Ellora is an ancient village 30 km from the city of Aurangabad in the Indian state of Maharashtra famous for its magnificent rock cut architecture comprising of Buddhist, Hindu and Jaina cave temples and monasteries built between the 6th and 10th century A.D. These structures were excavated out of the vertical face of the Charanandri hills and number 34 in all- 12 Buddhist, 17 Hindu and 5 Jaina. The coexistence of structures from three different religions demonstrates the prevalent religious tolerance.
Kailasanatha Temple
The Buddhist caves are the earliest and comprise of mostly viharas or monasteries, some of which have shrines with the image of Buddha. The Kailasanatha temple in the Hindu group is a stupendous piece of architecture with interesting spatial effects and varied sculpture. The Jaina caves are characterised by intricate detailing. Many of the structures had rich paintings in the ceilings, fragments of which are still visible.
Ellora represents some 300 years of great experiments carried out by different faiths with their very different iconography and structural compulsions.
Ellora first appears to the visitors as an irregular ridge of rock, rising vertically from the ground.
Ellora caves are finest specimens of cave temple architecture.
Ellora is made quantitative and as a result its pictorial, sculptural and textual contents are made to seem equivalent in nature.
Ellora is a village located Northwest of Aurangabad in the Western Deccan, and the thirty four carved temples line one of its rocky cliffs for a mile.
Given Ellora's place in history as a tirtha, or center of worship and ritual, the element of water is almost expected as a "purifying, fertilizing element."9 The temples are at once a subtle and dramatic addition to the dry, rugged landscape.
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