Buddhist caves in India – An achievement of craftsmanship

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The Buddhist caves in India form an important part of Indian rock-cut architecture, and are among the most prolific examples of rock-cut architecture around the world.

There are more than 1,500 known rock cut structures in India, out of which about 1000 were made by Buddhists, 300 by Hindus, and 200 by Jains.

Many of these structures contain works of art of global importance, and many later caves from the Mahayana period are adorned with exquisite stone carvings.

Well-known Buddhist caves in India

These ancient and medieval structures represent significant achievements of structural engineering and craftsmanship.

This is a list of the most well-known Buddhist caves in India.

Chandavaram Buddhist site

Chandavaram Buddhist site is an ancient Buddhist site in Chandavaram village in Prakasam district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.

In 1985, a project called the “Buddha Poornima Project” was proposed.

Under this project, the world’s tallest standing monolith statue of Buddha was to be erected on the site. Made out of granite, the statue was carved by 200 sculptors in two years and on completion it weighed 440 tonnes with an overall height of 17 metres (56 ft).

However, the Buddha statue was transported to city of Hyderabad in 1988 instead, where it was erected in 1992 in the Hussain sagar lake and stands today.

Ajanta Caves

The Ajanta Caves are 30 (approximately) rock-cut Buddhist cave monuments which date from the 2nd century BCE to about 480 CE in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra state of India. The caves include paintings and rock-cut sculptures described as among the finest surviving examples of ancient Indian art, particularly expressive paintings that present emotion through gesture, pose and form.

Binnayaga Buddhist Caves

Binnayaga Buddhist Caves also known as Vinayaka or Vinayaga are located at village Binnayaga in the state of Rajasthan, India. The excavation has around 20 laterite caves facing south from east to west. This is monastic complex, the cells are smaller than Kolvi Caves cell. The stupa shaped sanctuary is the highlight of these caves. It has chaitya which bears windows. Another significant cave has two wings of an open courtyard. “It has at the back a closed lobby with vaulted ceiling and a central door flanked by a cell on either side. The moulded pedestal against the back wall is now empty.”

Pavurallakonda

Pavurallakonda or Pavurallabodu is the local name of a hill, popularly known as Narasimhaswamy Konda, near Bheemunipatnam about 25 km towards north of Visakhapatnam, in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located at a height of about 150 meters above mean sea level.

Kolvi Caves

Kolvi Caves or Kholve Caves, are located at Kolvi village in the state of Rajasthan, India. They are carved out in laterite rock hill. This Buddhist site has stupas, chaityas containing figures of Buddha. An architectural style shows dominance of Hinayana sect in this region. The caves has statues of Buddha in the meditation and standing position. The stupas and colossal statues of Buddha are archaeologically significant. Around Kolva village similar caves have been discovered which proves existence of prosperous Buddhist civilization in the region.

Dhamnar Caves

The Dhamnar Caves are caves located in the village of Dhamnar, located in Mandsaur district in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. This rock cut site consists of 51 caves, stupas, Chaityas, passages, and compact dwellings, carved in the 7th century CE. The site includes large statues of Gautama Buddha in sitting and Nirvana mudra.

Lenyadri

Lenyadri, sometimes called Ganesa Lena, Ganesh Pahar Caves, or Suleman Caves, represents a series of about 30 rock-cut Buddhist caves, located about 5km north of Junnar in Pune district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. Other caves surrounding the city of Junnar are: Manmodi Caves, Shivneri Caves and Tulja Caves.

Guntupalli Group of Buddhist Monuments

The Guntupalle or Guntupalli Group of Buddhist Monuments is located near Kamavarapukota, West Godavari district, in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India. It is around 40 km away from Eluru. The rock-cut part of the site has two Buddhist caves, a chaitya hall and a large group of stupas. The chaitya hall has a rare carved stone entrance replicating wooden architecture, a simpler version of that at the Lomas Rishi Cave.

Saru Maru

Saru Maru is the archaeological site of an ancient monastic complex and Buddhist caves.

The site contains a number of stupas as well as natural caves for monks.

In the caves many Buddhist graffiti have been found (swastika, triratna, kalasa …).

In the main cave were found two inscriptions of Ashoka: a version of the Minor Rock Edict n°1, one of the Edicts of Ashoka, and another inscription mentioning the visit of Piyadasi (honorific name used by Ashoka in his inscriptions) as Maharahakumara (Prince).

Bojjannakonda

Bojjannakonda and Lingalakonda are two Buddhist rock-cut caves on adjacent hillocks, situated near a village called Sankaram, which is a few kilometres away from Anakapalle, Vishakhapatnam in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The sites are believed to date between 4th and 9th Century A.D, when the 3 phases of Buddhism flourished at Sankaram. The real name of Bojjannakonda was actually Buddina Konda but the people can’t pronounce it properly by telling the name repeatedly so it was changed to Bojjannakonda

Yerphal Caves

Yerphal Caves, also Yerphale Caves, are a small group of Buddhist caves located near Umbraj, Maharashtra, India. The caves were only discovered recently, in 1979. It is located not far from the Karad Caves.

Mandapeshwar Caves

The Mandapeshwar Caves is an 8th Century rock-cut shrine dedicated to Shiva located near Mount Poinsur in Borivali, a suburb of Mumbai in Maharashtra, India. The caves were originally Buddhist viharas, before being occupied by the Brahmans.

Nasik Caves

The Nasik Caves, or sometimes Pandavleni Caves, are a group of 24 caves carved between the 1st century BCE and the 3nd century CE, though additional sculptures were added up to about the 6th century, reflecting changes in Buddhist devotional practices mainly. Buddhist sculptures are a significant group of early examples of Indian rock-cut architecture initially representing the Hinayana tradition. Most of the caves are viharas except for Cave 18 which is a chaitya of the 1st century BCE. The style of some of the elaborate pillars or columns, for example in caves 3 and 10, is an important example of the development of the form. The location of the caves is a holy Buddhist site and is located about 8 km south of the center of Nashik, Maharashtra, India, as well as some of the inscriptions of cave 3 and 10 contain one of the earliest known Sanskrit inscriptions about charities towards Hindu Brahmanas at the Prabhasa. Cave 11 has some Jain sculptures which includes 22nd Jain Tirthanakra Neminatha, Yakshi Ambika and Indra. These sculptures are of late Jaina workmanship.

Manmodi Caves

The Manmodi Caves are a complex of a rock-cut caves about 3 km to the south of the city of Junnar in India. Other caves surrounding the city of Junnar are: Tulja Caves, Shivneri Caves and Lenyadri caves.

Nenavali Caves

Nenavali Caves, also Khadsamble Caves, are located at Sudhagad at Raigad, India. This is group of 37 Buddhist caves about 35 km from Pali, carved in first century B.C.

Mahakali Caves

The Mahakali Caves, also Kondivite Caves, are a group of 19 rock-cut monuments built between 1st century BCE and 6th century CE.

Kuda Caves

Kuda Caves are located in the small village of Kuda, on the eastern side of the north shore of Murud-Janjira in south Konkan, India. These fifteen Buddhist caves are small, simple, and were excavated in first century BCE.

Kondana Caves

The Kondana Caves are located in the small village of Kondana, 33 km north of Lonavala and 16 km northwest of Karla Caves. This cave group has 16 Buddhist caves. The caves were excavated in first century B.C. The construction on wooden pattern is notable. One can reach the cave by descending from Rajmachi village.

Khed Caves

Khed Caves, also Bouddh Caves, are a series of ancient Buddhist caves in the city of Khed, Maharashtra, India.

Nasik inscription of Ushavadata

The Nasik inscription of Ushavadata is an inscription made in the Nasik Caves by Ushavadata, a viceroy of the Western Satraps ruler Nahapana, in the years circa 120 CE. It is the earliest known instance of the usage of Sanskrit, although a rather hybrid form, in western India.

Pitalkhora

The Pitalkhora Caves, in the Satmala range of the Western Ghats of Maharashtra, India, are 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. Located about 40 kilometers from Ellora, the site is reached by a steep climb down a flight of concrete stairs, past a waterfall next to the caves.

Pandava Caves

The Pandava Caves are located near Kadri Manjunath temple in Mangalore, Karnataka. Historians found that the current temple was a Buddhist monastery known as Kandarika Vihara. The shrine had a standing Buddha image in it. This image was replaced by the King Kundvarma of the Alupa dynasty, who was a devotee of Shiva. However it was not the Buddha but a bodhisattva who was historically integrated with Shiva. Historians concluded that the vihara was originally a centre of the cult of the bodhisattva Manjusri. This temple was one of the famous centres of learning and pilgrimage until the 11th century AD. This particular doctrine opened the doors for Tantric religion. Both Shilinga and the bodhisattva were worshipped for many centuries until the Buddhist temple was converted to a purely Saivite temple.

Panhalakaji Caves

Panhalakaji Caves are situated in the Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra state, about 160km south of Mumbai. This cave complex has around 30 Buddhist Caves. The Hinayana sect began carving caves in 3rd century AD, beginning with the stupa in the current Cave 5. The caves have inscriptions in Brahmi and Devanagari script. In the 10-11th century AD another Buddhist group, a Vajrayana sect, established cave 10 with their deities Akshobhya and Mahachandaroshana; and strengthened their practice in that region. Shiva and Ganpatya worshiping started at the site during Silahara rule.

Patan caves

The Patan Buddhist caves are recently discovered rock-cut caves, near Patan, Maharashtra, in the district of Satara. Eleven caves were discovered all together, spread in four different areas of Patan, in Tamkane, Yerphal, Yeradvadi and Digevadi.

Pohale Caves

Pohale Caves, also Pohala Caves or Pawala Caves, are a group of Buddhist caves located in Kolhapur District, Maharashtra, India, after 15km northeast of Kolhapur.

Sana Caves

There are two sets of Buddhist caves in two different places taking the name of Shana caves.

Saptaparni Cave

Saptparni Cave, also referred to as Sapta parni guha (Saraiki) or sattapaṇṇi guhā (Pali), literally Seven-leaves-cave, is a Buddhist cave site about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) southwest from Rajgir, Bihar, India. It is embedded in a hill. The Saptaparni Cave is important in the Buddhist tradition, because many believe it to be the site in which Buddha spent some time before his death, and where the first Buddhist council was held after Buddha died (paranirvana). It is here that a council of few hundred monks decided to appoint Ananda, Buddha’s cousin, and Upali, who had accompanied the Buddha when he gave sermons in north India, to compose Buddha’s teachings for the future generations. This was of special importance because the Buddha never wrote down his teachings. After the meeting in Saptaparni Cave, Ananda created an oral tradition of Buddha’s teaching from his memory, prefacing it with “Thus have I heard on one occasion”. Upali is credited with reciting the Vinaya (discipline), or “rules for the Bhikshus”. This tradition is found in Vinaya Pitaka II.284 through II.287 and Digha Nikaya II.154.

Shirwal Caves

Shirwal Caves are a group of 15 Buddhist caves located in a small village called Shriwal, 48 km south of Pune, India.

Shivneri Caves

The Shivneri Caves are artificial caves dug for Buddhist monks circa the 1st century CE. These are now famous tourist attractions located on Shivneri Hill, about 2 km Southwest of Junnar, India. Other caves around the city of Junnar are: Manmodi Caves, Lenyadri, and the Tulja Caves.

Talaja Caves

The Talaja Caves are located in Bhavnagar district of the Indian state of Gujarat at Talaja. The rock cuts are carved out into deserted conical rocks. The rock cut group include 30 caves among which about 15 are water tanks. The cave has unique architecture known as Ebhal Mandapa. The halls are plain. “On the facade there are chaitya windows with a broad bank below them.” The chaitya and cells were carved during Buddhism influence in 2nd century BC. During the Kshatrapas’ regime in 2nd-3rd century AD Jainism emblems were carved on the cells and the halls.

Thanale Caves

Thanale Caves or Nadsur Caves is a group of 23 Buddhist Caves located 72km to the southeast of Mumbai, in western Maharashtra, India, at Thanale Village, Taluka Sudhagad in Raigad, 18 km from Pali.

Tulja Caves

Tulja Caves are located beyond the Shivneri hill, about 4km to the west of Junnar, India. Other caves surrounding the city of Junnar are: Manmodi Caves, Shivneri Caves and Lenyadri caves.

Uparkot Caves

Uparkot caves, also Uperkot caves, are ancient man-made caverns. The caves are a part of the Junagadh Buddhist Cave Groups situated in the eastern part of Junagadh of the Indian state of Gujarat.

Wai Caves

Wai Caves are 9 Buddhist Caves, situated at Lonara, 7 km north of Wai. The Chaitya hall containing a Stupa has since been converted into a Shiva temple.

Khapra Kodiya Caves

The Khapra Kodiya Caves are part of the Junagadh Buddhist Cave Group. They are the oldest of the caves in the group. The caves, on the basis of scribbles and short cursive letters on the wall, are dated to 3rd-4th century BCE during the Emperor Ashoka’s rule and are the plainest of all the caves in the groups. These caves are also known as Khangar Mahal. They were carved in rock during the reign of Emperor Ashoka and are considered the earliest monastic settlement in the area. These caves are along the edge of the ancient Sudarshan Lake and a little outside Uparkot fort, to the north.

Karla Caves

The Karla Caves, Karli Caves, Karle Caves or Karla Cells, are a complex of ancient Buddhist Indian rock-cut caves at Karli near Lonavala, Maharashtra. It is just 10.9 Kilometers away from Lonavala. Other caves in the area are Bhaja Caves, Patan Buddhist Cave, Bedse Caves and Nasik Caves. The shrines were developed over the period – from the 2nd century BCE to the 5th century CE. The oldest of the cave shrines is believed to date back to 160 BCE, having arisen near a major ancient trade route, running eastward from the Arabian Sea into the Deccan.

Khambhalida Caves

Khambhalida Caves, or Rajkot Caves, are three Buddhist caves located near Gondal in Rajkot district, Gujarat, India.

Erravaram Caves

Erravaram Caves are located on the left bank of Yeleru river, at a distance of 45 km from Rajahmundry on Vishakhapatnam route. The caves are located on Dhanla–dibba hillock. The excavations revealed historic remains dated back to 100 A.D. This site flourished from 1st century B.C. to 2nd century A.D.

Bedse Caves

Bedse Caves are a group of Buddhist rock-cut monuments situated in Maval taluka, Pune District, Maharashtra, India. The history of the caves can be traced back to the Satavahana period in the 1st century BCE. They are some 9 km from the Bhaja Caves. Other caves in the area are Karla Caves, Patan Buddhist Cave and Nasik Caves.

Bagh Caves

The Bagh Caves are a group of nine rock-cut monuments, situated among the southern slopes of the Vindhyas in Bagh town of Dhar district in Madhya Pradesh state in central India. These monuments are located at a distance of 97 km from Dhar town. These are renowned for mural paintings by master painters of ancient India. The use of the word “cave” is a bit of a misnomer, since these are not natural, but instead examples of Indian rock-cut architecture.

Bhaja Caves

Bhaja Caves or Bhaje caves is a group of 22 rock-cut caves dating back to the 2nd century BC located in Pune district, near Lonavala, Maharashtra. The caves are 400 feet above the village of Bhaja, on an important ancient trade route running from the Arabian Sea eastward into the Deccan Plateau. The inscriptions and the cave temple are protected as a Monument of National Importance, by the Archaeological Survey of India per Notification No. 2407-A. It belongs to the Hinayana Buddhism sect in Maharashtra. The caves have a number of stupas, one of their significant features. The most prominent excavation is its chaitya, a good example of the early development of this form from wooden architecture, with a vaulted horseshoe ceiling. Its vihara has a pillared verandah in front and is adorned with unique reliefs. These caves are notable for their indications of the awareness of wooden architecture. The carvings prove that tabla – a percussion instrument – was used in India for at least 2300 years, disproving the centuries-held belief that the tabla was introduced to India by outsiders or from Turko-Arab. The carving shows a woman playing tabla and another woman, performing dance.

Dhank Caves

The Dhank Caves are located near Dhank village near Upleta, Rajkot district, Gujarat, India. They were chiseled out of a calcareous sandstone outcropping during the regime of the Western Satraps. The caves are influenced by Buddhist and Jain cultures. The Buddhist cave include figures of Bodhisattva and the Jain cave includes figures of Adinath, Shantinath and Pārśva. These are considered to be the earliest Jain sculptures in Kathiawad.

Karad Caves

The Karad Caves form a group of 66 Buddhist caves located south west of Karad, near the village Jakhinwadi overlooking the Koyna River. They are composed of:Agashiv Caves 17.2352778°N 74.1522222°E Bhairav Caves 17.239268°N 74.148289°E Dongrai Caves 17.2551854°N 74.1634643°E)

Dzongkhul Monastery

Dzongkhul Monastery or Zongkhul Gompa is located in the Stod Valley of Zanskar in Jammu and Kashmir in northern India. Like the Sani Monastery, it belongs to the Drukpa school of Tibetan Buddhism

Barabar Caves

The Barabar Hill Caves are the oldest surviving rock-cut caves in India, dating from the Maurya Empire, some with Ashokan inscriptions, located in the Makhdumpur region of Jehanabad district, Bihar, India, 24 km (15 mi) north of Gaya.

Ellora Caves

Ellora caves is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra, India. It is one of the largest rock-cut monastery-temple cave complexes in the world, featuring Buddhist, Hindu and Jain monuments, and artwork, dating from the 600–1000 CE period. Cave 16, in particular, features the largest single monolithic rock excavation in the world, the Kailasha temple, a chariot shaped monument dedicated to Shiva. The Kailasha temple excavation also features sculptures depicting the gods, goddesses and mythologies found in Vaishnavism, Shaktism as well as relief panels summarizing the two major Hindu Epics.

Gandharpale Caves

Gandharpale Caves, also called Mahad caves or Pandava Leni, is group of 30 Buddhist caves, 105 km south of Mumbai on Mumbai-Goa Highway near Mahad. The caves are located near the NH-17 and well connected by road.

Ghatotkacha Caves

The Ghatotkach Caves are located 18 km to the west of Ajantha, near Jinjala village, India. The caves include three Buddhist caves, one is a chaitya and two are viharas. The caves were excavated in the 6th century AD, and were influenced by Mahayana Buddhism.

Ghorawadi Caves

The Ghorawadi caves, also known as Ghorawdeshwar caves or Shelarwadi caves, are around 25 km northwest of Pune, India, were originally Buddhist caves, and now contain carvings and statues of Buddhist and Hindu deities.

Hathiagor Buddhist Caves

Hathiagor Buddhist Caves are located at village Pagaria in the state of Rajasthan, India. The caves are located on hiil called Hathiagor-ki-Pahadi. The group has five caves measuring 5 m x 5 m x 7 m. A stupa is located closer to the caves.

Jogeshwari Caves

The Jogeshwari Caves are some of the earliest Buddhist cave temples sculptures located in the Mumbai suburb of Jogeshwari, India. The caves date back to 520 to 550 CE. These caves belongs to the last stage of the Mahayana Buddhist architecture, which was later taken over by the Hindus. According to historian and scholar Walter Spink, Jogeshwari is the earliest major cave temple in India and “the largest”.

Junagadh Buddhist Cave Groups

Junagadh Buddhist Cave Groups are located in Junagadh district of the Indian state of Gujarat. The so-called “Buddhist Caves” are not actually caves, but three separate sites of rooms carved out of stone to be used as monks’ quarters. These caves were carved from Emperor Ashoka’s period up to 1st-4th century AD.

Kadia Dungar Caves

Kadia Dungar Caves are located at Kadia Dungar near Zazpor village of Zagadiya Taluka of in Bharuch district of the Indian state of Gujarat. The group has seven caves carved out in 1st and 2nd century AD on the mountain. The group includes sculpture of monolithic lion pillars. An architecture of cave shows vihara style construction. The site has brick stupa at the foot of a mountain. The caves were carved out in 1st or 2nd century AD. influenced by Buddhist architecture.

Ambivali Caves

The Ambivali Caves, or Ambivali Leni are a group of Buddhist caves, located near Neral, Raigad district, Maharashtra, 8km southeast of Kalyan. The caves are cut in the low hill located on the concave portion of a river. They consist in 12 viharas celles with verandah and several water cisterns. There is one inscription in Brahmi script on a verandah pillar.

Bava Pyara Caves

Bava Pyara caves are an example of ancient man-made caverns. The caves are a part of the Junagadh Buddhist Cave Groups situated in the eastern part of Junagadh of the Indian state of Gujarat. Bava Pyara caves contains artworks of both Buddhism and Jainism.

Aurangabad Caves

The Aurangabad caves are twelve rock-cut Buddhist shrines located on a hill running roughly east to west, close to the city of Aurangabad, Maharashtra. The first reference to the Aurangabad Caves is in the great chaitya of Kanheri Caves. The Aurangabad Caves were dug out of comparatively soft basalt rock during the 6th and 7th century.

Undavalli Caves

The Undavalli Caves, a monolithic example of Indian rock-cut architecture and one of the finest testimonials to ancient viswakarma sthapathis, are located in Mangalagiri Tadepalle Municipal Corporation of Guntur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The caves are located 6 km south west from Vijayawada, 22 km north east of Guntur City of Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the centrally protected monuments of national importance.

Badami cave temples

The Badami cave temples are a complex of Hindu and Jain cave temples located in Badami, a town in the Bagalkot district in northern part of Karnataka, India. The caves are important examples of Indian rock-cut architecture, especially Badami Chalukya architecture, and the earliest date from the 6th century. Badami is a modern name and was previously known as Vataapinagara, the capital of the early Chalukya dynasty, which ruled much of Karnataka from the 6th to the 8th century. Badami is situated on the west bank of a man-made lake ringed by an earthen wall with stone steps; it is surrounded on the north and south by forts built in later times.

Bagh – Dhar

Bagh is a census town in Dhar district in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is known for the Bagh Caves, which are late 4th- to 6th-century Buddhist rock-cut chambers with murals. The name of the town stems from the caves – according to local legend there were living tigers in these abandoned Buddhist caves.

Siyot Caves

The Siyot Caves, sometimes referred to as the Kateshwar Buddhist Caves, are five rock-cut caves located near Siyot village in the Lakpat Taluka of Kutch district, Gujarat, India.The caves are believed to belong to the first century AD.

Dharashiv Caves

Dharashiv caves are the nexus of 7 caves located 8 km away from Osmanabad city in Balaghat mountains in Maharashtra state of India. The caves were taken note by Archaeological Department of India and mentioned in the book Archaeological survey of India by James Burges. Dharashiv Caves have been declared as Protected area by Government of Maharashtra.

Bahrot Caves

Bahrot Caves, locally known as Barad(बारड), near Dahanu, Maharashtra are the only Parsi/Zoroastrian Cave temple in India. Bahrot Caves is located 25 km south of Sanjan, Gujarat and are situated at a small distance of 8 km away from the village of Bordi also nearly 9 km from NH48 from Talasari .This mountain range was originally belong to tribal people of village which they used for collecting wood, karvi Later They were unused Buddhist caves excavated by Buddhist monks. Zoroastrians hid for 13 years in these mountains after an invasion of their settlement at Sanjan by Alaf Khan, a general of Muhammad bin Tughluq in 1393 CE. The ‘Iranshah Flame’ was also moved to Bahrot during this period. Even today, this Holy Fire is burning, now housed in a temple in Udvada, see Iranshah Atash Behram and it is given the most eminent grade of devoted fire in the world. Bahrot Caves have been declared a heritage site and is a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

Belum Caves

The Belum Caves located in Andhra Pradesh is the second largest cave system on the Indian subcontinent, known for its speleothems, such as stalactite and stalagmite formations. The Belum Caves have long passages, galleries, spacious caverns with fresh water and siphons. This cave system was formed over the course of tens of thousands of years by the constant flow of underground water from the now-disappeared river Chitravathi. The cave system reaches its deepest point at the point known as Pataalaganga. Belum Caves have a length of 3,229 m (10,593.8 ft), making them the second largest caves on the Indian Subcontinent after the Krem Liat Prah caves in Meghalaya. It is one of the centrally protected Monuments of National Importance.

Ramateertham

Ramateertham is a village panchayat in Nellimarla mandal of Vizianagaram district in Andhra Pradesh in India. It is about 12 km from Vizianagaram city. It is a famous Pilgrimage and also Ancient Historical Site since 3rd Century BCE. There is a post office at Ramateertham. The PIN code is 535218.

Dharmrajeshwar

Dharmrajeshwar is an ancient Hindu cave temple site of 4th-5th century in Mandsaur district in Madhya Pradesh, India.

Pandavkada Falls

Pandavkada Falls is a waterfall located Kharghar, a suburb of Navi Mumbai. The waterfall, about 107 metres high is a type of ‘plunge’ waterfall in nature pouring in massive amounts of water on the rocky surface underneath.

Elephanta Caves

The Elephanta Caves are a collection of cave temples predominantly dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. They are on Elephanta Island, or Gharapuri, in Mumbai Harbour, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) east of Mumbai in the Indian state of Mahārāshtra. The island, about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) west of the Jawaharlal Nehru Port, consists of five Hindu caves, a few Buddhist stupa mounds that date back to the 2nd century BCE, and two Buddhist caves with water tanks.

Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary

Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary situated on the northern boundary of Mandsaur and Nimach districts in Madhya Pradesh, India. It is spread over an area of 368.62 km2 (142.32 sq mi) adjoining Rajasthan state in India. It was notified in 1974 and more area was added in 1983. The Chambal River passes through the sanctuary dividing it into two parts. The western part is in Nimach district and eastern part is in Mandsaur district. It is in the Khathiar-Gir dry deciduous forests ecoregion.

Kanheri Caves

The Kanheri Caves are a group of caves and rock-cut monuments cut into a massive basalt outcrop in the forests of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, on the former island of Salsette in the western outskirts of Mumbai, India. They contain Buddhist sculptures and relief carvings, paintings and inscriptions, dating from the 1st century CE to the 10th century CE. Kanheri comes from the Sanskrit Krishnagiri, which means black mountain.

Aihole

Aihole, also referred to as Aivalli, Ahivolal or Aryapura, is a historic site of ancient and medieval era Buddhist, Hindu and Jain monuments in north Karnataka, India dated from the fourth century through the twelfth century CE. Located around an eponymous small village surrounded by farmlands and sandstone hills, Aihole is a major archaeological site featuring over one hundred and twenty stone and cave temples from this period, spread along the Malaprabha river valley, in Bagalakote district.