Kailash temple Ellora is one of the most incredible temples.
Kailash (Kailasa) or Kailashanatha (Kailāśanātha) temple is the largest of the rock-cut Hindu temples at the Ellora Caves in Aurangabad district – 15 miles from Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India.
The ancient Indian name for Ellora was Verul Leni. Also Ellora was originally known as Elur or Elapura since it is located near the Elaganga river This temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva.
A megalith carved into a cliff face from a single rock, it is considered one of the most remarkable cave temples in the world because of its size, architecture, and sculptural treatment. It has been called “the climax of the rock-cut phase of Indian architecture”.
It is approximately 145 feet wide, 195 feet long, and 90 feet high, covering an area twice the size of the Parthenon in Greece. The top of the structure over the sanctuary is 32.6 metres (107 ft) above the level of the court below. Although the rock face slopes downwards from the rear of the temple to the front, archaeologists SAY it was sculpted from a single rock. The Kailasa Temple is notable for its vertical excavation—carvers started at the top of the original rock and excavated downward. The traditional methods were rigidly followed by the master architect which could not have been achieved by excavating from the front.
It has several carvings depicting Ramayana, Mahabharata, Ravana lifting mount Kailash etc.
The Kailasa temple (Cave 16) is the largest of the 34 Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain cave temples and monasteries known collectively as the Ellora Caves, ranging for over two kilometres (1.2 mi) along the sloping basalt cliff at the site. Most of the excavation of the temple is generally attributed to the eighth century Rashtrakuta king Krishna I (r. c. 756 – 773), with some elements completed later. The temple architecture shows traces of Pallava and Chalukya styles. The temple contains a number of relief and free-standing sculptures on a grand scale equal to the architecture, though only traces remain of the paintings which originally decorated it.
Ellora is 15 miles from Aurangabad, Maharashtra and well connected by road, rail and air.
