Elephanta Caves
Originally Gharapuri (city of caves), these are a collection of rock-cut caves on an island ~ 10kms away from the Gateway of India. Built somewhere between the 5th and 6th centuries by various Hindu Kings. Portuguese removed the stone at the entrance which had inscription details, which were unfortunately lost later on.
Caves got their modern name from the Portuguese who made the island their base in the 17th century. They saw a huge sculpture of an elephant at the entrance and named it Elephanta caves. Unlike Ajanta and Ellora which are primarily Jain and Buddhist caves; these are dedicated to Hindu God Shiva.
Why Elephants caves are so famous
These Caves celebrate Shiva in many forms. Lord Shiva is nirakar (shapeless). Anant (limitless), Param aatma ( the ultimate soul), Adi yoga ( the first Yogi), nothingness – Shoonya ( state of complete zero – or thoughtlessness ), omnipresent, Natraja (Lord of Dance), Rudhra ( Angry form), Gangadhar. He lives the life of a hermit who wears nothing but Tigerskin and is always covered in ash ( Vibhuti).
There are many buddha stupas too.
Why Elephanta caves have defaced sculptures & lost or damaged monuments.
Invaders who knew nothing about India and its grand culture vandalized, looted, and damaged beyond repair whatever they could get their hands on. Gharapuri too suffered a lot. First during the Islamic rulers of Gujarat Sultanate and later, when the Portuguese made Elephanta Island as their base they used these sculptures for firing and target practices. It is painful to even think about how they vandalized most of the sculptures and damaged them beyond recognition.
Post these thousand years long worship places in Elephanta caves were abandoned.
In the 19th century, even British officials tried to move many beautiful sculptures to England. During one such incident, a huge elephant sculpture got severely damaged which was later moved to Jijamata Udhyan. There are many lost sculptures that can be found in various museums around the world including a few in Mumbai Museum (Vastu Sanghralay).
The colonial-era British publications state they were “defaced by the zeal of Mohammedans and Portuguese”.
Main Sculptures – their forms and depictions
Trimurti Sadasiva – three-headed Shiva
Main Murti is 20 feet high and the most celebrated one at Elephanta Caves. It represents the supreme divinity in Hindu Dharma. Tri Deity (Tri Murti) consists of
The right face is of the Creator ( Supreme Brahma) holding a lotus in his hand which represents life. The central face is in a deep meditative state and has calmness on its face it represents The Preserver ( Lord Vishnu). The left face is of the god of Destruction or Salvation (Lord Shiva).
This concept plays an important role in Hinduism as it reflects life in all forms from birth to death and beyond.
Ardhanarishvara – androgynous form of Shiva & Shakti
Hinduism celebrates Shiva ( the male power) and his better half Shakti (femininity). Ardhanarishvara represents half Shiva and half Shakti.
This can have many interpretations like Shiva is nothing without Shakti and both are inseparable, or ShivaShakti or ultimate God is gender-neutral but the most important explanation which I have read is that it means the soul has no gender.
This idea also manifested in the union of the Linga of Shiva and Yoni in all Shiva Temples.
Yogishvara – Adiyogi Meditating Shiva
Shiva is known as the first Yogi. Here Shiva is in padmasana, the standard pose for meditation. His face looks calm and he is in a deep meditative state. Sadly the legs and arms of the sculpture are broken.
Ganga-Dhara – Shiva trapping Ganga in his matted locks
Kalyanasundaram – Shiv Parvati Wedding
Andhakasura-vadha – Killing of Andhaka
Ravananugraha – Ravan trying to uproot Mount Kailasha
Nataraja – The Dancing Shiva
How to Reach
Take a boat from the Gateway of India. It takes around 1 hour to reach Elephanta caves. Elephanta Caves is perfect for a half-day trip from Mumbai. Where to Stay
You can choose to stay anywhere in Mumbai as the Gateway Of India is easily accessible within 1 hour from any part of Mumbai 🙂
Tips
- Caves are closed on Monday. Please avoid the rainy season.
- Boats to Elephanta caves don’t ply during the rainy season (mid-June – Sep end ).
- The Winter months are perfect for visiting Elephanta Caves.
- Please wear caps and sunglasses as it gets really hot during the day.
- Prefer comfortable wear as you need to walk a little bit.