| Dating back to thousands of years old, Caves in India | | | | Jainism, respectively. The massive Kailash temple at |
| are the epitome of architectural masterpiece. Putting its | | | | cave 16 is the central attraction of the cave. |
| charm alive despite being so old and dilapidated, these | | | | Elephanta : The place of caves Said in ancient times |
| caves with its unique architectural beauty have | | | | as "Gharapuri" or "The place of caves", Elephanta |
| become world famous tourists center to be visited by | | | | caves cover the huge area of 60,000 square feets. |
| visitors from all over. Some of the caves that have | | | | There are seven caves in the whole complex, in which |
| got big recognition world wide are Ajanta, Ellora, | | | | Mahesha-Murti cave is most important. The cave |
| Elephanta, Amarnath, Udaigiri, Patal Bhuvaneshwar and | | | | temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva, and have a huge |
| Aurangabad caves. | | | | image of Trimurti Sadashiva. Having three entrances in |
| Ajanta caves : Get amazed with its unique wall | | | | East, West and South, having impressive figure of |
| painting Ajanta Caves Lying in the North-Central | | | | Dwarpalas or Gatekeeper. Many other sculptured |
| Maharashtra, Ajanta caves have got its wide | | | | images of Ardhanarisvara, Kalyana-Sundara Shiva, |
| popularity due to its unique wall painting. Older than | | | | Ravana shaking Kailasha, Andhakari-Murti and |
| Ellora caves, Ajanta caves are Buddhist. Among the | | | | Nataraja Shiva are also very impressive. Being close |
| total 30 caves, 24 are Monasteries, while 5 are | | | | to Mumbai (11 Km), Elephanta caves have become a |
| Temples. Cave 1 houses a big Buddha statue, and | | | | very popular destination. |
| cave 8,9,10,12,13 are simpler as it doesn't have any | | | | Amarnath cave : Pilgrimage inside the ice cave |
| Buddha's statue, but only symbols like Buddha's foot | | | | Located at the Mount Amarnath, in the Kashmir, |
| marks, Wheel of law and etc. Besides the statue of | | | | Northern India, Amarnath Cave is of great importance |
| Buddha, some painting like Black Princes and Dying | | | | in India. Being at the 4,000 meter height, the whole |
| Princess have been very fascinating object of gazing. | | | | cave is covered with snow for most of the year |
| Though, many of the caves are very dark, and require | | | | except in the summer. The cave is revered by Hindus |
| torch to pave one's way, but it only heightens the joy | | | | as one of the their most important pilgrimage. Legend |
| to discover this great place of art. | | | | has its saying that one of the ice pillars are Shiv |
| Ellora caves : A precious present from the ancient | | | | Lingham, the phallic symbol of Lord Shiva. Carrying |
| village of Ellora Famous for its monumental caves, | | | | many mythologies, this cave attracts thousands of |
| Ellora is a world heritage site. The unequalled rock-cut | | | | Hindu pilgrims to visit it every year via extremely |
| architectural beauty of Ellora make it one among the | | | | arduous routes. |
| few most sought historical monuments in the world. | | | | Along with these caves, there are plenty others like |
| Dating from 600 AD to 1000 AD, this monument is said | | | | Udaigiri, Patal Bhuvaneshwar, Aurangabad, |
| to be constructed by the builders of Ajanta caves just | | | | Mahabalipuram, Gupteshwar, Khandagiri, Bhimbetka, |
| after they thwarted building Ajanta caves further. By | | | | Junagarh, Vaishno Devi and Nagarjuna caves which |
| contrast to Ajanta, Ellora has 34 caves. Among them, | | | | have got wide popularity due to their architectural, |
| 12, 17 and 5 are devoted to Buddhism, Hinduism and | | | | cultural and religious importance. |