Ancient
caves in the city
Plum boat Myntra
In the metropolitan city of Mumbai, in the western
suburb of this city, on the outskirts, are the Kanheri caves, which date back
to more than 2,000 years. The caves – 140 in total are in good condition, all
carved out of a single black rock, contain many ancient Buddhist sculptures,
carvings, paintings and inscriptions dating from 1st century BCE to 10th
century CE. It attracts tourists and visitors from all over India.
The Kanheri Caves are a group of caves and rock-cut
monuments cut into a massive basalt hill in the forests of the Sanjay Gandhi
National Park, on the former island of Salsette in the western outskirts of
Mumbai, India. Many living in the city haven’t heard or know about this ancient
heritage site. Ie t provides a study of those ancient days, the life and living
close to nature with an abundance of natural resources now lost in the random expanding
metropolitan city damaging the ancient and historical sites.
Kanheri comes from the Sanskrit Krishnagiri, which
means Black hills. The site is on a hillside, and is accessible via rock-cut
steps. The cave complex comprises one hundred and nine caves. The caves
were used for congregational worship, for studying the scriptures and for
meditation. Since then these caves were being used for living, studying and
meditation, they came to be known by the name of Buddhist Viharas. Kanheri Caves
also served as a university during the rule of Kushanas and Mauryas. Those days it must have been a thriving centre of
learning with people and monks from outside coming to study the scriptures and Buddhisim.
Now a part of the Sanjaya Gandhi National Park of
Mumbai's Borivali locality, the Kanheri Caves were once inhabited by the
monks as a refuge from the rains and harsh weather. It is also said, the
word Kanheri has been derived from the Hindi word Krishnagiri or Kanha-Giri,
which means Krishna's home (Krishna implies the dark one). The distance between
National Park and Kanheri Caves takes 12 minutes to travel from the National
Park to Kanheri Caves by road. The approximate distance between National Park
and Kanheri Caves is 10 km. Travel time refers to the time taken if the
distance is covered by a car.
The site is on a hillside, and is accessible via
rock-cut steps. The Kanheri Caves are a group of rock-cut monuments formed from
a massive basalt rock in the forests of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park on the
western outskirts of Mumbai. They contain Buddhist sculptures and relief
carvings, paintings and inscriptions. Kanheri comes from the Sanskrit name,
Krishnagiri, which means, Black hill. Each cave has a stone plinth that
functioned as a bed. A congregation hall with huge stone pillars contains a Stupa
(a Buddhist shrine). Rock-cut channels above the caves fed rainwater into
cisterns, which provided the complex with water. Once the caves were converted
to permanent monasteries, their walls were carved with intricate reliefs of
Buddha and the Bodhisattvas. Kanheri had become an important Buddhist
settlement on the Konkan coast by the 3rd century CE. Most of the caves were
used as the Buddhist Viharas, meant for living, studying and meditating. The
larger caves functioned as Chaitvas, or halls for congregational worship. The
Avalokiteshwara is the most distinctive figure.
The large number of Viharas demonstrate that there
was a well organized establishment of Buddhist monks. This establishment was
also connected with many active trading centers, such as the busy ports of Sopara, Kalyan, Nasik, Paithan and Ujjain.
Kanheri was a University center by the time the area was under the rule of
the Maurayan and Kushan empires. In the late 10th
century, the Buddhist teacher Atisha (980–1054) came to the Krishnagiri
Vihara to study Buddhist meditation under Rahulagupta.
Nearly 51 legible inscriptions and 26 epigraphs are
found at Kanheri, which include inscriptions in Brahmi, Devanagari and
3 Pahlavi epigraphs found in Cave 90. One of the significant
inscriptions mentions the marriage of Satavahana ruler Vashishtiputra
Satakarni with the daughter of Rudradaman. These inscriptions are historically valuable to understand the richness of our past much better.
There are many inscriptions on stone tablets, also two inscriptions of Yajna Sri
Satakarni (170-199 CE), in cave No. 81 and in the Chaitya cave No. 3.
A 494-495 CE inscription found at Kanheri mentions the Traikutaka dynasty.
Now with the city expanding from all sides and the
concrete jungle coming up, the ancient treasures are being damaged and getting
lost to the present generation. This heritage site offers a peek into life
thousands of years ago.
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