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Maharashtra
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A dark cave on a tiny island, in the middle of Mumbai harbour, houses one of the most imposing examples of early rock- out architecture. Although not quite as spectacular as the Ajanta or Ellora caves, the Elephanta cave, a 10-km boat ride from the Gateway of India in Mumbai, is well worth a visit. The cave temple, dedicated to Shiva, was excavated sometime in the 8th century by the Rashtrakuta kings who ruled the area between AD 757-973. The setting of the Elephanta cave temple was deemed symbolic as the sea represents samsara, the turbulent river of life, and the island was, thus, a place of physical and spiritual refuge. Today, it bears little resemblance to a spiritual retreat; the steps up from the jetty are linked with souvenir shops and soft drink stalls and, on the weekend, the island turns into a virtual carnival, with day-trippers from Mumbai coming over in large numbers. The naming of Elephanta The island, known as Gharapuri or the Fort Town, was christened Elephanta by the Portuguese, who captured it from the Sultan of Gujarat in AD 1535. They named it for its huge sculpted elephant, but treated it with scant concern, turning the pillared mandapa into a shooting gallery and letting the famous elephant fall to pieces. The British, who annexed the island in the1770s, had the broken figure removed to the Victoria Gardens adjoining the Victoria & Albert Museum in Byculla in Mumbai. The cave temple, situated some 75 meters above jetty level, closely follows the pattern of the Dumar Lena cave in Ellora. The many faces of Shiva Under this style, an isolated shrine is contained within a group of pillared halls that are arranged on a cruciform plan and have entrances in the wings as well. This allowed light to infiltrate the darkest depth of the cave. At Elephanta, for instance, the main image of Shiva as Maheshwara is so skillfully placed in relation to the three entrances, that is receives just the amount of light necessary to make it look as though the Lord is emerging from eternal darkness. This image, placed in a vestibule at the end furthest away from the entrance, is the focus of the entire temple. The cave is devoid of minor decorations, which only heightens the effect of the monumental sculpted panels depicting Shiva in myriad forms. Step into the foyer of the cave and find a carving of Shiva as Nataraja on your right and as Lakulisa on your left. Created in the Buddhist mould, the sculpture shows Lakulisa, a 7th century priest who did much to reabsorb Buddhists into Hindusim, seated on a lotus, the symbol of enlightenment. The garbhagriha has entrances at the four cardinal points. Giant dwarapalas and their gana attendants guard these doorways. The shrine itself has a metre- high linga. At the four corners of the main mandapa are the famous wall panels showing Shiva in many moods. Across the width of the hall is a representation of kalayanasundaram, the marriage of Shiva with Parvati. A coy Parvati and a confident Shiva are surrounded by her father Himalaya, the moon- god Chandrama, Brahma and Vishnu. Right across the mandapa is a scene from the domestic life of Shiva and Parvati. The divine couple are shown playing dice. Parvati has obviously lost the game and is sulking prettily while her husband tries to woo her back to the game. On the wall across from the entrance is the cave's centrepiece, the triple- headed figure of Shiva as Maheshwara or Lord of the Universe. Trimurti Standing high at 5.45 meters, the Trimurti statue depicts the three aspects of Shiva as creator, preserver and destroyer. The head on the left is generally believed to be that of Shiva's life-giving shakti, Uma, while the one on the right shows him as Rudra- Bhairava, a fearful figure with snakes in his hair. The central face is the swarupa or true self of Shiva-calm, serene and with his right hand (now broken) raised in benediction. The enclosures contain a carving of Shiva as Ardhanarishwara - in which he combines the female and the male aspects in his own self - and a panel depicting the descent of the heavenly river Ganga to earth. Here, Ganga is shown in the company of her two tributaries, the Yamuna and the Saraswati. |
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