Ellora Caves in Aurangabad along with Ajanta Caves are thousands of years old marvellous rock cut cave temples. That are also UNESCO World Heritage sites of India in the Maharashtra state maintained by ASI (Archeological Survey of India). And are pride monuments of India. Ajanta and Ellora Caves are one of the most popular tourist destinations in India. And also among the must see places in Maharashtra.
We visited Ellora Caves along with many other unique places and enjoyed driving through pleasant landscapes of Maharashtra during our 9 days Maharashtra Road Trip from Bangalore. However, one can also visit Ellora Caves independently. In fact, Ajanta and Ellora Caves are one of the popular destinations for a weekend getaway from Mumbai or a weekend getaway from Pune.
Did you know that there are over 1200 ancient cave temples in India. However, the majority of them are in Maharashtra. On our trip, we also visited Karla and Bhaja Caves near Lonavala and Pandavleni near Nashik. However, we missed visiting the Aurangabad Caves and the Elephanta Caves near Mumbai. Nevertheless, after visiting Ajanta and Ellora Caves we felt we didn’t miss on anything. Because together, these two are like the most grand of all the cave temples in India. Besides these, we have also visited the Udayagiri Caves on our road trip across Madhya Pradesh and the magnificent Badami Cave Temples on our visit to Badami Pattadakal and Aihole.
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History of Ellora Caves Aurangabad
Ellora Caves are rock cut caves with inscriptions dating back to 6th century CE. They are also known as Verul Caves or Elura Caves (Which perhaps originates from the old name “Elloorpuram”). Although the Ellora Caves are primarily rock cut cave temples of different religions. And have rooms that suggest they were also a resting spot for pilgrims taking this route. But, they are also located on the ancient trade route of South East Asia along with the glorious ancient town of Hampi and the epitome of temple architectures – Badami. So, they might have been used for trading markets as well.
The architecture of the caves at Ellora
Ellora Caves are a set of multi religious cave temples. As such, you will find the individual caves here dedicated to Buddhist, Hindu as well as Jainism religion. The Buddhist Caves of Ellora are very similar in their construct to the rest of the Buddhist caves in Maharashtra, including the caves of Ajanta, Pandavleni and Karla Caves. They have Viharas (Monasteries) and Chaityas (Prayer Halls).
The caves of Ellora
There are over 100 caves in Ellora, only 34 of which are accessible to public. Out of which there are 17 Hindu Caves, 12 Buddhist and 5 Jain Caves. Imagine the religious harmony that must have existed in these three prevalent religions in India thousands of years back. Something similar to what one witnesses at the Badami Cave Temples in Karnataka.
Cave 13 to Cave 29 of the Ellora Caves
Cave 13 to 29 are dedicated to Hindu Gods, primarily Shiva.
Dashavatara Cave – Cave 15
The Dashavatara Cave is a hybrid cave in the sense that it’s overall appearence resembles the rest of the Buddhist caves at the Ellora Caves Aurangabad. But, it has carvings and idols of Hindu deities like the 10 forms of Vishnu, Hiranyakashipu being slayed by Narasimha (another avatar of Vishnu), Wedding of Shiva and Parvati and dancing Shiva amongst many . This temple has a larger courtyard than most of the other cave temples at Ellora. And at the rear of this courtyard stands a two storey main shrine.
Kailash Temple – Cave 16
The Kailash Temple is situated in the centre of the Ellora Caves. And it is the first temple you see right in front of you as you enter inside the Ellora Caves Campus. The huge, intricate temple with multiple chambers, storey, pillars and verandahs that it has – it is unbelievable that it is a rock cut temple carved out of a single monolith rock!! Did you know that the Kailash Temple in Ellora is double the size of world famous Parthenon in Greece !!
The Kailash Temple is dedicated to Shiva. It’s architecture has resemblance to many of the Hindu Temples that I have visited across India. Including some of the temples at Khajuraho Temple Complex, the Vittala Temple and Virupaksha Temple in Hampi and Belur or Halebidu Temple. The temple has a huge entrance gate carved intricately with reliefs and idols.
Which is followed by an assembly hall.
On all three sides of this hall run a pillared verandah. The pillars are once again intricately carved and detailed out. This Verandah must be for resting of the pilgrims like how we see in Virupaksha Temple Hampi and Lepakshi Temple as well.
Main Shrine at Kailash Temple
In the centre stands the grand multi-storey main temple. On the first floor of this temple lies the “garbha-grihya” inside which is the linga – very similar to the linga at Mount Kailash. A nandi stands in front of the entrance, facing the linga. And the tower of this temple indicates Dravidian Style of temple architecture.
Other Shrines at Kailash Temple
Apart from this, you also see shrines dedicated to the main holy rivers of India – Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati. And to Vedic Gods like Indra, Agni, Vayu, Surya and Usha. Non Vedic Hindu Gods like Ganesha, Ardhanarishwar (Half Shiva, Half Parvati), Harihara (Half Shiva, Half Vishnu), Annapurna, Durga and Dashavatara (10 incarnations of Vishnu).
The lower floor of the temple is carved with stories from Vaishnavism & Shaivism including childhood stories of Sri Krishna and stories from the life of Shiva.
Dhumar Lena – Cave 29
Cave 29 has a natural waterfall falling over the cave, which can be seen from the South Window. Named as “Vale Ganga” which means “Ganga falling over great Shiva’s brow” – as the river Ganga is believed to originate from the brow of Shiva. This cave is particularly characterised by life size or even larger figures and sculptures carved on it’s pillars.
Apart from the above, Cave 14, 22 and 25 are other must see Hindu cave temples of Ellora Caves.
Cave 1 to Cave 12 : Buddhist Caves of Ellora Caves Aurangabad
On one side of Kailash Temple (Cave 16) lies caves 1 to 15, out of which caves 1 – 12 are dedicated to Buddha. 11 of these are Viharas (Monasteries with an ornate pillared hall) along with chambers for meditation or staying. Some also seem to have kitchen. These caves depict different forms of Buddha, Mandalas Painted on walls and roofs, Bodhisattva-related iconography and Vajrayana Buddhism forms. Out of these caves, caves 11 and 12 are 3 storey !!
Vishwakarma Cave – cave 10
The cave 10 is largest among the Buddhist Caves of Ellora Caves. It has a large pillared central hall similar to the other Viharas. But in the centre of this hall, you will see a massive statue of Buddha with a bodhi tree behind him. It resembles the chaitya-griha (prayer house) seen in some of the other caves in Ajanta Caves. This cave temple also has a verandah in the front, an entrance door adorned with reliefs including representation of apsaras and monks. And a lot of smaller cells on the sides and in rear, like the ones seen in Viharas.
This cave is also called the “carpenter’s cave” as the rocks here give resemblance to wood in their finish.
Cave 30 – 34 : Digambara Jain Caves of Ellora
The 5 caves numbered from 30-34, also the last caves accessible to public, are dedicated to Jainism. They are highly decorated and carved with forms of Jain God and Goddess as well as devotees. Must see among these are the following 3 –
Chhota Kailash – Cave 30
With dancing Indra reliefs, other deities, celestials, musicians and dancers, the Chhota Kailash Cave Temple is one of the most ornated and detailed temple in it’s carvings that you get to see at Ellora Caves. The temple is named so because of it’s similarities in it’s carvings to those of the Kailash Temple. Besides it, cave 31 is another smaller cave but has ornate carvings on either side of it’s walls. Carvings of Parshvanath, idol of Vardhamana Mahaveer Swamy and figures of Yaksha Matanga on the left side on an elephant and Yakshi Siddhayiki on the right side on a lion are notable.
Indra Sabha – Cave 32
This is the only cave temple in Ellora with shrines of 4 important Jain Tirthankars. It also has images of Indra, who is a God, worshipped by all three religions whose presence you see at the Ellora Caves.
Jagannath Sabha – Cave 33
This is the second largest cave at Ellora after cave 16. This is the only cave temple where I saw elephants at either side of the entrance. There are massive pillars inside the cave. Which are all intricately carved depicting the life and time of Jain Tirthankars – mainly Parshvanath and Mahavir.
Overall, the must see caves of Ellora Caves Aurangabad are Caves 6,10,14,15,16, 22,25,29,30,32,33 – if you must choose 🙂
Near cave 19 there is a beautiful pond besides the pathway to walk further. And at the end of it, the steps get little steeper. Particularly the access to the Jain Caves is little more challenging than the rest. So, keep that in mind when exploring with elderly and little kids.
General information on visiting Ellora Caves
How to reach Ellora Caves
This is the route we followed to reach Ellora Caves from Nashik –
NH 60 -> Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg -> NH 52
At the end of which, there is just a 5 km diversion to Ellora Caves.
You can also easily hire a taxi from Aurangabad for a trip to Ellora Caves. Many a times visitors prefer to combine their trip to Ajanta and Ellora Caves on one single day. There are several guided tours also available to Ajanta and Ellora Caves. But I personally feel, one day is too short to visit both Ajanta Caves and Ellora Caves. Each one of these has many caves. And to observe the vast details and intricacies that these caves present, it easily takes 4+ hours to explore Ellora Caves as well as Ajanta Caves. In fact, we spent half a day at Ellora caves. And almost one full day at Ajanta Caves the next day. So, I strongly recommend reserving two days to visit Ajanta and Ellora Caves.
How to reach Aurangabad
The city of Aurangabad near Ellora Caves is well connected with all the other major towns and cities of India via road, rail as well as air network. We drove from Nashik to Aurangabad on the Samruddhi Mahamarg and NH 160.. The Samruddhi Marg is part of the newly built Nagpur – Mumbai Expressway . Aurangabad also has excellent connectivity to Hospete and Hubli in Karnataka via NH 52 and NH 50 respectively. On the way back to Bangalore, we drove from Aurangabad to Hospet via NH 52 which was in excellent condition through and through.
Also, Aurangabad is well connected with Hyderabad and other towns of Andhra Pradesh.
Aurangabad also has a railway station. And an airport. Through which it is connected to all the major towns and cities of India.
When is the best time to visit Ellora Caves
The best time to visit Ellora Caves will be early in the morning. As they open by 6:00am in the morning. The weather will also be pleasant at this time. And there will hardly be any crowd inside the Ellora Caves. However, afterwards, as the day progresses, the crowd continues to increase.
Season wise, monsoon to winter months are best time to visit Ellora Caves Aurangabad. That means one can visit Ellora Caves from June to February. March to May are the very hot summer months. When daytime temperature crosses 40 degree C. And hence its not a suitable time to explore Ellora Caves. In monsoons, there are several waterfalls that adore the hills and fall right in front of the caves. And the surroundings are lush green. As such, if you travel here on a cloudy monsoon day, that will be the most pleasant weather condition to explore the Ellora Caves 🙂
Where to stay for visiting Ellora Caves Aurangabad
Aurangabad is the nearest major city to Ellora Caves. It is at a distance of ~60km (1 hour drive) from the Ellora Caves. This is the complete list of hotels in Aurangabad city. There are many budget as well as luxury hotels in Aurangabad. Including the likes of Lemon Tree Aurangabad, 7 Apple Aurangabad and many more. We stayed at Hotel Grand Kailash in Aurangabad, which is a newly built property. Although small scale, their cleanliness and service was exception. They even packed us a breakfast when we were leaving very early in the morning from Aurangabad city the next day. They have limited parking inside campus and in the basement. And some more parking space right outside the campus. Overall we had a very comfortable stay here.
I could also spot some homestays and basic hotels very near to Ellora Caves. They must be budget friendly and definitely have the location advantage.
Timings of Ellora Caves Aurangabad
Ellora Caves are open from 6:00am to 6:00pm on all days of the week except Tuesdays. The Ellora Caves are closed on all Tuesdays.
Entry Fee to Ellora Caves Aurangabad
The entry fee to Ellora Caves Aurangabad is INR 40 if booked from the ticket counter inside the campus. However, you can also purchase the tickets online. And the e-ticket to Ellora Caves comes at a discounted price of INR 35 per adult. Kids under 12 years of age enter free. We booked our tickets online the day before. And hence conveniently skipped the queue at the entrance ticket counter of Ellora Caves.
Parking at Ellora Caves Aurangabad
There is a parking lot available opposite to the main entrance to the Ellora Caves. It is a paid parking lot. The ticket cost INR 35. But the size of this parking is limited. As a result, you will find vehicles parked on either side of the road as well, as you approach near to Ellora Caves.
General tips for visiting Ellora Caves Aurangabad
- Wear comfortable shoes, preferably slip-on shoes with good grip. So that you can comfortably walk in them. As well as take them off when entering the temples
- You should wear comfortable cotton dress when visiting Ellora Caves as it is mostly sunny and hot in this region during daytime
- Carry water and food with you. As there are no restaurants inside the campus. Although there will be vendors selling packaged drinking water bottles. You can sit in grass or under a tree and have your own picnic in the campus of Ellora Caves Aurangabad.
- If there are kids with you, definitely carry snacks for them. We didn’t realise the sheer size of the Ellora Caves until we reached here. And took quiet sometime to explore around. Which delayed our lunch hours and kids had gotten hungry.
- Don’t forget your sunglasses, sunscreen lotion and a hat or umbrella for sun protection.
- Carry your identity proof with you. Although no one asked for it, as per the written rules, you might be asked to furnish the same during entry to Ellora caves.
- There are washrooms available inside the campus.
Other places to visit in Aurangabad along with Ellora Caves
Along with the Ajanta and Ellora Caves, there are several other places to see in Aurangabad. Most of these places are of high historical importance. Some of these include the Jyotirlinga Temple – Grishneshwar Temple, the Bibi ka Maqbara which highly resembles the Taj Mahal in it’s architecture and appearance, the Aurangabad Caves – another set of intriguing caves of Maharashtra to name a few. To visit all of these, you should plan a 4-5 days trip to Aurangabad.