The Caves of Ellora - India's story of peaceful religious evolution has been frozen in time and revealed to us on the walls of this incredible cave complex.

The 34 enchanting cave shrines of Ellora, built between 350 AD and 700 AD, could be considered some of the world's greatest, most monumental sculpture. Hollowed out of the basaltic hillside, the cave complex is located in the central Indian state of Maharashtra. The cave shrines should be viewed as sculptural, as well as architectural, because they were entirely hand carved and shaped from living rock. Using simple tools like hammers and chisels, the artisans/priests of Ellora created a world of beauty, passion, compassion, love and spirituality.

The 12 Buddhist caves were built during the Gupta Dynasty. The graceful, serene sculptural style reflects the nobility and simplicity of the Buddha. Relief panels illustrate stories from the Jatakas, tales of Buddha in his many incarnations. Earlier Buddhist caves housed a Stupa, a semi-dome structure, containing sacred objects. The Stupa, located at the back of a great hall, was the central focus of worshippers who prayed as they walked around it in a clockwise direction.

With the advent of Mahayana Buddhism, the Stupa was replaced by the human representation of the Buddha. The standard Buddha image is depicted as having thirty-two attributes of divinity and perfection. The most noticeable of these traits in sculpture are the long ear-lobes, the urna, or tuft of hair between the eyes, downcast eyes and bodily smoothness. This classic Gupta artistic expression of the Buddha was exported to Southeast Asia and Indonesia via trade routes.

The rise in popularity of Hinduism, with it's many passionate deities and lively stories saw the gradual decline of Buddhism in India. This transition is documented in Caves 6 and10, which house images from both Buddhist and Hindu faith.

In contrast to the more serene Buddhist caves, the 17 Hindu caves at Ellora profusely emanate energy and vitality. The Hindu temples are covered with dramatic reliefs from the Medieval period of Indian art. The god Shiva, his wife/consort Parvati and numerous other demons, devatas, and fantastic animals are richly depicted in scenes from Hindu Mythology and scriptures.

"Magic Mountain," is the literal translation of the Kailasanatha of Ellora. Most magnificent of all Hindu temples, it is representative of the mountain abode of Lord Shiva and the goddess Parvati, high in the heavenly Himalayas. Actually, Cave 16 is not a cave at all, but a free-standing sculpture 96 feet tall, 276 feet long and 154 feet wide. Unlike most architectural structures that are built from the ground upwards, this enormous temple was cut away from rock, downward. It is probably the world's largest monolith, perhaps surpassing the Greek Parthenon in splendor. The five remaining caves are dedicated to Jainism. They were excavated simultaneously with the late Hindu caves. Grand statues of Jaina deities are housed in these shrines. A beautifully carved lotus flower adorns the roof of Cave 32.

Defaced by advancing Moguls, in the late 17th century, and forgotten until recently, the caves of Ellora silently tell the mysterious story of the art, architecture and culture of ancient India.

Indian religious tradition made its influence felt throughout Asia and began to influence Cambodian society around the fifth century.

The Hindu trinity of Brahma, the ultimate creator; Vishnu, the preserver; and Shiva, the destroyer, together with Shiva in the form of the phallic lingam, were the principal deities. Buddhism was represented by the figure of the Buddha with several of his aspects - principally Prajnaparamita (perfection of wisdom), mother of all the Buddhas; Avalokiteshvara (compassionate lord), one of the greatest Bodhisattvas who will save all beings; and Maitreya (friendly), the coming incarnation of the Buddha.

Between the fifth and sixteenth centuries, these various gods would be worshipped and their images created in some of the most striking and beautiful bronze and stone sculpture in the world. However, though India provided the direct inspiration for the religious beliefs and symbolism, the original element of the cult of "Devaraja" would be added by the Cambodians themselves.

Devaraja was essentially the cult of the god-king, "deva" meaning god and "raja" ruler. It had its beginnings in Malaysia, but in Cambodia this concept would be brought to its fullest expression in the temples and statuary created as its physical embodiment. Portraits of kings and princes would be represented in the form of Shiva or Vishnu, and the god would have a human face. It was hoped and expected that the king would be absorbed into this god at the time of his death. This intimate connection between the king and the god, between earth and heaven, would be the basis for Cambodian religion.

The Cambodian royalty had a profound concern with life after death. An inscription on the temple at Lolei reads as follows: "Guard this dharma (law) which is for me like a bridge." King Yasovarman asks that his successors maintain both the stone edifice and the religion which is its philosophical basis. Divine immortality was assured as long as the temples, being the bridge to the other world, and the associated rites were maintained. The temples were in fact houses for both the living and dead rulers of Cambodia. They were not specifically intended for public worship.

Hinduism gave to the people of Cambodia the concept of a magic relationship between the human world and the universe. Everything was seen to have its place in the world. The temple became an attempt, according to the beliefs of Hinduism, to reproduce on earth a model of the world of the heavens, to ensure harmony on earth and between men and gods. The temple Angkor Wat (Image 2) is a magnificent example of this idea.

Angkor Wat and its surrounding temples were intended as microcosms of the universe, and the most essential element in this reproduction of the cosmos was the magic mountain, the home of the gods, called Meru. Encircling this celestial palace are six rings of mountains and seven oceans. The outermost ocean is enclosed by a huge rock wall. The walls of the temple contained scenes from the sacred epic called the Mahabarata (Image 3), which added to its divine power. Decorative figures called apsaras (Image 4) would adorn the walls, echoing the devas and yakshis of Hindu temples.

Angkor Wat was especially sacred to the god Vishnu and a central panel of bas-relief carving concerns the myth known as "The Churning of the Milky Ocean." Another bas-relief concerns a story from the Ramayana, another great Hindu epic. Here the demon Ravana attempts to move Mount Kailasa, the abode of the god Shiva. The Indian temple at Ellora depicts a similar theme.

This the plan of the temples, the carvings upon them, and the sculpture inside them all combined to create a place of magic and power. Indian religious philosophy and beliefs would provide the basis for Cambodian art, while the cult of the god-king would make of these temples a place of divine and royal power.

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