| The
Caves There
are 34 caves, of which 12 are Buddhist, 17 Hindu and
5 Jain. The caves all face west, so are best seen in
the afternoon. The Buddhist caves are to your far right
as you face the curve of the Charanadari Hill, then
come the Hindu ones, and finally, the Jain cave temples
to the far left. Although not too far removed from the
Ajanta caves in terms of both space and time, the chaityas
and viharas of Ellora are architecturally and sculpturally
different. Compared to the Ajanta paintings and sculptures,
the Ellora representations are more earthly, drawing
elements from the Vajrayana school of Buddhism which
was permeated with primitive ideas of magic and mysticism.
So, the dwarapalas that flank each doorway, the gigantic
Boddhisattavas and their consorts have a robust earthiness
about them.
A masterpiece of Architectural In
fact, it is architectural skill rather than sculptural
aesthetics that Ellora is noted for. Buddhist Cave 12
or Tin Tala, for instance, has a rather plain edifice
with unadorned pillars and the sculptured panels are
only on the inner walls. But its historical value lies
in the fact that human hands fashioned a three- storeyed
building from solid rock with such painstaking skill
that even the floors and the ceiling are smooth and
levelled. Tin Tala cave is a commodious monastery- cum-chapel,
with cells enough to house 40 monks. It dates to the
Rashtrakuta period in the middle of the 8th century
and, in fact, the third floor, which contains the most
sculpted decoration, was being excavated even as the
Hindus were carving the magnificent Kailasa Temple further
along the rock face. The cruciform layout of the third
storey in Cave 12 may also be the inspiration behind
the Dumar Lena (Cave 29) and the Shiva cave at Elephanta.
The Main temple
This is flanked on
either side by two free- standing pillars, soaring some
15.9 metres high. These gracefully proportioned pillars
are believed to have once borne the trishul or trident
of Shiva. Two
storeys of corridors have been carved into the mountain,
ringing the temple on three sides. These corridors are
studded with small alcoves, all containing a wealth
of sculpted figures telling the tales of the great Hindu
epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. Among the narrative
friezes is the descent of river Ganga, and one of Ravana
shaking Mount Kailasa. The architectural style and intricate
sculpture is similar to Virupaksha Temple at Pattadakal
that had been completed a decade before.
The Chota Kailasa A
further 2 kms along the rock-face are the Jain caves,
the most recent of the lot, having been excavcted between
AD 800-1100. Of these the Chhota Kailasa (Cave 30) and
the Indrasabha (Cave 32) are the most noteworthy. Chhota
Kailasa is a miniaturised version of the stupendous
Hindu Kailasa Temple.
|