My visit to the Ellora and Ajanta temple caves in India

[Billy]

Namaste everyone. On my last week at the end of April 2018 while traveling around South India I headed north to the city of Aurangabad in Maharashtra state to visit both the spectacular Ellora hand carved cave temples which is situated 30 klm from Aurangabad and the Ajanta cave temples which is 100 klm from Aurangabad.

When I arrived at Ellora first, which is a mix of Hindu, Buddhist and Jain temples, (the Ajanta complex is all Buddhist) I was in awe at what I was looking at. There are 34 hand cut caves temples which have been hand sculpted out of granite to a high standard of explicitly fine details. Dates vary, the oldest are said to be 2200 years old some say much older, 200BC up to the newest around 700AD. Some say 900 AD.

The most spectacular temple is cave number 16. Which is the Hindu Kailash or Kailasa temple. Named after and built to represent Mount Kailash in Tibet, which is said to be the home of Lord Shiva.

This Temple is not a cave but a hand sculpted monument carved out of the hill from the top downwards. It is said to be the largest one piece manmade hand cut monument in the world.

There are different legends concerning this temple. That is was carved using magic, that the Gods assisted in the construction. That they used now forgotten technology. That there is a whole underground complex beneath the temples. And the simplest explanation, that it was carved out of the granite using hammers and chisels.
After visiting some of the incomplete temples there, my personal opinion is that the stone masons at that time were very capable of undertaking such a monumental task. Although there are some mysterious unanswered question about how they managed to construct or drill some of the water drainage holes which vary from 3 inches in diameter to around a foot in diameter and travel deep inside the hillside ?? Another mystery is what happened to the estimated 400.000 tons of granite they cut out of the complex, they looked for it for a 100 miles diameter from the caves and cannot find it.


The hand cut one piece Kailasa Temple in Ellora.


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There are two massive carved pillars on each side of the temple. They also were not built from the bottom up but carved from the top down. The base is part of the bedrock of the hill.



This is an excellent website by a team of various talented professionals that were sent to document the whole Ellora temples. Measurements, great photos ect.
http://elloracaves.org/about.php

The Kailasa temple, Declared the largest monolithic structure carved from one piece of rock.
https://www.thevintagenews.com/2017/...piece-of-rock/

[Foxie Loxie]

Thanks, Billy! The one cut reminded me of the temples of Lalebella in Africa. Look forward to more pictures! So kind of you to share with us!!

[Valerie Villars]

Really stunning. There are so many stunning things to see in this world. I had never heard of that until you posted it. Thank you.

[Billy]

The photos in my OP are all from Temple number 16.
Here are a few more from different Temples at Ellora. When I visit ancient temples or palaces I always look for spaces that have acustic resonance. I found around 5 temples with fantastic acustics. I do my chanting and overtoning, I also took my new singing bowl on my second visit, much to all the Indian visitors delight.

This Buddhist temple had the best acustics. There is a choir loft which was locked. They said that the vaulted roof was built to look like it had wooden beams although structurally it was not necessary. My own thoughts are that they are for improving the sound.

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Outside with choir loft on the upper floor.
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Outside the choir loft with carvings of the angelic realms.


I managed to poke my camera phone through a gap in the closed door to the choir loft for this shot.

[Billy]

Random photos at Ellora.

This demigod is flying with his vehicle contraption strapped to his back. The bird pecks at him while flying.
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I felt like I was looking down a portal with this one.
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This Buddhist temple has 3 stories.

[Foxie Loxie]

Thanks for sharing from a Loving Heart! Totally amazing!

[Yetti]

Amazing! but don't worry I'm sure there will be some dumb A-- saying that the temples where made with primitive stone tools and thousands of saves ////. All this looks that was made with a 3D printer type of laser who evap the stone exess.

[Valerie Villars]

The choir reminded me of a person's ribs. There is definitely some very spiritual supernatural aspects to sound and stone. Very spiritual place.

[CurEus]

Posted by Yetti (here)
Amazing! but don't worry I'm sure there will be some dumb A-- saying that the temples where made with primitive stone tools and thousands of saves ////. All this looks that was made with a 3D printer type of laser who evap the stone exess.

Could they have been moulded? I do tend to thin evaporating seems to resonate a bit more with me. However they were constructed they're truly fantastic.

[CurEus]

If the builders are able to change the consistency of rock to something akin to a muddy or plaster like substance as has been suggested then moulds of forms may be widely used, even if it was not at any of these sites but transported elsewhere. I worked with chocolate and plaster moulds for a few seasons in high school. Once you get the hang of it you can work very very quickly.

Perhaps they employed multiple techniques?

If they used an evaporating technique then there like would not be any material "remaining" and I am uncertain what would happen once it cooled.....may just look like "dirt" or a form of sand in the area.

I suppose they also could have used some form of "sonic device" to "carve" as well. They are both exciting concepts.
But I do recall that some Cathedrals have required hundreds of years of work......so it is no unthinkable to also accept that people were banging away with a hammer and chisel for a few centuries......

[shaberon]

You have been to some of the world's most sacred sites and treated them respectfully. This has generated inconceivable merit. Beings who are not born yet will receive immeasurable boons from this visit.

The artwork is not doodles. If we knew how to read those friezes, it would probably explain every question that could be asked.

[Billy]

Many thanks for the comments everyone.

Posted by shaberon (here)
You have been to some of the world's most sacred sites and treated them respectfully. This has generated inconceivable merit. Beings who are not born yet will receive immeasurable boons from this visit.

The artwork is not doodles. If we knew how to read those friezes, it would probably explain every question that could be asked.

Wow, Thank you for your kind comment Shaberon, or is this a prophecy ? Boons can be dangerous if not used wisely, so I pray that any boons received towards future generations from my actions in the here and now will be used wisely for the betterment of all humanity.
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I am going to continue posting pictures from Ellora before I move further north to the Ajanta temples.
I have loads of my own pictures but I am not a good photographer. So I may use some professional photographers pictures also to allow you all to see the magnificent details of the carvings.

More from Ellora.
This is the front entrance to the Kailasa temple as you approach through the gardens.


An aerial view of the temple.


Close ups of the carvings on the roof of the temple.
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One side of the temple showing Indian visitors to give you an idea of the scale of the monument.

[Billy]

Two of the relief's depicting the Vedic stories of the great Ramayana and Mahabharata battles
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A picture down one side of the temple showing the cliff face and what they called, the hanging rock.


This picture shows some of the original colour of the temple. It was brilliant white originally to depict the snow of Mount Kailasa in Tibet. Lord Shiva's home.


Rava the demigod attempts to shake the foundations of Mount Kailasa and destroy Lord Shiva's home. He failed when Shiva tapped his toe on the ground.

[Billy]

Some photos I took after climbing up the cliff to look down on the temple.
I by passed this sign on the way up.


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[Billy]

And lastly, short aerial videos of the whole site that I found on YouTube.

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=mzrV9EyVbo0

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=xB9OWwWpZGI

A video tour around the temple.

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=9QH2ILY-lh4

For the conspiracy theorists. Is there an underground city below? were aliens involved in the construction?

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=B2Jl4HNDixc

I have added two more videos since yesterday.
Hope you all enjoyed sharing the journey with me.

[Billy]

The Ajanta temple caves

Ajanta is 110 klm north of Aurangabad, before I head to the caves I have to share where I ended up staying. I traveled there by a local bus and stayed at a surprisingly wonderful hotel called, Hotel view point, that I booked online a few weeks before, which was definitely one of the best hotels I have ever stayed while traveling around India. I can't express how delighted I was to land there after a bad experience with a grotty hotel in Aurangabad itself. Hence the mention.


The staff were super friendly and helpful. The owner who had built his own private Mosque at the rear of the hotel ran a tight ship with cleanliness a top priority.

Comfortable bed with two balconies and open views.
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Amazing pure veg food and resident lovely white doves


At first I was disappointed that it was 11 klm from the caves with no bus stop. When I was heading to the caves in the morning I thought I would just start hitching. But the waiter insisted that he escort me to the roadside. He told me not to hitch. Then he just jumped onto the road and stopped a huge truck that took me all the way to the cave entrance. The driver would not take any money from me and I found out later that the waiter was his friend. I wrote my first ever review and gave the 2 star hotel 5 stars
Great value for £7 a night, I just had to share that one.
Now to the caves.

[Billy]

Unlike Ellora, The Ajanta temple caves are all Buddhist temples which were carved out at different time periods during different dynasty's. The earliest being 200 BC to 100 AD.
The Buddhist temples in Ellora are very similar to Ajanta.

What makes Ajanta so unique is the survival of the paintings and mural's on pillars, walls and ceilings. They are exquisitely detailed and beautiful.

An aerial view of Ajanta and the road as I approach the caves.


It was sunny and dry when I was there but the builders used the heavy monsoon weather as feature water falls running over the caves, they also did this at Ellora which I forgot to mention.
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One of the security guards insisted on taking my photo with my camera.

[Billy]

Some of the amazing art work.

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My battery is low on my tablet. I shall continue tomorrow.
In the meantime here is a good site for the history and more information.
https://theculturetrip.com/asia/indi...-through-time/

[Foxie Loxie]

Thanks, Billyji!!! Definitely enjoyed the trip....appreciate the amazing photos so much! Good to see one of YOU! The personal angle is what makes your posts so interesting!

[Billy]

Thank you for the lovely comment Foxie I cannot do selfies

Some pictures of the temples at Ajanta. The fist is one I found on the internet, the others are my efforts.
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