Look! A Big Buddha!
Trip Start
Apr 11, 2010
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21
26
Trip End
Jun 09, 2010
Ajanta, Maharashtra, India
Thursday, May 20, 2010
The Ajanta caves are comprised of 30 carvings that were created from the 2nd century BC to the 6th century AD by Buddist monks. The caves were not discovered until 1819, when a British hunting party stumbled upon the horseshoe-shaped rock gorge bordering the Waghore River. The caves are literally the work of hammer and chisel, as the monks carved the caves into the mountain face. They are truly remarkable and a sight to behold. Of the 30 caves, 24 are accessible and one can walk fully upright into each cave, and most measure in size of at least 500-1500 square feet. The caves are either in the vihara style, where the cave is supported by pillars, a large Buddha is the focal point of the back of the cave, and many murals depict narratives of Buddha's life. The other style of cave, chaitya, was a long hall flanked by columns on both sides with a vaulted roof that echoes the look of wooden ribs (we said it looked like a ship). Some caves were even two stories high, where we could walk up to the second story.
Kim and I spent about 5 hours at Ajanta looking at each cave and basically entering each one saying "this is really cool!" And, by the end we would joke, "look, a big buddha". I guess by the end of the day, we were not as impressed with each cave, although each one truly was a magnificent work of art.
And of course, to end our day in true India fashion, we had to literally run to get on our bus to get back to Aurangabad (not because we were late to it, but because there were a lot of people waiting and you have to run and shove to get a seat). Ah India.
