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      • Swamy Paramasukananda Ji
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  • Ancient Sculptures

Ancient Sculptures

The Pitalkhora Caves

The Pitalkhora Caves, is an ancient Buddhist site consisting of 14 rock-cut cave monuments which date back to the third century BCE, making them one of the earliest examples of rock-cut architecture in India. You need to walk down a steep flight of concrete stairs and past a waterfall to reach these worderful caves. The inscriptions in the cave date from c. 250 BCE to the 3rd and 4th centuries CE.
The site shows statues of elephants, two soldiers of which one is intact, a damaged Gaja Lakshmi icon, and an ancient rainwater harvesting system.

The Qutab Minar

The Qutab Minar is a minaret that forms part of the Qutab complex, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Delh. The Qutab Minar is a 73-metre tall tapering tower of five storeys, with a 14.3 metre base diameter, reducing to 2.7 metres at the peak. Its design is thought to have been based on the Minaret of Jam, in western Afghanistan.
The Minar is surrounded by several historically significant monuments of the Qutab complex, including Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, which was built at the same time as the Minar. The intricate carvings of the pillars surrounding the Minar is beautiful and must be studied when you visit the site. @ Delhi, India

Chand Baori is a stepwell

Chand Baori is a stepwell situated in the village of Abhaneri in Rajasthan, India.
Abhaneri is situated at a distance of 95 km from Jaipur, on the Jaipur-Agra road.The city is now in ruins, and is located opposite Harshat Mata Temple. The Stepwell was constructed in AD 800. Chand Baori consists of 3,500 narrow steps over 13 stories. It extends approximately 30 m (100 ft) into the ground making it one of the deepest and largest stepwells in India.
It was built by King Chanda of the Nikumbh dynasty between AD 800 and AD 900, and was dedicated to Hashat Mata, Goddess of Joy and Happiness upon completion.
At the bottom of the well, the air remains 5-6 degrees cooler than at the surface, and Chand Baori was used as a community gathering place for locals during periods of intense heat. On One side of the stepwell is located a pavilion and resting room for the royals for the Royal family. @ Jaipur-Agra Highway

Ekapada Shiva

A Shiva with only one foot, replicating a Lingam shape, sometimes with Vishnu and Brahma emerging from him, the Ekapada Shiva is one of the most striking creations of the Yogic aspect of working with forms. It has a Tantric variant also, found in Shakti temples, where he is more Bhairava than Shiva, and which may provide a clue as to the sadhana aspects of such a rupa. For the Yogis used to create devatas in specific rupam for very precise reasons, to help in particular types of transformations of consciousness. It is perhaps not particularly co-incidental that this form of complete stillness is most widely seen in the same areas where Shiva is also known as the Nataraja, the Lord of the Dance.
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