Ajanta, Maharashtra

Situated in Aurangabad district in Maharashtra state, this UNESCO world heritage site offers a stunning view of the cultural – artistic heritage of ancient and medieval period of India. Some of the exceptional rock paintings of ages as early as BC 1000, are found in some of the 29 rock cut caves in Ajanta. It offers an exceptional excavation of large Chaityas and Viharas, used as a shelter by the earliest settled community in Western India.

Ajanta is the only surviving example of paintings belonging to the both the 1st century BC and 5th Century AD. Well, among the 29 caves, cave number 9,10,12 and 13 belong to early phase, whereas 11,6, and 15 belongs to the lower phase. The Chaitya Caves of 19 and 26 are elaborately carved with their façade decorated with Buddha and Bodhisattva images. It is endowed with immense cultural value and indeed is great pleasure to the eyes as well. The biggest Buddha image, ‘Mahaparinibbana’ in cave number 26, gives us an exquisite idea about the talents of ancient painting community. The pillared veranda, holes and cells shows you the unique characteristics of Ajanta caves. For a person, who astonishes to see the kind of mastery of architecture that these ancient people held, the paintings on the wall too is expected to offer a similar feeling. Echoing the events happened in the life of Gauthama Buddha, these pictures tell the whole story of the saint, before he attained the incarnation.

The paintings also illustrate many of the scenes from the mythological stories that we heard somewhere down in the lane. Well, what is more interesting to see are the representation of Greek and Roman compositions and proportions. Well, having a trip to Ajanta, you can have a splendid view of the past glorious days and you can reach out Ajanta quite easy as well. All of the paintings up there in Ajanta are heavily been inspired by the religious elements of Buddhism. One can have a great journey through these beautiful caves and you will just fall in love with the kind of aristocracy they holds.

How to Reach:

By Road: You can find numerous bus services to the spot, both run by private agencies as well as Maharashtra State Transport Corporation.

By Rail: Jalgaon is the nearest railway station to Ajanta and lies just over 28 km away from Ajanta. The railway station is the second biggest depot of railways in entire Asia.

By Air: Aurangabad is the nearest airport and can be reached out from both Mumbai and Delhi. However, a new airport is under construction there in the form of Jalgaon.

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