Engineering Wonder : Kailash Temple at Ellora

1400 years ago, for 200 years Hindu sculptors worked laboriously and shaped a hillock into a marvellous temple by cutting the rock from top to bottom! A hundred times more beautiful than Taj Mahal, Kailash Temple at Ellora is a gem among the ancient Indian rock cut architecture! Adorned with the sculptures of entire Hindu mythology, right from Vishnu Avatar , Mahadeva to Ramayana and Mahabharata..all chiseled amazingly on the rock surface. An incredible feat of architectural genius.

Kailash Temple

The Kailash temple is one of the largest rock-cut ancient Hindu temples located in Ellora, Maharashtra, India. A megalith carved out of one single rock, it is considered one of the most remarkable cave temples in India because of its size, architecture and sculptural treatment.

Its construction is attributed to Krishna I of the Rashtrakuta dynasty ruling over parts of present day Maharashtra in the 8th Century AD. However this attribution is not completely true. Kailasa temple features multiple distinct architectural styles. This, combined with its relatively large size, has led some scholars to believe that its construction spanned the reigns of multiple kings such as Dantidurga - the founder of Rashtrakuta dynasty, Krishna I, Dhruva, Govinda III, Amoghavarsha I and Krishna III. But still it is widely believed that much of the construction was done during the reign of Krishna I. The architecture is inspired to some extent by Virupaksha Temple at Pattadakal built by the Badami Chalukyas, which itself was inspired by the great Kailashanatha Temple at Kanchipuram, built by the mighty Pallavas. Scholars believe that after defeating the Chalukyas, Krishna I must have been impressed by the Virupaksha Temple located in their territory and brought the sculptors and architects of the Virupaksha Temple (including some Pallava artists) to his own territory, and engaged them in the construction of the Kailasa temple at Ellora. This explains the sharp southern influence on the temple architecture. The local Deccan artisans appear to have played a subordinate role in the temple's construction.

The most striking feature of the temple is the vertical excavation. Architects started at the top of the rock and excavated downwards! How this amazing engineering was achieved 1200 years ago with primitive tools and technology, makes even present day architects hold their breaths in awe. The entrance to the temple is a two storeys structure. On both sides of the entrance gate wall, there are huge sculptures of various deities. Sculptures on the left are Shaivites while those on the right are Vaishnavites.

Temple Entrance

In the courtyard there is a three storyed columned arcade, which contains another set of huge sculptures. The temple wall infront of the arcade is decorated with massive elephant busts.

Columned Arcade

The central shrine is dedicated to Lord Shiva. An image of his mount Nandi is infront of the central shrine on a porch. The central shrine consists of a flat-roofed mandapa supported by 16 pillars, and a dravidian style Shikhara or Vimana. The entire complex is heavily decorated with elaborately carved images of deities, mithunas and other figures. A notable sculpture is that of the Ravana attempting to lift Mount Kailasa. There are five detached shrines in the temple premises; three of these are dedicated to the river goddesses: Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati. There are two Dhwajasthambha (pillars with flagstaff) in the courtyard on either side of the main shrine.

One of the two Dhwajastambhas

Sculptures on the wall of the temple

The base of the temple has been carved to suggest that elephants are holding the structure aloft. A rock bridge connects the Nandi Mandapa to the porch of the temple. The base of the temple hall features scenes from Mahabharata and Ramayana.