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| Badami Cave Temple, Karnataka |
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 Badami
Cave Temples are beautiful carved cave temples,
artificial lake, Museme & rock-cut into the
cliff face of a red sandstone hill of the 6th &
7th Centuries. It is picturesquely situated at the
mouth of a ravine between two rocky hills. Its all
four cave temples - all hewn out of sandstone on
the precipice of a hill. It is situated in North
Karnataka, the Capital of the Early Chalukyas. They
display the full range of religious sects which
have developed in India. Overlooking the temples
is a reservoir, its banks dotted with temples. Two
of them are dedicated to Vishnu, one to Shiva and
the fourth is a Jain temple. The first three belong
to the Vedic faith and the fourth and natural cave
is the only Buddhist temple in Badami. Here are
some splendid carvings of the Hindu Pantheon. Narasimha
the half-man half Lion avatar of Vishnu Hari Hara,
the composite god who is half-Shiva and half-Vishnu.
Vishnu Narayana sitting as well as reclining on
the snake Shesh or Ananta (Eternity )… There
are also some painting on the ceiling and wonderful
bracket figures on the piers. The caves found here
are as follows:
Cave 01: On
the ceiling one can see the paintings of amorous
couples. Shiva and his consort Parvati, and a coiled
serpent. Shiva as Natraja with 18 arms is seen in
81 dancing poses. One can easily climb to cave 1
made of red sandstone. It antedates 578 A.D. and
was probably the first to be carved. Climbing the
40 odd steps to reach the colonnaded verandah, a
hall with numerous pillars and a square shaped sanctum
hollowed in the control backwall. Column shafts
are masterfully crafted.
Cave 02: This
cave is dedicated to Vishnu. Vishnu here is depicted
as a dwarf or. Another form of Vishnu portrayed
here is as 'Varaha' or as a boar. Vishnu riding
the Garnda & lotus surrounded by sixteen fishes.
Vishnu here is depicted as a dwarf or Trivikrama
of awesome dimensions with one foot mastering the
Earth and the other the sky, the second cave is
atop a sandstone hill.
Cave 03: The
main attractions to be looked carefully in this
cave are the high relief of Vishnu with a serpent,
Vishnu as Narasimha (Vishnu as Man-Lion) Varaha,
Harihara (Shiva Vishnu) and Vishnu as Trivikrama.
Still going higher up one comes across this 578
A.D. The facade of the cave is nearly 70 feet wide,
on the plinth one can see the carvings of ganas.
The sheer artistry and sculptural genius makes it
this cave the highlight of Deccani art. It gives
a virtual insight into the art and culture of the
6th century like costumes, jewelry hairstyle lifestyle
etc.
Cave 04: There is an
image of Mahavira adorning the sanctum. Other carvings
here are of Padmavathi & other Thirthankaras.
Asteep climb up some steps cut in a crevice between
Cave II & III leads to the southern part of
Badami Fort & to an old gun placed there by
Tippu Sultan.
One of the many masterpieces to be found in these
caves is the famous, 18-armed Nataraja (Shiva) who
if observed closely, strikes 81 poses. Cave 4, the
last cave, is the only Jain Temple in Badami. The
24th Tirthankara- Mahavira, is seated in a uniquely
comfortable pose here, against a cushion in the
inner sanctum. On the other bank of the ancient
Bhutnatha lake, astride whose shores the caves stand,
is the shrine of Nagamma, the local serpent goddess,
within a massive tamarind tree. Nearby, are two
Shiva temples, which deify Him as Bhutanatha, God
of Souls. Within the inner sanctum, on the edge
of the water, He sits in a rare pose, leaning back,
in all his awesome majesty. It is said that the
better known caves of Elephanta and Ellora were
modelled on the ones in Badami. The Kailashnatha
temple at Ellora, has been hewn out of an entire
hillock, cut out from the parent hill and combines
the best of cave and free-standing temples. The
cave temples of Badami which date back to 600 and
700 A.D. are carved out of sandstone hills. Each
has a sanctum, a hall, an open verandah and pillars.
What makes these cave temples remarkable, are the
large number of exquisite carvings and sculptures.
The town encompasses a number of carved monuments
and caves of the Chalukyas that is a blend of Indian
Nagara style and the South Indian Dravidian style
of architecture. There are many beautiful murals
as well. The free standing stone temples in Badami,
provide enlightening information about the development
of the Chalukyan style of architecture, as many
seem to have been experimental constructions. The
early temples appear to be like large court halls
to which shrines were attached. The Ladkhan temple
at Aihole belongs to this early phase. The next
phase of development is visible in the Gowdaragudi
temple which is a more complex structure.
The rich past of Badami is closely linked with the
ancient Kingdom of Chalukyas. It was first founded
by Pulakesin I in the 6th century A.D. The Chalukyas
are to be credited with pioneering a new architectural
style, examples of which can be seen in Aihole,
Pattadakal ( one comes across Banashankari, the
goddess the village is named after) and other neighbouring
areas. It was also ruled by the Chalukyas of Kalyan
(a separate branch of Chalukyas), the Kalachuryas,
Yadavas of Devangiri and the Vijaynagar Empire.
In the latter medieval period, Adil Shahi rulers
of Bijapur and the Marathas ruled it. Badami was
finally taken over by the British, who made it a
part of the erstwhile Bombay Presidency. They built
a number of temples, and other monuments that marked
the beginning of the Hindu style of architecture.
This new style combined the best of two distinct
styles - the North Indian, Indo-Aryan Nagara style
and the South Indian Dravidian style. Known as the
Chalukyan style, this style is manifested in many
cave temples, dedicated to Brahmanical deities,
as well as the many Buddhist and Jain monasteries
in the region.
Badami Fort: 2
Kms. Strategically situated on top of the hill,
the fort encloses large granaries, a treasury impressive
temples on top of the northern end of the hill.
Malegitti Shivalaya, perhaps the oldest temple of
the lot, is dedicated to the benign aspect of Shiva
as the garland maker. Placed on the summit of a
rocky hill, the temple is built of stone, finely
joined without mortar, & with Dravidian tower.
The lower Shivalaya has a Dravidian tower of which
only the sanctum remains now.
Tranquil lake: Take a dip in this green
tranquil lake. It is said to have healing properties.
According to a popular story, King Kushataraya was
cured of leprosy here.
Naganath
Temple: 10 Kms, located in a forest on
the way to Mahakuta, it is one of the early Chalukyan
temples dedicated to Shiva.
Aihole:
46 Kms. There is a remarkable group of
temples here built during the reign of Chalukyan
rulers, dating from the sixth to the eighth centuries.
Museum with Shiva's bull, "Nandi" at its
entrance overlooking the dammed lake is worthwhile
for the scholarly. This museum is closed on Fridays. |
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