Kailasa Temple – Gem of India
History of Kailasa Temple
The Kailasha or Kailashanath temple is the largest of the rock-cut Hindu temples at the Ellora Caves, Aurangabad District, Maharashtra, India. A megalith carved from a rock cliff face, it is considered one of the most remarkable cave temples in the world because of its size, architecture and sculptural treatment, and “the climax of the rock-cut phase of Indian architecture“. The top of the superstructure over the sanctuary is 32.6 meters (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 believe it is made from a single rock.
The Kailasa temple (Cave 16) is the largest of the 34 Buddhist, Jain and Hindu 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. 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.
Who built Kailasa or Kailashnath Temple?
The Kailash Temple is the sixteenth cave, and it is one of the 32 cave temples and monasteries forming the magnanimous Ellora Caves. As per the historical records, it was built by the 8th century Rashtrakuta King Krishna I between the year 756 and 773 AD. Further, the non- Rashtrakuta style temples located close-by denote the involvement of Pallava and Chalukya artists.
In all likelihood, it is believed that the architects of Virupaksha temple contributed in making the Kailash Temple. And given the architects already had the design and model ready, it would have taken lesser efforts to build a temple of such magnitude in the lifetime of one monarch.
How Kailasa Mandir made?
The architecture of Kailasa Temple is notable for its vertical excavation, the work started at the top and moved downwards, rolling down the large boulders split from the mountain using steel rod drills. One can see the drill marks on the surrounding walls that are still visible. A megalith carved out of a single rock, the Kailasa Temple is the only structure in the world that is craved from the top to bottom. Every single design and measurement was planned very accurately as once its cut there was no chance to change it by adding any extra stone or piece of rock. Legend has it that nearly 200,000 tonnes of rock was removed to construct this monolithic structure.
Constructed by Rashtrakuta king Krishna I in 756-773 CE, the Kailasa Temple, prominent of all the Caves in Ellora, has fascinated researchers and tourists for centuries. The archaeologists had calculated that it would have taken more than a hundred years to finish the temple construction. But, in reality it took only 18 years to complete it.
Kailasa Temple destroyed?
There is an interesting tale about the Kailasa Temple of Ellora. Mughal King Aurangzeb who destroyed thousands of Hindu temple, also tried to destroy Kailasa temple. It is said that 1000 people were sent to destroy the temple in the year 1682. They worked for 3 years but they could break and disfigure a few statues only. Aurangzeb finally gave up on this task and realizing that it was impossible to completely destroy the temple as the rock was simply too hard to demolish, even though artisans used only hammers, chisels and picks to construct it.
Sculpture and Carving
