Ellora Tourism
Ellora Caves, Nestled in the crook of the Charanadari hill in Deccan
is a series of ancient temples and monasteries hewn out of the moutainside.
Situated on the ancient north- south trade route or the dakshinapatha, the tiny
mountain village of Verul - mutated today to Ellora -was a well- known stopover
for traders, priests and pilgrims who plied the route to the western ports.
Beginning sometime in the 7th century, when the Chalukyas (AD 553 - 753) ruled
the Deccan, these wayfarers decided to make their presence permanent. And excavation
started on a number of Buddhist chaityas and viharas. The place found favour
with missionaries of other faiths as well, and over the next five centuries,
Hindus and Jains also built their temples in the rocks there.
Ellora : Places to See:
Unlike the caves at Ajanta, the Ellora caves were never 'lost'. Largely because
it lay on a more frequented route, Ellora remained in the public eye. In fact,
Kailasa Temple remained a practising shrine until the 19th century. Several
travellers to India including the 10th century Arab geographer Al Masudi and
Niccolao. Manucci in early 17th century mention the caves in their accounts
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Kailasa Temple Ellora:
The other Buddhist caves as well as the first few Hindu caves are fairly unremarkable
and do not prepare you for the magnificence of Kailasa Temple or Cave 16. Believed
to have been started by the Rashtrakuta king, Krishna I, Its excavation must
rank as an architectural wonder.
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Ellora Caves Tour:
The cave temples and monasteries at Ellora, excavated out of the vertical face
of an escarpment, are 26 kms. north of Aurangabad. Extending in a linear arrangement,
the 34 caves contain Buddhist Chaityas, or halls of worship, and Viharas, or
monasteries, Hindu and Jian temples.
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