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Ajanta This is the location of the beautiful Buddhist rock-cut caves, which contain sculptures and beautiful specimens of Indian mural paintings on the walls. Ajanta is located 420km northeast of Mumbai and 1120km southwest of Delhi. This is one of the major tourist places in India. For years the caves were hidden below ground, but were re-discovered by a small group of British officers out hunting in 1819. The colors in the paintings are made from ingredients collected in the local area, except for the bright blue, which is made from lapis lazuli. On the walls of the caves are paintings depicting the Jatakas and episodes of the Buddha’s life. There are twenty-nine caves in all, constructed between 200 BC to 650 AD. The most interesting ones are 1, 2, 9, 10, 12, 16, 17, 19, and 26. The caves here are famous both for their intricate carvings and for their ancient murals. The caves are numbered consecutively from the western side, but their numbers bear no relation to when they were built. To see the actual development of Buddhist rock-cut architecture, view the caves in the following order. 10, 9, 12, 19, 24, 26, 2, 1. Cave
1 has both intricate carvings and paintings. It is the best and most
recent of the caves. Cave 4 is a vihara, used mainly as living space.
It contains elaborate sculptures. Caves 2, 16, 17, and 19 have the best
paintings. Caves 17, 19, and 26 have the best sculptures. Cave 10 is
the oldest and also was the first cave to be discovered. Caves 9, 10,
19, 26, and 29 are chaityas and were used for worship. The other twenty-five
caves are viharas. Besides the entry charge, you have to obtain a lighting ticket so that one of the guards will light up the caves. Otherwise, you will not be able to see anything. I recommend that you carry a good flashlight with you. Our guide did not have one and had to borrow one from one of the people taking the tour. Even with the lights on in the cave, many paintings are still difficult to see because they are so old. Flash photograph is not permitted because the flash damages the paintings. As the light is dim even with the lights on, if you want to take a decent photo, you should use extremely fast speed film. You can get Mitra’s inexpensive guidebook, Ajanta, at the ticket office for a detailed explanation of the caves. The Archaeological Survey of India publishes a photo book on the caves. There is a cloakroom to leave luggage near the stalls selling souvenirs. Near Cave 16, by the carved elephant, there are steps leading down to the river, where you can take a nice walk by a waterfall and near a forest area. From the garden along the riverbank is a path leading to the “view point,” which looks out across the ravine. From there it is possible to get a good view of the caves and the surrounding area. To reach the “view point” requires a difficult thirty-minute climb. The waterfalls are down a path from Cave 26. The
caves are open from 9 am to 5.30 pm. It is best to avoid public holidays
or weekends because of the large crowds. Ajanta is a popular tourist
spot. On either side of the shrine room are two of the most famous paintings at Ajanta. On the left is the Bodhisattva Padmapani holding a blue lotus and standing with his wife; to the right is the Boddhisattva Avalokiteswara. Inside the shrine, Buddha is seated in a teaching position. When the guard shines a light on the left side of Buddha’s face, he appears solemn and contemplative. When the light is shined on the right side of his face, he is smiling in joy. Cave 2 (6th century) is a vihara hall. It has intricately carved columns and excellent paintings. The ceiling is painted like a draped cloth canopy. On the left wall is a painting of the Birth of Buddha and another of the Thousand Buddhas, showing when the Buddha multiplied himself to confuse a non-believer. On the right of the main shrine is the Hariti painting, depicting an ogress who eats children. There is a painting of the Buddha’s mother having a dream about a six-tusked elephant, which foretold his appearance. Caves 3 to 7 were carved in the late 5th century. Caves 3 to 5 were not completed. Cave 4 has twenty-eight pillars and nice sculptures. It is the largest vihara. There is a carving of people running from life’s eight dangers to take shelter of Avalokiteswara, one of the Buddha’s disciples. There is a painting of a man resisting a woman’s temptation. Cave
6 has a seated Buddha and finely carved doors. There are good
paintings on the doorway upstairs. Cave 10 is the oldest cave (200 BC) and the largest chaitya. It has sculptures of the Buddha and a large stupa. On the walls of this cave are paintings depicting the Jatakas. One of the oldest paintings, on the rear wall, depicts the king and queen approaching the sacred bodhi tree. This was the first cave to be discovered. Later
Mahayana Period Cave 17 has some of the best murals of all the caves. It also contains more murals than any of the others. There is a painting of Buddha returning to his home to beg from his wife, his amazed son looking on. There is a famous painting of a princess putting on makeup. On the left wall a prince gives away his father’s magic elephant, his possessions, wife, and children, and renounces the world. On the upper right corner of the right wall the pearls of the princess have a 3–D effect when a flashlight is shined on them. One painting shows the pastimes of Prince Simhala’s journey to Sri Lanka. He is shipwrecked along with his men on an island on which ogresses appear as beautiful women, but who eat their victims. The prince escapes on a flying horse, then later returns to the island to conquer it. Cave
19 is a well-painted chaitya hall. There are two Buddhas on
either side of the doorway. Outside, to the left of the cave, there
is an interesting carving of a Naga king and his wife. The
MTDC Holiday Resort (02 438-4230), about 5km away, in the town of Fardapur,
has decent rooms for Rs 300 and Rs 350/400 with hot water. It also has
dorm beds for Rs 60 and a restaurant. From Aurangabad to Ajanta (3 hr) there are four direct buses daily. Not all buses going to Jalgaon go to Ajanta from Aurangabad. They often stop in Fardapur (4km away on the main road). If you boarded a bus not going to Ajanta, ask to be dropped off at a place in Fardapur where you can catch local transportation to the caves. Shared taxis are available from Fardapur (Rs 20 to Ajanta and Rs 60 to Jalgaon). From Jalgaon to Ajanta is 2 hours by bus. From Ajanta, the last bus to Aurangabad departs at 5.40 pm. The last bus to Jalgaon departs at 6.50 pm. There are daily MTDC (Rs 125) or ITDC (Rs 110) conducted bus tours from Aurangabad. I took the MTDC tour and thought it was good. The bus was comfortable, and the tour guide spoke good English. The tour was economical but not painful or hurried. The total time spent at the caves on a conducted tour is about two hours and many people will consider this too rushed. The bus departs at 8 am and returns at 6 pm. There
is a cloakroom at the Ajanta Caves where visitors can leave baggage.
So you can arrive in Jalgaon in the morning, go to the Ajanta Caves,
and then go to Aurangabad in the evening. If you know of a informationthat is not correct or if you would like to help update our listings, please e-mail us at:
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