Buddhist caves, temples in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 1

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) discovered Buddhist caves and stupas, and Brahmi inscriptions, dating back to the 2nd century.

• Hindu temples from the 9th-11th centuries, and possibly the world’s largest Varaha sculpture also dating to the same period, at the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh.
• 46 new sculptures have come to light in exploration that took place 84 years after the last such effort in 1938.
• The ASI team discovered 26 mostly Buddhist caves dating back to the 2nd and 5th centuries.
• The caves and some of their remains had Chaitya [rounded] doors and stone beds typical of Mahayana Buddhism sites.
• The inscriptions mention sites such as Mathura and Kaushambi, and Pavata, Vejabharada and Sapatanaairikaa. 
• The kings they mention include Bhimsena, Pothasiri and Bhattadeva.
• The Kalachuri dynasty, which spread over parts of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, is also associated with the earliest Ellora and Elephanta cave monuments.
• Some remains of the Gupta period, such as door jambs and carvings in caves, have also been found.
• The ASI team found 24 inscriptions in Brahmi text, all dating back to the 2nd-5th centuries.