The Undavalli Caves are monolithic Indian rock-cut architecture, located in

Guntur district Guntur district is one of the twenty six districts in the Coastal Andhra region of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The administrative seat of the district is located at Guntur, the List of urban agglom ...

in the

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n state of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

. The caves are located south west of

Vijayawada Vijayawada ( ), formerly known by its colonial name Bezawada, is the second largest city and a major commercial hub in the Andhra Pradesh state of India. The city forms an integral part of the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region and is situated on th ...

. It is one of the centrally protected Monuments of National Importance.

History

Originally serving as a Jain abode resembling the architecture of the Udayagiri and Khandagiri caves. The caves later became a site for Buddhist monks and eventually transformed into Hindu temples. Undavalli caves are carved in the Gupta style of rock-cut architecture, dated back to the 4th-5th century CE. The caves showcase a confluence of religious influences, reflecting the region's diverse spiritual history. Notably, the Vishnukundina kings, who ruled from 420–620 CE, contributed to the development of these caves, leaving behind intricate sculptures and architectural elements.

Chronology

These caves were carved out of solid

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

on a hillside in the 4th to 5th centuries CE. There are several caves and the best known largest one has three stories with a huge recreated statue of

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

in a reclining posture, sculpted from a single block of

granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

inside the second floor. It is estimated that these caves were sculpted sometime in 4-5th century CE during the reign of Vishnukundina kings The main cave is one of the earliest examples of Gupta architecture, primarily primitive rock-cut

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

cells carved into the sandstone hills. Initially, the caves were shaped as a Jain abode and the first-floor abode still retains the Jain style; the vihara exhibits Jain monastics and includes

tirthankara In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (; ) is a saviour and supreme preacher of the ''Dharma (Jainism), dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a ''Tirtha (Jainism), tirtha'', a fordable passage across ''Saṃsā ...

sculptures. This first level of the cave is a carved vihara and includes

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

artwork. The site served as the

Bhikkhu A ''bhikkhu'' (, ) is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male, and female monastics (''bhikkhunī''), are members of the Sangha (Buddhist community). The lives of all Buddhist monastics are governed by a set of rules called the pratimok� ...

monastic complex during ancient period. The walls of the caves display sculptures carved by skilled craftsmen. The caves are surrounded by green countryside. From the high hill above the cave overlooking the Krishna River many fine specimens of rock-cut architecture can be seen. These caves are part of Mangalagiri Tadepalle Municipal Corporation.

Architecture

It is an Impressive Four storey rock cut temple with East facing facade of 29m long, 16m wide. There are variation in depth of each floor. The ground floor is an unfinished low pillared hall with 8 pillars and 7 door openings on façade. The first storey accommodates triple shrine at back, each with the pillared hall in front, originally dedicated to the Trinity (Shiva, Vishnu, and Brahma). Sculptures on the walls represent Vaishnava deities. The second storey has a pillared rectangular shrine of Vishnu on a serpent. Sculptures of Shiva and Vaishnava and a few like the Vaishnava Alwars are sculptured later on. The top floor was unfinished with a Triple Shrine. Some of the sculptural specimens are attributed to Chalukyan period. It has 5 meter long statue of Vishnu in reclining position. However, it may be difficult to conclude that the 5 meter long statue is lord Vishnu, because well accepted position of lord Vishnu are one side aligned, closed eyes, four hands, 5 head serpent with female god Shre Devi and Bhudevi. There is no such similarity. So it can be concluded that the statue may be 23rd or 17th tirthankara of jainism Parshvanatha. More particularly, the 8 head serpent in the cave leading to a new topic of research in the respective field. File:Padmanabaswami inside Undavalli Caves.jpg, Reclining Vishnu at Undavalli. File:Section of Undavalli Caves.png, Section of Undavalli Caves. File:Undavalli Caves at Mangalagiri 02.jpg,

Ganesha Ganesha or Ganesh (, , ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped Deva (Hinduism), deities in the Hindu deities, Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in the Ganapatya sect. His depictions ...

in the Undavalli Caves. File:Undavalli caves munis.jpg, Sculptures of

rishis In Indian religions, a ''rishi'' ( ) is an accomplished and enlightened person. They find mention in various Vedic texts. Rishis are believed to have composed hymns of the Vedas. The Post-Vedic tradition of Hinduism regards the rishis as "g ...

at Undavalli Caves. File:Wall Carvings at Undavalli Caves.jpg,

Hanuman Hanuman (; , ), also known as Maruti, Bajrangabali, and Anjaneya, is a deity in Hinduism, revered as a divine ''vanara'', and a devoted companion of the deity Rama. Central to the ''Ramayana'', Hanuman is celebrated for his unwavering devotio ...

depicted on a pillar at Undavalli Caves.

Transport

The only means of connectivity for the caves is by road. APSRTC operates bus services from

Guntur Guntur (), natively spelt as Gunturu, is a city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district. The city is part of the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region and is lo ...

and Amaravathi to this location. APCRDA runs Tourist Bus-cum-Boat services through Krishna River from Prakasam Barrage.

Notes

External links