The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
This is a continuation
of my earlier post, so please read AjantaCaves : Part 1, before reading further.
I was most impressed by the Chaitya-grihas.
The long central
area, with the Stupa right at the end, allowing some space for pradakshina, sculptures or paintings
adorning every wall or pillar, the ribbed roof – it all added to an impressive
sight, especially since most of the structure is intact, even after all these
centuries!
Standing there in the nave, waiting for the crowd to leave so
we could take a closer look, hearing the chatter die down suddenly, the sudden
quiet and peace made me wonder what it must have been like, all that time ago,
when these caves were inhabited. Monks walking barefoot filing into the
Chaitya-griha, taking their places, beginning their chants... their voices, the
only sounds echoing within the stone walls, imbuing even them with the power of
faith.... what a spiritual experience that must have been! And then our guide told
us that the structure represented a human body – the ribbed ceiling representing
our spinal cord, the Stupa representing the mind, the paintings and sculptures
on the outer wall representing the skin and our external characteristics – and the
inside, filled with the chants and faith! Standing there in that cave, all
alone, it was easy to go back in time... till the peace was shattered by
another group of tourists.
The viharas, though simpler, are no less interesting. Building individual
nooks for monks amidst these mountains would have been no easy task, but they
did build these viharas as monasteries – a place of residence, as well as for
prayer. They are typically rectangular, with dormitory cells cut into the rock
walls.
These cells are usually simple ones, meant for rest, and have
no embellishments whatsoever, though care has been taken to provide both fresh
air, as well as light.
The early viharas (built during the period of Hinayana
Buddhism) are simpler, with just the dormitories, but the later viharas also have
a figure of the Buddha or a Stupa at the end to serve as an idol for worship.
The monks seem to have thought of every single detail possible.
Not only did they build caves with proper ventilation, they also built steps at
regular intervals leading down to the river. Little remains of these steps
though....
Outside the caves are also a huge number of carvings and
paintings... mostly depicting figures from Buddhist mythology, or the Buddha in
his various forms, all of which make the entire set of caves all the more
interesting.
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| Intricate details on the outside.. |
 |
| A massive elephant |
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| The story of the Buddha etched in stone |
The paintings are what Ajanta is most well known for, but unfortunately,
very less of the most famous ones are actually visible. The caves are dimly
lit, to preserve the paintings (better late than never) and a torch is needed
to even get a glimpse of the details. Also, flash photography is prohibited,
and thankfully, enforced. But there are plenty more to see, and hopefully we
can preserve them better now.
Whether it is a story from the life of the Buddha...
the wealth of detail is simply amazing...
which is what makes these paintings so special...
That they survived centuries is not just surprising, but awe-inspiring....
But it is saddening to think that many of these were lost to human hands. Most of what I have shown you are either high on the walls or on the ceiling, and have been restored. Most of the really beautiful ones inside the viharas or chaityagrihas have been vandalised, and restoration has helped only to a point. I wish we would learn to appreciate the importance of our heritage and learn to preserve it!
As we roamed around, I wondered what was it that made the monks disappear from Ajanta. Some caves have been left unfinished. Some, like this one, were barely begun!
Was it war which impacted their lives? Did they lose royal patronage and were forced to move elsewhere? Who or what could have made them leave such an idyllic place?
We may never know the answers to all our questions. The only thing we do know is that Ajanta was abandoned... and nature took over....
......till at last, a British officer found his way there. He brought many more to the caves, to see, to study, to appreciate, to wonder....And now, centuries later, people still come, to see, to wonder!
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| A hillock with a structure on top, providing a panoramic view of the caves. |
If you are wondering why I have not given more information
regarding the individual caves, sculptures or paintings, the reason, as I mentioned
right at the beginning (Part 1) , is the easy availability of detailed
information about these caves. Besides,
if you have already visited Ajanta, you probably know more about it than I do! And
if you haven’t visited it, I hope I have given you just enough temptation to go
and visit the caves... go, see for yourself why these are listed as a World Heritage
Site!
Information:
- Location: The Ajanta Caves are located about 100 Km from Aurangabad and about 60 Km from Jalgaon in Maharashtra.
- How to reach:
- By Air: The nearest airport is at Aurangabad
- By Train: The nearest railway station is at Jalgaon, which is connected to other parts of Maharashtra by train. However, Bhusaval, about 30 Kim from Jalgaon is well connected to all parts of India. There are also plenty of trains to Aurangabad from Mumbai and other cities.
- By Road: Aurangabad is well connected by buses from Mumbai as well other cities in Maharashtra. Bus Tickets for Aurangabad by MSRTC buses can also be booked online.
- Where to Stay: MTDC has two resorts near Ajanta, but I cannot comment on them since we have not stayed there. However, MTDC resorts are usually a good and recommended choice for accommodation. Rooms can be booked online. The only other option is to stay at Aurangabad, which has plenty of hotels to suit all budgets.
- Suggestions: A visit to Ajanta can be combined with visits to the Ellora caves, Grshneshwar Temple, Daulatabad fort, Aurangazeb’s tomb, Bibi-ka-Maqbara, as well other places of interest in Aurangabad.
- Other websites with detailed information:
- For a virtual tour of the caves, visit: World Heritage Tour
Great post! I am reminded of my tour there in 2007. Great memories revived thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks Indrani!
DeleteThe caves, the carvings and the paintings look awesome. You have captured them beautifully. Lovely post!
ReplyDeletehttp://rajniranjandas.blogspot.in
Thanks, Niranjan!
DeleteAren't we so glad these caves were discovered! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for refreshing my memories about this place. I wish I had taken more pictures.
Absoluitely!!! we are so lucky these caves were discovered.. and all we can do is appreciate and help preserve them!
DeleteDelightful shots and wonderful information.
ReplyDelete2 words for you Anuradha Shankar, "THANK YOU :)"
ReplyDeletefrom coldsun