About

The Kailasha temple at Ellora is part of the Ellora Caves complex, in Verul, near Aurangabad. It is also known as Cave 16.

There are over 100 caves at the site, all excavated from the basalt cliffs in the Charanandri Hills, 34 of which are open to public. Caves 1-12 are Buddhist, 13–29 are Hindu, and caves 30–34 are Jain caves. Each group represents deities and mythologies prevalent at the time of their construction, as well as monasteries of each religion. The Ellora caves are spread over a 2km cliff face, with the southernmost ones being Buddhist viharas, and the northernmost ones being Jain caves. The viharas at Ellora have a similar pattern to the ones seen at Ajanta, which is about 100km away — with large square colonnaded courtyards in the centre, aisles all around, a shrine at the center of the back wall of the cave, some chambers cut into the walls, and pillared verandah at the entrance of the cave. Unlike the caves at Ajanta, the caves at Ellora have more sculptures along the walls and fewer murals and paintings by way of decoration.

The temple is carved into the Layan-shankhala located in Ellora district Aurangabad. Situated twenty kilometers away from Aurangabad city of Maharashtra, this 1200 years old temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. What makes this temple even more beautiful and special is that this two-storey, 90 feet high, 276 feet long and 154 feet wide temple has been built by cutting only one rock of the mountain.

The temple is partially obscured from view when one first enters the caves complex, thanks to a magnificently carved gateway, the gopuram. On entering through the gateway, one is greeted with two massive elephants on either side, as well as two ornately carved square pillars.

The temple has two floors. The frieze on the lower floor is lined with near life-sized elephants in various poses, creating an impression that these elephants are holding up the temple. There are a number of sculptures all over the temple — from the Gaja Lakshmi carving that greets the visitor near the entrance, to the “Ravana shaking Kailasha” sculpture (which has copies in several other caves in the complex), Nataraja, and one panel with smaller sculptures telling the story of Ramayana, and another which tells the story of Mahabharata. The main temple has a detached Nandi mandapa, and a Sabha mandapa leading up to the sanctum sanctorum. A rock bridge connects the Nandi mandapa to the porch of the temple. There are five secondary shrines around the main temple. The central shrine housing the lingam features a flat-roofed mandapa supported by 16 pillars, and a Dravidian shikhara. An image of Shiva's mount, Nandi, stands in the Nandi-mandapam. Two of the walls in the main temple house rows of carvings depicting the Mahabharata, along the north side, and the Ramayana, on the south side.

There is a colonnaded gallery which runs on three sides of the courtyard, on the same level as the first floor of the temple, with scenes from the dashavatara and Shiva-Parvati’s wedding.
There is a path that leads up to the innocuously named Cave 16A (and one to Cave 16B) which lead to the top of the cliff from which one gets a startling view of the beautifully carved roof of not only the main shikhara, but also the four lions on the Sabha Mandapa, the carvings atop the Nandi Mandapa and the gateway as well.

Cave 2 is a Buddhist Monastery dating back to the 8th century. It has a broken verandah, a hypostylar hall with lateral galleries, and a sanctum with two cells flanking it. The monastery is decorated both internally and externally with sculptures of Lord Buddha and other Boddhisatvas. The door to the hall and to the sanctum are decorated with large images of Boddhisattvas. The hall itself has 12 ornate pillars. The lateral galleries and the walls feature images drawn from the Buddhist pantheon. The sanctum features an image of Lord Buddha seated on a lion throne in preaching posture. There are bejeweled Boddhisathvas attending upon him.

Cave 5 is a large Buddhist Monastery, with a rectangular footprint measuring 53m x 36m. It is dated to the 7th century. This cave has two chapels on the side, each with its own cell. The sanctum has an ante-chamber and an idol of Buddha in preaching pose, flanked by two Boddhisatvas.
The hall was probably used as a dining hall, as an assembly room, and for ritualistic prayers at different times. The massive pillars of this hall are decorated with paintings.

Cave 10 is a double storeyed Buddhist cathedral-cum-monastery - the only chaitya-griha in the Ellora Caves complex. This cave is also known as the Visvakarma Cave. It can be dated back to the 7th century CE on the basis of the style and the paleography. The decorations are modeled on contemporary wooden carvings. The Musical Gallery on the upper floor has a beautiful carved facade featuring a number of friezes of animals, couples, and a carved window which allows light into the cave. It has a large courtyard with double-storeyed apartments on both sides. It also has an apsidal pillared hall on a raised platform.
There are thirty pillars in this hall. The idol of a preaching Buddha flanked by Boddhisatvas and other celestial figures is the central feature of this hall. The drum of the stupa is also decorated with figures of The Buddha and Boddhisatvas.
The upper floor is approached by a flight of steps cut into the side wall of the verandah.

Cave 14 is also known as the Ravan Khai (Ravan Pit) because of the sculpture of Ravana shaking the Kailasha in this cave. The cave is relatively small - 14m x 9m. The cave is primarily a hypostylar hall with a sanctum that is separated from the back wall, forming a circumambulatory passage. The sanctum doorway features large images of fly-whisk bearing attendants and River Goddesses. It features several compartments on the sidewalls, featuring sculptures in relief drawn from Hindu mythology, with Vaishnava themes on one wall and Shaivite themes on another. There is one panel of seven divine mothers which lents credence to the hypothesis that this cave is dedicated to the Shakti cult.

Cave 15 is known as the Dashavatara Cave. It has a number of images depicting the various incarnations of Lord Vishnu. It stands on an elevated platform. The entrance is a rock-cut gateway.
It is also called the Do Tal since it is a double storeyed structure. The ground floor has a large square hall, with sectioned pillars and four cells. This floor is devoid of any sculptures or adornments. The upper floor is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The sanctum door is beautifully carved sanctum door is guarded by two huge dwarapalakas (door keepers). The large pillared hall in front of the sanctum has a large seated Nandi sculpture (which is not cut from the surrounding rock). The sidewalls are divided into a number of panels which feature mythological themes carved in bas relief. The pieces on the Northern wall are related to Shiva, while those on the southern wall are related to Vishnu.
A square Natya Mandapa (dance hall) stands in the middle of the courtyard on a low platform. The Dantidurga inscription on the back wall of this pavilion informs us that the Rashtrakuta rulers Dantidurga and Krishnaraja were patrons of these works.

Cave 21 is the Rameshwara temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, as evidenced by the shivaling installed in the sanctum sanctorum. It was excavated in the 7th century. It has a raised platform, a courtyard, and a hall with sculpted pillars on both sides of the central shrine. A massive figure of Nandi stands in the middle of the courtyard in front of the cave. IT is decorated with figures of Gods and Goddesses. The beautiful facade of the cave is supported by richly covered pillars and pilasters. A frieze with figures of elephants and amorous couples adorns the parapet wall. A panel of River Goddess can be seen just outside the cave. The central shrine features elaborately carved doorframes with floral patterns, and is guarded by massive figures of dwarapalakas with their consorts. There are secondary chapels with sculpted figures of other gods and goddesses.

Trivia

It took more than 100 years to complete this huge temple.

About 7000 workers were engaged for building this temple

It is estimated that around 400,000 tonnes of rock were removed to build this temple. This huge amount of heavy rock has not been found or seen by anyone in and around the site. Where was it used or dumped is still an unanswered question.