The Elephanta Caves , located on Elephanta Island, or Gharapuri, about 11 Km off the coast of the Gateway of India, Mumbai, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A visit to these caves, excavated probably in the 6 th century CE, is awe-inspiring, and also thought-provoking. Over the years, I have visited the caves a number of times, and also attended a number of talks by experts in the fields of art, history and archaeology on the caves. Together, they help me understand these caves, their art, and the people they were created for, just a little bit better. Every new visit, every new talk, every new article I read about the caves, fleshes out the image of what the island and the caves would have been like, at their peak. I last wrote about the caves on this blog, in 2011, almost exactly 11 years ago. Since then, my understanding of the caves has, I would like to think, marginally improved. Hence this attempt to write a new and updated post, trying to bring to life, the caves of Elephan
Its pouring out there as I write these words, the windows tightly shut to prevent my computer getting wet! No words today, just pictures...... taken a couple of days back.. Yes, now that the rains have begun, I have started carrying my camera along as we wait for Samhith's bus, managing somehow to click pictures of creepy crawlies, juggling with my mobile and camera in one hand and an umbrella in the other, not to mention trying to stop Samhith from running off into the rain!
Here's our first visitor - a beetle scuttling off in the water......
And these aren't visitors - these are permanent residents - centipedes - but they look a bit more attractive in the rains (If u can call them attractive, that is..)
And if you were wondering how many of these were around, here's a glimpse... that's just one small patch of the wall!!!
And here are a few mushrooms... they grow and disappear miraculously soon!
That's all for now, but the monsoon has just begun... and more creatures are sure to appear soon!
Here's our first visitor - a beetle scuttling off in the water......
And these aren't visitors - these are permanent residents - centipedes - but they look a bit more attractive in the rains (If u can call them attractive, that is..)
And if you were wondering how many of these were around, here's a glimpse... that's just one small patch of the wall!!!
And here are a few mushrooms... they grow and disappear miraculously soon!
That's all for now, but the monsoon has just begun... and more creatures are sure to appear soon!
yikes !!
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry but centipedes and other crawly creatures are not something I love to see...
But yes, the monsoon has been great till now. I loving every bit of it...
sitting at my french window, having a hot cup of chai with pakodas and a good book to read... Aaahhh heaven !! :)
Anu
ReplyDeletevery nice post...mentioning these creatures which are also part of our life...
Anu,
ReplyDeleteOn rains I agree with shyamgovind here.
Thanks for sharing these creepy creatures. I generally freak out seeing them. :-)
I used to live in a room bordering the Malad Creek some years back. And there was a treasure trove of creepy crawly life on my window sill every day. Pretty scary.
ReplyDeleteeek! Anu!seriously gross pics!
ReplyDeleteJuggling with too many things (mobie, umbrella and samhith) and u stil manage to capture these ? I end up dropping my mobile most times even without a camera around :)
ReplyDeletebut centipedes and other crawly ones are not my fav too !
Anu at the moment I won't mind them if I got some rain along with it.
ReplyDeleteThis post reminds me of the bite once I got from a centipede.it was really painful
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful insight into the monsoon season!
ReplyDeleteWe are still waiting for the rains. The pictures are great.
ReplyDeleteGreat photos! It's nice to see the rain since it's so hot and dry here now. My chickens would like some bugs but not beetles or centipedes.
ReplyDelete