History, Importance, Timings, Architecture, Interesting Facts and Travel Guide of Badami Cave Temples, Badami, Bagalkot, Karnataka, India
The Badami Cave Temples, the group of caves are located in Badami, the ancient historical town of Bagalkot district in state of Karnataka India. This is one of the excellent example of Indian rock cut temple architecture which is at just 22 km away from Pattadakal – the UNESCO World Heritage Site and 35 km from Aihole, the site of more than 125 ancient temple. The Badami caves are a reminder of India's rich history of combining arts with religion and spirituality. The walls of the caves represent the Chalukya style of architecture. The Chalukya style of architecture is considered as one of the innovative techniques of construction. The place has a number of caves in the surroundings of a town which has got a tourist attraction to the place to spend a day here. The first four caves are situated on the steep slopes, some are there around the lake, and some are recently discovered caves.
The historical name of Badami was Vatapi or Vataapinagara and this was the capital city of the Chalukyas dynasty. The distinct feature of this style is column Mandapa which leads to a small square shrine cut deep in the caves. In the 6th Century the Chalukya dynasty ruled over southern and central India. Pulakeshi came to the throne as a boy with his uncle Mangalesha serving as a regent. Mangalesha was assassinated by politicians who ruled from 610 to 640. He was a great king of his dynasty, defeating many kings. He completed the construction of the Badami Caves. The temples are carved out with the sand stones on the precipice of a hill. The all four temples in the Badami caves share the same plane, a veranda with columns and barricades leading to the main hall. The pillared Maha Mandapa which in turn leads to the smallest sanctum with houses and sculptures. There are many beautiful murals and the cutting edge describes how the perfecting carvings has been done to the stone.
Cave I is the Shaivite Cave. The cave has the five foot high idol of 18 armed, presenting different Mudras of Shiva as Nataraja, featuring Tandava, a two handed Ganesha, Mahisasura Mardini, Ardha Nareeswara and Shankaranarayana. A flame torch, a serpent and a trident with an axe. A Nandi is also present by the side of Shiva.
Cave II is the Vaishnavite Cave. The walls have the carvings of Anantasayana, Brahma, and Vishnu with panels of Trivikrama and Bhuvaraha.
The Cave III is the largest and the biggest among them all. The carvings are based on the themes of both the Vaishnavite and Shaivite. The Cave III is solely dedicated to Lord Vishnu. The other sculptures are Harihara and half Shiva. There are beautiful paintings on the ceilings. These paintings are among the earliest known surviving evidence of fresco painting in Indian art. This cave has the rarest sculptures of the wedding of Shiva and Parvati attended by various Hindu deities. An inscription found here mentioned about the creation of the shrine by Mangalesha in 578 AD.
The Cave IV is the Jain cave. There is a carving of Mahavira adorning the sanctum. The Padmavathi and the other Tirthankars carvings are also present in the wall. The carvings here symbolizes Jainism.
The mythology behind Badami, the Puranas state that the Vatapi was killed by sage Agastya and the Vatapi was Asur. This place was referred to as their tirth. There is a calm lake near to the cave which is known as Agastya Lake.
Tickets –30 Rs for Indians, 500 Rs for foreigners.
How to Reach Cave Temple Badami, Historical and Religious Site, near Aihole and Pattadakal, Karnataka, India
As Badami is one of the important historical and religious site and taluka near Aihole and Pattadakal in Bagalkot district in state of Karnataka and home to several ancient temple. Thus, it is easily accessible via road, rail and air network. Badami has major railway station from where you can get train to all major station of India. You can get government and private vehicle from nearby cities to reach here by road. The nearest airport from Aihole are Hubli Airport at 105 km and Belgaum Airport at 177 km. There are regular flights to Belgaum from all major cities in the country. Badami is located at just 35 km from Aihole, 22 km from Pattadakal, 34 km from Bagalkot and 140 km from Hampi.
