Ellora Caves
The Ellora Caves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Aurangabad, India. It is one of the largest rock-cut cave complexes in the world, with artwork dating from AD 600–1000, including Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain caves. The complex is a leading example of Indian rock-cut architecture, and several are not strictly "caves" in that they have no roof. Cave 16 features the largest single monolithic rock excavation in the world, the Kailash temple, a chariot-shaped monument dedicated to the god Shiva. The Kailash temple excavation also features sculptures depicting various Hindu deities as well as relief panels summarizing the two major Hindu epics.
There are over 100 caves at the site, all excavated from the basalt cliffs in the Charanandri Hills, 34 of which are open to public. These consist of 17 Hindu, 12 Buddhist and 5 Jain caves, each group representing deities and mythologies prevalent in the 1st millennium CE, as well as monasteries of each respective religion. They were built close to one another and illustrate the religious harmony that existed in ancient India. All of the Ellora monuments were built during the Rashtrakuta dynasty, which constructed part of the Hindu and Buddhist caves, and the Yadava dynasty, which constructed a number of the Jain caves. Funding for the construction of the monuments was provided by royals, traders and the wealthy of the region.
Although the caves served as temples and a rest stop for pilgrims, the site's location on an ancient South Asian trade route also made it an important commercial centre in the Deccan region. It is northwest of Aurangabad and about east-northeast of Mumbai. Today, the Ellora Caves, along with the nearby Ajanta Caves, are a major tourist attraction in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra and a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India.
Etymology
Ellora, also called Verul or Elura, is the short form of the ancient name Elloorpuram. The older form of the name has been found in ancient references, such as the Baroda inscription of 812 AD, which mentions "the greatness of this edifice" and that "this great edifice was built on a hill by Krishnaraja at Elapura, the edifice in the inscription being the Kailasa temple. In the Indian tradition, each cave is named and has a suffix Guha, Lena, or Leni, meaning cave.It is also thought to be derived from Ilvalapuram, named after the asura Ilvala who ruled this region who was vanquished by Sage Agastya.
Location
The Ellora caves are situated in state of Maharashtra about northwest of the city of Aurangabad, east-northeast of Mumbai, from Pune and about west of the Ajanta Caves another UNESCO World Heritage Site and from Grishneshwar Temple.Ellora occupies a relatively flat rocky region of the Western Ghats, where ancient volcanic activity had created multilayered basalt formations, known as the Deccan Traps. The volcanic activity that formed the west-facing cliff that houses the Ellora caves occurred during the Cretaceous period. The resulting vertical face made access to many layers of rock formations easier, enabling architects to pick basalt with finer grains for more detailed sculpting.
Chronology
The construction at Ellora has been studied since British colonial rule. However, the overlapping styles between the Buddhist, Hindu and Jain caves has made it difficult to establish agreement concerning the chronology of their construction. The disputes generally concern: one, whether the Buddhist or Hindu caves were carved first and, two, the relative dating of caves within a particular tradition. The broad consensus that has emerged is based on comparing the carving styles at Ellora to other cave temples in the Deccan region that have been dated, textual records of various dynasties, and epigraphical evidence found at various archaeological sites near Ellora and elsewhere in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. Geri Hockfield Malandra and other scholars have stated that the Ellora caves had three important building periods: an early Hindu period, a Buddhist phase and a later Hindu and Jain phase.The earliest caves may have been built during the Traikutakas and Vakataka dynasties, the latter being known for sponsoring the Ajanta caves. However, it is considered likely that some of the earliest caves, such as Cave 29, were built by the Shiva-inspired Kalachuri dynasty, while the Buddhist caves were built by the Chalukya dynasty. The later Hindu caves and early Jain caves were built by the Rashtrakuta dynasty, while the last Jain caves were built by the Yadava dynasty, which had also sponsored other Jain cave temples.
The Hindu monuments: Caves 13–29
The Hindu caves were constructed during the Kalachuri period, from the mid-6th century to the end of the 8th century in two phases. Nine cave temples were excavated early in the 6th century, followed by a further four caves. Work first started, in order, on Caves 28, 27 and 19 then Caves 29 and 21, which were excavated concurrently with Caves 20 and 26. Caves 17 and 28 were the last ones to be started.
The later caves, 14, 15 and 16, were constructed during the Rashtrakuta period, some being dated to between the 8th to 10th centuries. Work first began in Caves 14 and 15 with Cave 16, the "world's largest single monolith", that is located in the Kailash temple in Maharashtra, India, being the last of the three to be constructed. These caves were completed in the 8th century with the support of king Krishna I.
Early Hindu temples: Dhumar Lena, Cave 29
Construction in the early Hindu caves commenced before any of the Buddhist or Jain caves. These early caves were generally dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, although the iconography suggests that the artisans gave other gods and goddesses of Hinduism prominent and equal reverence. A common feature of these cave temples was a rock-cut linga-yoni within the core of the shrine with each being surrounded by a space for circumambulation.Cave 29, also called Dhumar Lena, is one of earliest excavations in Ellora and among the largest. Early Hindu temple building in the cave centred around the "Vale Ganga", a natural waterfall that was integrated into the monument. The waterfall is visible from a rock carved balcony to the south and has been described as "falling over great Shiva's brow", particularly during monsoon season. The carvings in this cave are larger than life size but, according to author Dhavalikar, they are "corpulent, stumpy with disproportionate limbs" compared to those found in other Ellora caves.
Rameshwar temple, Cave 21
Cave 21, also called Rameshwar Lena, is another early excavation whose construction has been credited to the local dynasty of the Kalachuris of Mahishmati. The cave was completed prior to the ascension of Rashtrakuta dynasty which went on to expand the caves at Ellora.Although the cave features similar works to those in other Ellora caves, it also has a number of unique pieces, such as those depicting the story of goddess Parvati's pursuit of Shiva. Carvings depicting Parvati and Shiva at leisure, Parvati's wedding to Shiva, Shiva dancing and Kartikeya have been found in other caves. The cave also features a large display of the Sapta Matrika, the seven mother goddesses of the Shakti tradition of Hinduism, flanked on either side by Ganesha and Shiva. Inside the temple are other goddesses important to Shakti tradition, for example, the Durga. The entrance to Cave 21 is flanked by large sculptures of the goddesses Ganga and Yamuna representing the two major Himalayan rivers and their significance to the Indian culture.
The cave is laid out symmetrically according to the mandapa square principle and has embedded geometric patterns repeated throughout the cave. The Shiva linga at the sanctum sanctorum of the temple is equidistant from the major statues of goddesses Ganga and Yamuna, with all three set in an equilateral triangle. According to Carmel Berkson, this layout likely symbolizes the Brahman–Prakriti relationship, the interdependence of the masculine and the feminine energies, that is central to Hindu theology.
The Kailasha temple: Cave 16
Cave 16, known as the Kailasa temple, is a particularly notable cave temple in India as a result of its size, architecture and having been entirely carved out of a single rock.The Kailasha temple, inspired by Mount Kailasha, is dedicated to Shiva. It is modeled along similar lines to other Hindu temples with a gateway, an assembly hall, a multi-storey main temple surrounded by numerous shrines laid out according to the square principle, an integrated space for circumambulation, a garbha-griha wherein resides the linga-yoni, and a spire-shaped like Mount Kailash – all carved from one rock. Other shrines carved from the same rock are dedicated to Ganga, Yamuna, Saraswati, the ten avatars of Vishnu, Vedic divinities including Indra, Agni, Vayu, Surya and Usha, as well as non-Vedic deities like Ganesha, Ardhanarishvara, Harihara, Annapurna and Durga. The basement level of the temple features numerous Shaiva, Vaishnava and Shakti works; a notable set of carvings include the twelve episodes from the childhood of Krishna, an important element of Vaishnavism.
The structure is a freestanding, multi-level temple complex covering an area twice the size of the Parthenon in Athens. It is estimated that the artists removed of stone, weighing approximately, to excavate the temple.
The construction of the temple has been attributed to the Rashtrakuta king Krishna I, but elements of Pallava architecture have also been noted. The dimensions of the courtyard are 82 meters by 46 meters at the base, and 30 meters high. The entrance features a low gopuram. The central shrine housing the lingam features a flat-roofed mandapa supported by 16 pillars, and a Dravidian shikhara. An image of Shiva's mount Nandi stands on a porch in front of the temple. Two of the walls in the main temple house rows of carvings depicting the Mahabharata, along the north side, and the Ramayana, on the south side.
The Kailasha temple is considered a highly notable example of temple construction from 1st millennium Indian history, and was called, by Carmel Berkson, "a wonder of the world" among rock-cut monuments.