page 23
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These two stunning collections of photographs should
carry a warning: incurable wanderlust may result from
examining either one. Although different in format ( The
Sacred Earth is in color, while Planet Peru is black and
white) and subject matter (Milne traveled the Earth to
photograph places he feels to be special, whereas Bridges
concentrates solely on aerial photos of Peru), both
author/photographers present a sweeping panoply of
landscapes that, through the ages, have instilled wonder in
the beholder. The authors have a deep sense of appreciation
and responsibility for the natural splendors of the Earth;
both use the word sacred in its broadest sense, meaning the
feeling of transcendence experienced by those fortunate
enough to have shared the same vistas. Bridges's book is a
vertical exploration of Peru, consisting of starkly dramatic
black-and-white photos that capture the eerie, timeless
beauty of such places as Machu Picchu and the dead city of
Pacatnamu. Milne's book is simply splendid. Glorious color,
sensitive prose, and marvelous images fill every page. The
reader cannot help but be moved by the simple grandeur and
majesty of these 140 sacred places, and there is more to
come; this ambitious work is the first volume in a projected
series. Either titles would enhance any general collection;
to have both would be ideal.
Judith F. Bradley, Acad. of the Holy Cross Lib.,
Kensington, Md.
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The temples were built under the late Chandela kings between 950
and 1050 AD in a truly inspired burst of creativity.
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