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
So many shades of green – from the bright green of the leaves to the dull green mixed with brown of the mountains. Even the lake was green, though it was difficult to decide if it was the colour of the water, or simply the reflection. As the setting sun cast its last light of the day on the water, the lake appeared to be a jewel, hidden away in the mountains. We were at Lonar, the site of India’s only meteoric crater lake, and from my vantage point on the balcony of the MTDC resort, as I watched the shades of green grow dark and disappear into the darkness, I wondered if I would be able to climb down the crater and discover some of the mysteries it held.