Kailasanatha Temple Ellora

Kailasanatha Temple Ellora History

Kailasanatha Temple Ellora History, Timings, Entry fees, Route Info

The Kailasa temple is also known as the Kailasa temple is one among the 34 caves of Ellora. The 16^thcave is the Kailas cave of the Ellora caves, the temple is a carved out of a single rock. It was constructed by Rashhtrakuta Dynasty, the temple was dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple architecture resembles a picture of a mountain. The speciality of the temple is that the carvings are upward to the downward direction. It took about eighteen years to build the temple, nearly 200,000 tonnes of stones have been removed for its construction. The temple is famous for its architecture, the architecture of the temple shows epic Ramayana, Mahabharata and the adventures of Lord Krishna were carved into the walls of the temple. The carving of Ravana trying to lift the mountain is an epic carving.

The first picture that comes to mind by listening to the name of Kailasa temple is the famous rock pillar which is called as Dhawajasthambam. The temple shows the incarnations of Lord Vishnu, the ten avatars of Lord Vishnu can be seen among the incarnations of the temple. There are many stories that depict the construction of the Kailasa temple, according to the Legend Yajnavalki (1470 – 1535 CE) the local king due to his ill health his wife got worried as the king was not recovering, the queen prayed to Lord Shiva for the king’s recovery at Elapura. In return, she shall build a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva if her wish comes true, and also promised to fast till she would see the shikra (tip) of the temple. The King recovered and passed the orders to construct the temple. The architect Kokasa assured the highnesses that they would be able to finish off the shikhara with in seven days that is a week of time. Then the temple was named as Manikeshwa. The Kailasa temple shows two floors showing Nandi mandapam and the Shiva temple, the Nandi facing to the lingam is a great construction which are about 7 meters high. The Nandi Mandapam is stood up on 16 pillars, the temple shows rock carvings, gathering halls, windows the Linga of Shiva gives peace to the heart.