Elephanta Caves - Other Notable Caves

Other Notable Caves

To the south-east of the Great Cave, is the second excavation which faces east-northeast. It includes a chapel at the north end. The front of this cave is completely destroyed, only fragments of some semi-columns remain. The interior has suffered water damage. The portico is 85 feet (26 m) long and 35 feet (11 m) deep. The chapel is supported by eight eight-cornered columns and two demi-columns and is irregular-shaped. At the back of the portico are three chambers; the central one has an altar and a water channel (pranalika), though the Linga is lost. The shrine door has some traces of sculpture (a boy, a fat figure, alligators on the frieze, and broken animal figures at the head of a door jamb). The door-keepers of the shrine are now in fragments.

A little to the south of the last cave, is another cave in worse condition, with water damage. It is a portico in which each end probably had a chapel or room with pillars in front. Two of them have cells at the back. The central door at the back of the portico leads to a damaged shrine. The shrine door has door-keepers at each side, leaning on dwarfs with flying figures over the head, with door-keepers and demons on the jamb and architrave. The shrine is a 19.833 feet (6.045 m) deep by 18.833 feet (5.740 m) wide plain room with a low altar, holding a Linga. South of this cave is a cavern, which may be used as a cistern.

Above these caves is a tiger sculpture, which was worshipped as the tiger goddess Vaghesheri. This sculpture may be a guardian of the north entrance of Cave 1. A Linga is also found near a small pond at top of the hill. Sculptures depicting a stone with a sun and a moon and a mother sucking a child (now moved) were also found nearby.

Across the top of the ravine from Cave 1 is large hall known as Sitabai's Temple (cave). The portico has four pillars and two pilasters. The hall has 3 chambers at the back, the central one a shrine and the rest for priests (both are plain rooms). The door of the central shrine has pilasters and a frieze, with the threshold having lion figures at the end. The shrine has an altar, a water channel, and hole in the center, in which a statue of Parvati may have been worshipped. A 17th century record states that "this cave a beautiful gate with a porch of exquisitely wrought marble" and two idols, one of goddess Vetal Candi and a head being in a large square seat.

Passing along the face of the eastern hill to the north of Sitabai's cave is a small Hindu excavation with a veranda, which was probably to be three cells, but was abandoned following the discovery of a flaw in the rock. Towards the east of hill is a dry pond, with large artificial boulders and Buddhist cisterns along its banks. At the end of the north spur of the main hill is a mound that resembles a Buddhist stupa.