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Cave
Artistry - Silence Speaks
Maharashtras greatest treasures are
undoubtedly its extraordinary cave temples
and monasteries. The busy commercial capital
city is the obvious base for visitors to the
caves of Ajanta with their fabulous and
vibrant murals, and the monolithic temples
at Ellora. From 2nd century BC
the region was the center of Buddhism.
Ajanta
Ajanta Caves, stand
still despite the
ravages of time. They epitomize the absolute
mastery of those unknown artists who created
these stunning images for their royal
patrons of the Vakataka dynasty, in the 5th
century AD. They were embellished when the
civilization was at its zenith and nothing
comparable from this glorious era survives.
The wall paintings of the 30 caves have
therefore been rightly included in the list
of World Heritage Monuments. Most of
them illustrate the events from the life of
the Buddha and tales from jatakas-a large
collection of stories about previous
incarnations of the Buddha, both animal and
human. Some of the moving portraits are the
towering Buddha, begging for alms form his
wife and son, a panel of the thousand
Buddhas etc.
The murals follow the six branches of Indian
paintings Shadanga', deigning various
emotions. Besides the tales of Jataka, the
cave also depicts the poems of Kalidas.
Precisely in the words of Captain Seely
-
Palaces will decay, bridges will fall, and
the noblest structures must give way to the
corroding time; whilst the cared temples of
Ellora shall bear their indestructible and
hoary heads in stern loneliness, the glory
of the past ages, and the administration of
ages yet to come".
Maharashtra has many more cave structures to
offer. Bedsa, Karla, Bhaja and Pandavleni
are some of them. They all speak from the
hoary depth of past to the glaring present
and remains enchanting the future.
Ellora
 Impressive
in their own right are the rock-hewn temples
and monasteries of Ellora that lie just 30
Kilometers away from Aurangabad city. In
all, there are 34 cave temples, 12 Mahayana
Buddhist caves (550-750 AD.). 17 Hindu caves
(600 -875 AD) and 5 caves of the Jain
faith
(800-1000 AD.) 22 more
caves, dedicated to Shiva, were recently
discovered. Kailas Temple, the central
attraction at Ellora, is the most
remarkable. Chiseled by hand from a single
massive rock, it includes a gateway,
pavilion, courtyard, vestibule, sanctum
sanctorum and tower.
Both these world heritage sites, Ajanta and
Ellora are being developed at a cost of INR
2,000 million - with the help of the
Japanese Government.
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