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Odisha Part 11: Discovering the Jaina Heritage of Odisha at the caves of Udaygiri and Khandgiri

The Hindu and Buddhist history of Odisha , or rather, ancient Kalinga, is rather well known to everyone. Who hasn’t heard of the grand temples of Odisha – Puri, Lingaraj and Konark, or the great war of Kalinga which inspired Ashoka to convert to Buddhism? In contrast, very few know of the Jaina heritage of this region. This is quite a pity, since, just around 7 km from the city, is one of India’s most ancient inscriptions, which throws light on the Jaina heritage of Odisha. This inscription is the Hathigumpha inscription of Kharavela, in the hills of Udaygiri. Udaygiri and Khandgiri are two hills located opposite each other, and both are testaments to the rich Jaina heritage of Odisha. The caves at Udaygiri are older, while Khandgiri is relatively newer, but has lasted much longer, and continues to be a place of pilgrimage for Jains even today. These hills, from inscriptions and excavations of caves, shrines and rock beds, appear to have been a haven for Jaina monks, right from the ...
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Kumbhalgarh - A glimpse into the past

My last few posts have been about my trip to Kumbhalgarh, and I have written in detail, probably more than required, about my experiences there. I felt that my posts were much too long to qualify as a travelogue, and be of use to people who might like to visit the places I have mentioned. I am, therefore making a fresh effort to write about my trip, this time in brief, giving the relevant details, but nothing more. I hope this literary effort is of use to all of you. Nestled among the mighty Aravallis are many forts of the Rajputs, each one greater than the other, each one relating a story of its own, a story which is part history, part legend, but which gives each of these forts its own unique identity. The Kumbhalgarh fort in Rajasmand district of Rajasthan is one such fort which has its own story to tell. Kumbhalgarh Fort Kumbhalgarh is about 90 km from both, Udaipur as well as Falna. We took the Ranakpur express from Mumbai to Falna, and a cab from the Falna station to Kumbhalgar...
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Kumbhalgarh Trip – Day 5 – The Return to Falna

Our final day at Kumbhalgarh dawned bright and clear. We had decided to leave early in the morning and visit some temples along the way before reaching Falna in time for our train. Accordingly, we were provided with a driver who knew all the temples on that route. Prakash was indeed a well informed driver who had made the temple circuit on many occasions. The Amaj Mata Temple The Amaj Mata Temple was the first temple he took us to. It was not on my list, but he said we would enjoy it. This is a small temple to the goddess on a small hill, remarkably fertile. Just outside the temple is a tank, which is full of water throughout the year. Even though it was early in the morning, there were a number of people filling water from the tank. The temple is the usual kind, with an image of the Devi. Life-size sculptures of two elephants stand guard at the door, and on the side of the temple, under a banyan tree, are the images of the “NavaDurgas’, nine forms of the Goddess --- a simple, but ni...
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The Legends that surround Kumbhalgarh

History or Legend? Sometimes it is difficult to choose the right word. Here, I chose to use the word ‘Legend’, as I have not been able to verify the authenticity of the stories I heard from an old man living in the Kumbhalgarh Fort. He told us that he was a native of Kumbhalgarh, and had also worked for the Archaeological department in the fort, lending a touch of credibility to the story he told us. I must admit, that though we have fallen into the habit of taking in stories with a pinch of salt, there was an air of truth about this man. A Miniature of Rana Kumbha from Chittorgarh To begin with the origin of the fort , it is indeed a fact that the original fort here was ruled by the Jain king Samprati, who built around 300 Jain temples inside the fort. After him, the fort remained unused, and fell to ruins, except the temples, which survived to tell their story. Rana Kumbha came here to build a fort so that he could defend Mewar against the Mughals who were regularly attacking C...
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