Skip to main content

ELEPHANTA CAVES PART 13 - TOPOGRAPHY OF ELEPHANTA CAVES - GHARAPURI


GHARAPURI  - ELEPHANTA CAVES 13
TOPOGRAPHY OF ELEPHANTA CAVES

courtesy Dr. Hiranandan Sastri. A guide to Elephanta - 1934

Western India consists of at least 900 rock cut cave temples or Stupa’s or Viharas which throw a flood of light on the history of Architecture and religion in India. Mumbai region in itself has about 130 of them in both Elephanta and Salsette Islands. The Sahayadri range of mountain made up of hard Basalt rock or Trap rock were the most easiest to carve the structure and also in a unique gigantic sizes.

FLOOR PLAN OF ELEPHANTA MAIN CAVE

The caves are situated in an island 11 Kms from Mumbai - Gateway of India and are reachable be ferry boats which take an hour journey to the islands. The island which is of 4 square mile’s has two hills with a narrow valley in between them. The island was christened by the Portuguese as” Elefanta Ilha” because the landing place in the Island known as Rajghat, had a colossal rock statue of an Elephant 13.2” by 7.4” as if welcoming them.  In 1814 the neck of the elephant got dismantled and in 1864 the same was transported to Victoria Gardens in Mumbai and Restored. From the landing place in the island - Rajghat, the Caves are about a quarter mile climb by easy steps with (inscribed tablet),laid by a merchant named Shri.Thakar Karamsi Ranmal Lohana in the year 1854 ( People like him who made the visit to the Cave temples possible, is lost in the annals of History).




  





The main caves and is extensions were originally adorned with paintings, which are lost to time with faint traces left. It was an active place of worship for the island's Hindu residents well until the 1500s, when the Island was handed over to the Portuguese by the kings of Ahmedabad.
  

https://photos.app.goo.gl/bxmGV2bwnXqBAs5B9
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

KAILASANATHAR TEMPLE PART 1 - TARAMANGALAM

SRI KAILASANATHAR TEMPLE- TARAMANGALAM - SALEM DISTRICT - TAMILNADU.- PART 1 Seven tiered Rajagopuram Shaped like a chariot. Mahavishnu gave his sister Parvathi in marriage to Shiva. This process of handing over the bride, is known as "Thaaram vaththu koduppadhu" in Tamil, hence the name of the town THARAI MANGALAM now known as Tharamangalam. MAHAVISHNU giving his sister MEENAKSHI in marriage to SHIVA. In the centre of this Town is an exotic Temple of Lord Shiva as Shri Kailasanathar with his consort Sivakami Devi. One of the rarest of temples with a treasure of exotic Sculpture and the many stories attached with them. ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL U NKNOWN TEMPLES IN TAMILNADU. The first precinct on entering from the Rajagopuram. The temple had an existence before the 10th Century CE. However the same was rebuilt by the Getti Muthaliar Clan who ruled the Kongu Part of Tamilnadu from the 13th to the 17th century. The temple seems to have b...
Post a Comment
Read more

ELEPHANTA CAVES PART 10 - SHIVA as LINGA – The SAGUNA form of NIRGUNA - GHARAPURI

GHARAPURI  - ELEPHANTA CAVES 10 SHIVA as LINGA – The SAGUNA form of NIRGUNA. Symbolic form of SHIVA – SHAKTHI. DWARAPALAKAS to the shirne of MAHADEVA Saguna  means “with attributes.”  Nirguna  means “without attributes.” “ Saguna ” describes a God with (tangible) attributes. The term “ Nirguna  Brahman” describes a God with no (tangible) attributes (source). The most popular form of worshipping Lord Shiva in Hinduism is in the LINGA form. It is known as SHIVALING or SHIVALINGA. The LINGA symbol is an attempt to give form to the formless, referred as Supreme Being or Brahman in Hindu religion. When a LINGA is installed on a YONI, it represents the union of SHIVA and SHAKTI – the beginning of creation. It is found at the centre of the temple, often resting in the middle of a rimmed, disc-shaped YONI. SHIVA as a LINGAM In the main cave, in the right middle six steps lead to a raised platform of 3.5 feet high. A cu...
Post a Comment
Read more

VAIKUNTHA PERUMAL TEMPLE OR THIRU PARAMESHWARA VINNAGARAM KANCHIPURAM

  THIRU PARAMESHWARA VINNAGARAM OR VAIKUNTHA PERUMAL TEMPLE KANCHIPURAM Thiru Parameswara (The greatest Lord) Vinnagaram (temple) or Vaikunta Perumal Temple is a temple dedicated to Vishnu & his concert Vaikundavalli located in Kanchipuram. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, the temple finds mention in the Divya Prabhanda the early medieval tamil literature of the Azhwar saints from the 6th–9th centuries AD. It is one among the 108 temples dedicated to Vishnu. The temple is considered the second oldest extant temples in Kanchipuram after the Kailasanathar temple & is in a straight line facing each other, though seperated by 3.5 KMs. The temple is believed to have been built by the Pallava king Nandivarman (720-796 CE), with later contributions from Chola's and Vijayanagara Kings. The temple is surrounded by a granite wall enclosing all the shrines and a pond of the temple. The outer walls of the inner praharam is full of Kalakrithis related to the lord....
Post a Comment
Read more