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
Having your work table by the window can be distracting.... especially when you have winged visitors clamoring for attention right outside! Of course, I don't mind, and actually, welcome the distraction, at times...like yesterday, when these rare visitors dropped by, and brightened up my day!
The Indian Golden Oriole is a species of Oriole spread across the Indian Sub continent and Central Asia. It is a common bird, inhabiting a range of habitats, but it is still rare enough in a concrete city like Mumbai! The bright yellow and black colours make the male easy to identify, but the female is duller (as is common with birds), and this male (pic above) had two females around, probably trying to attract his attention!
The male stayed for a short time, but the females stayed put till the crows chased them away. It appears the crows don't like anyone trespassing on their territory. This is certainly one case though, when I am certainly in favour of trespassing, if it means these birds will come back more often.
The Indian Golden Oriole is a species of Oriole spread across the Indian Sub continent and Central Asia. It is a common bird, inhabiting a range of habitats, but it is still rare enough in a concrete city like Mumbai! The bright yellow and black colours make the male easy to identify, but the female is duller (as is common with birds), and this male (pic above) had two females around, probably trying to attract his attention!
The male stayed for a short time, but the females stayed put till the crows chased them away. It appears the crows don't like anyone trespassing on their territory. This is certainly one case though, when I am certainly in favour of trespassing, if it means these birds will come back more often.
Beautiful click
ReplyDeleteThank you, Shraddha!
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