Ellora Caves

The parking lot at Ellora is right in front of the largest single monolithic excavation in the world, the great Kailasa (Cave 16). The Great Kailasa is attributed to Krishna I (c. 757-83 A.D.), the successor and uncle of Dantidurga. A copper plate grant from Baroda of the period of Karka II (c. 812-13 A.D.) speaks about the greatness of this edifice. Ellora represents one of the largest rock-hewn monastic-temple complexes in the entire world, that too of three different religions - Buddhism, Brahmanism and Jainism. These caves are hewn out of the volcanic basaltic formation of Maharashtra, known as ‘Deccan Trap’, the term trap being of Scandinavian origin representing the step like formation of the volcanic deposits. The rock formation, on weathering has given rise to the appearance of terraces with flat summits. One can also have a glimpse of the channels (near Cave 32) through which the volcanic lava once flowed. These channels, due to overheating, have a characteristic brownish red colour. The basaltic rock is ideal for rock hewing, as it is soft during the initial excavation and hardens on exposure to environment. This induced the religious followers of various creeds to establish their settlements in them. The Ellora caves are datable from circa 6th - 7th century A.D. to 11th - 12th century A.D. There are nearly 100 caves of which 34 caves are popular and visited by many tourists. Caves 1 to 12 are Buddhist; Caves 13 to 29 are Brahmanical and Caves 30 to 34 are Jaina. Thus, we have the greatest religious conglomeration at a single place, signifying the religious tolerance and solidarity of different faiths. The caves are excavated in the scarp of a large plateau, running in a north-south direction for nearly 2 km, the scarp being in the form of a semi-circle, the Buddhist group at the right arc on the south, while the Jaina group at the left arc on the north and the Brahmanical group at the centre. A tourist can plan the visit of these caves according to the time available and depending upon the interest in ancient art. If a visitor has at his disposal three to four hours, then Cave nos. 10 (Visvakarma Cave), 16 (Kailasa), 21 (Ramesvara) and 32 & 34 (Jaina group of caves) should not be missed and one can have a glimpse of the representative art of Buddhism, Brahmanism and Jainism. If a visitor has an entire day at his disposal, then Cave nos. 2, 5, 10 & 12 of the Buddhist group; Cave nos. 14, 15, 16, 21 & 29 of the Brahmanical group and Caves 32 to 34 of the Jaina group should be visited. All this valuable information about the caves has been gleaned from the Archaeological Survey of India’s website We had barely a couple of hours, hence just reveled in the beauty of Cave 16 and visited Caves 10 & 12. The sunset from Ellora is also worth a view and we spent some time gazing at the beautiful sight. On return to the parking lot, we were surprised to see a bunch of langurs being fed peanuts by tourists. We were told by the peanut vendors that these monkeys are harmless and will wait patiently for the visitors to feed them. You buy a packet of peanuts worth Rs.5/- and empty them out on your palm and hold it out to the langur. The langur will then amble towards you, hold your hand and pick out the peanut with the other hand and eat! So friendly! Our only regret was we could not see more of Ellora and missed out on the other two major attractions of Aurangabad – the Daulatabad Fort and Paanchakki. Hopefully will do that some other time. Some important information about Ellora Caves Open from sunrise to sunset Closed on Tuesday Entrance Fee: Citizens of India and visitors of SAARC (Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Maldives and Afghanistan) and BIMSTEC Countries (Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Myanmar) - Rs. 10 per head. Others: US $ 5 or Indian Rs. 250/- per head (children up to 15 years free)