Every city has its own history and it is because of the history, that the city becomes famous. Aurangabad! A historical city in Maharashtra. On the occasion of my cousin's wedding in December 2012
We got a chance to visit Aurangabad. We reached Aurangabad in the early morning, by night train from Pune. We landed at a hotel which is in the heart of the city. We got up ready and went to see the caves of Ajanta. There are several buses available, to reach the Ajanta Caves, 110 km from the city.
We caught the 8 o'clock bus and on the 9. 20 we reached the area of Ajanta. Internal bus services are available from the main entrance to the caves. There are many small and big shops, near the bus stand where the ladies would like to shop. Nearby you will see a signboard, informing you about the caves.
From here it takes 10 minutes to reach the caves. There is a huge banyan tree on the way. Many birds are seen chirping on the tree. After climbing a few steps, you can see all the caves at a glance.
Banyan tree
The peculiarity of the caves of Ajanta is that the mystery of who built them has not been solved yet. The carvings, paintings, coloring and engravings in the caves are very captivating. There is something special about each cave. The staff at the caves tell you about the caves and the features of the caves, and they tell you exactly what to look for. Photography is prohibited in many caves. The staff is seen, taking special care of cleaning and tidying up the caves. 1 no. to 17no. caves are worth seeing. How would each cave be carved? Who would have carved it? Exactly what tools did they use to make such a beautiful engraving? Many questions like this come to mind. But all these questions remain questions in mind and we just keep thinking. The famous murals of "Padmapani" and "Vajrapani" can be seen in Cave no. 1. Even today, the facial expressions and colors in these pictures seem real to us. Some of the Ajanta caves are based on Buddhist, and some on Jain background. So in some caves you will see stories based on the Buddha and his life, while in some caves you will see carvings based on Jainism.
Padmapani
Vajrapani
In the first few caves, you will see colorful and very beautiful paintings on the walls, and on the ceiling. The staff attending there, tells you the meaning, the feelings and the story in all those pictures. I think you need the help of a guide to understand the history of such historical places. Only then we can understand this preserved historical art.
Graffiti
There is little to appreciate about this sketch. The coloring on the caves and the paintings carved in 400 AD are especially admirable. Colors made from leaves, flowers, etc. available in nature, work to bring vitality to these pictures. The "white elephant" in a cave and its story is a very interesting one.
White elephant
We believe that the invention of 3D paintings must have started at the ancient time when we see a shining necklace around the neck of the queen in a picture. Looking at this beautiful picture, it seems that real pearls are stuck in this necklace.
The cave that led to the discovery of Ajanta, is cave number 9. The tallest and equally large of all these caves! There is a very beautiful carving on it and this is the most beautiful cave. Legend has it that in 1819, a British hunter saw a tiger entering the cave from a distance and became curious to see what exactly was there. These caves were lost in the thick bushes. With the help of the local king, the area was cleaned and no. 1 to no. 17 caves were discovered by him. How beautiful caves are!!! Later these caves became known as "Ajanta caves! "
Carving above the entrance to the caves
Caves no. 9 and no. 10 are based on the story of the Buddha and the story of the Buddha, one must have listened to. The sculpture of the sleeping Buddha in this cave is huge and enchanting. The pain of the people on the earth after the Buddha, when he gave up his body, the sad expressions on their faces are beautifully carved by the artist. And at the same time, a joy to the God’s of heaven, as the Buddha will now come to heaven, this paradoxical artwork must be seen.
Oh! The great picture of The Lord Buddha !!! Seeing the calm expression on the face of the Buddha in the cave, one understands exactly what "sadhana" means. What is special is that you can see the same calmness in all the works of art.
Buddha
The story of the blue color used for the first time in some of the last caves is also happily told by the
Staff. Even today, that bluish sweetness of the flowers can be seen in the flowers in the picture there. The staff here has also kept all this in order.
Beautiful carvings using blue
One day is not enough to see such timeless caves. It was about 6 o'clock in the evening and we started our journey back. My respects to the artist who made these works of art, caves and paintings !!
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