Buddhist caves and monuments in India

The Buddhist caves in India. Maharashtra state Aurangabad Dist. Ellora caves form an important part of
Indian rock-cut architecture, and are among the most prolific examples of rock-cut architecture around the
world.[1] There are more than 1,500 known rock cut structures in India, out of which about 1000 were
made by Buddhists (mainly between 200 BCE and 600 CE), 300 by Hindus (from 600 CE to 1200 CE),
and 200 by Jains (from 800 CE to 1200 CE).[2] Many of these structures contain works of art of global
importance, and many later caves from the Mahayana period are adorned with exquisite stone carvings.
These ancient and medieval structures represent significant achievements of structural engineering and
craftsmanship.[3]

In India, caves have long been regarded as places of sanctity. Caves that were enlarged or entirely man-
made were felt to hold the same sanctity as natural caves. In fact, the sanctuary in all Indian religious
structures, even free-standing ones, retains the same cave-like feeling of sacredness, being small and dark
without natural light.[4]

The oldest rock-cut architecture in India is found in the Barabar caves, Bihar built around the 3rd century
BCE. Of these caves, mostly build by Emperor Ashoka and his grandson Dasaratha for the ascetic sect of
the Ajivikas, two caves are thought to have been dedicated to the Buddhist: Karan Chaupar cave, and
possibly the Lomas Rishi cave. Most other Buddhist caves are then found in the western Deccan,
consisting in shrines and monasteries, dating between 100 BCE and 170 CE. Originally, they were
probably accompanied by wooden structures, which would have deteriorated over time. Historically,
rock-cut temples have retained a wood-like theme in adornment; skilled craftsmen learned to mimic
timber texture, grain, and structure. The earliest cave temples include the Bhaja Caves, the Karla Caves,
the Bedse Caves, the Kanheri Caves, and some of the Ajanta Caves. Relics found in these caves suggest a
connection between the religious and the commercial, as Buddhist missionaries often accompanied
traders on the busy international trading routes through India. Some of the more sumptuous cave temples,
commissioned by wealthy traders, included pillars, arches, and elaborate facades during the time maritime
trade boomed between the Roman Empire and south-east Asia.[5]

Although free standing structural temples were also being built, such as the Bairat Temple (3rd century
BCE) and the various free-standing apsidal temples in Sanchi, Taxila or Ter, rock-cut cave temples
continued to be built in parallel. Later rock-cut cave architecture became more sophisticated as in the
Ajanta Caves, belonging to a second, and last, wave of Buddhist cave building. The last Buddhist caves
were built around the 6th century CE.[6]

THE ELEPHANTA CAVES

.The Elephanta Caves are located in Western India on Elephanta Island (otherwise known as the Island of
Gharapuri), which features two hillocks separated by a narrow valley. The small island is dotted with
numerous ancient archaeological remains that are the sole testimonies to its rich cultural past. These
archaeological remains reveal evidence of occupation from as early as the 2nd century BC. The rock-cut
Elephanta Caves were constructed about the mid-5th to 6th centuries AD. The most important among
the caves is the great Cave 1, which measures 39 metres from the front entrance to the back. In plan,
this cave in the western hill closely resembles Dumar Lena cave at Ellora, in India. The main body of the
cave, excluding the porticos on the three open sides and the back aisle, is 27 metres square and is
supported by rows of six columns each.

The 7-metre-high masterpiece “Sadashiva” dominates the entrance to Cave 1. The sculpture represents
three aspects of Shiva: the Creator, the Preserver, and the Destroyer, identified, respectively, with Aghora
or Bhairava (left half), Taptapurusha or Mahadeva (central full face), and Vamadeva or Uma (right half).
Representations of Nataraja, Yogishvara, Andhakasuravadha, Ardhanarishwara, Kalyanasundaramurti,
Gangadharamurti, and Ravanaanugrahamurti are also noteworthy for their forms, dimensions, themes,
representations, content, alignment and execution.

The layout of the caves, including the pillar components, the placement and division of the caves into
different parts, and the provision of a sanctum or Garbhagriha of sarvatobhadra plan, are important
developments in rock-cut architecture. The Elephanta Caves emerged from a long artistic tradition, but
demonstrate refreshing innovation. The combination of aesthetic beauty and sculptural art, replete with
respondent Rasas, reached an apogee at the Elephanta Caves. Hindu spiritualistic beliefs and symbology
are finely utilized in the overall planning of the caves.

Criteria (i): The fifteen large reliefs surrounding the lingam chapel in the main Elephanta Cave not only
constitute one of the greatest examples of Indian art but also one of the most important collections for
the cult of Shiva.

Criteria (iii): The caves are the most magnificent achievement in the history of rock-architecture in
western India. The Trimurti and other colossal sculptures with their aesthetic setting are examples of
unique artistic creation.

All the archaeological components in the Elephanta Caves are preserved in their natural settings. There is
further scope to reveal archaeological material and enhance information by exposing the buried stupas.
At the time of the listing the need was noted to safeguard the fragile site from nearby industrial
development. Currently, saline activity and general deterioration of rock surface are affecting the caves.
Management of the property would be enhanced through the adoption of a Conservation Management
Plan to guide restoration and conservation works.
THE UDAYAGIRI CAVES

The Udayagiri Caves are twenty rock-cut caves near Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh from the early years of the
5th century CE.[1][2] They contain some of the oldest surviving Hindu and Jain temples and iconography
in India.[1][3][4] They are the only site that can be verifiably associated with a Gupta period monarch
from its inscriptions.[5] One of India's most important archaeological sites, the Udayagiri hills and its
caves are protected monuments managed by the Archaeological Survey of India.

Udayagiri caves contain iconography of Jainism .[6][5] They are notable for the ancient monumental
relief sculpture of Parshvanatha in his incarnation.[3] The site has important inscriptions of the Gupta
dynasty belonging to the reigns of Chandragupta II (c. 375-415) and Kumaragupta I (c. 415-55).[7] In
addition to these, Udayagiri has a series of rock-shelters and petroglyphs, ruined buildings, inscriptions,
water systems, fortifications and habitation mounds, all of which remain a subject of continuing
archaeological studies. The Udayagiri Caves complex consists of twenty caves, of which one is dedicated
to Hinduism and all others to Jainism.[4] The Jain cave is notable for one of the oldest known Jaina
inscriptions from 401 CE, while the Hindu caves feature inscriptions from 425 CE.[8]

There are a number of places in India with the same name, the most notable being the mountain called
Udayagiri at Rajgir in Bihar and the Udayagiri and Khandagiri Caves in Odisha.
THE AJANTA CAVES

The Ajanta Caves are approximately 30 rock-cut Buddhist cave monuments dating from the 2nd century
BCE to about 480 CE in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra state in India.[1][note 1] The caves
include paintings and rock-cut sculptures described as among the finest surviving examples of ancient
Indian art, particularly expressive paintings that present emotions through gesture, pose and form.[3][4]
[5]

They are universally regarded as masterpieces of Buddhist religious art. The caves were built in two
phases, the first starting around the 2nd century BCE and the second occurring from 400 to 650 CE,
according to older accounts, or in a brief period of 460–480 CE according to later scholarship.[6] The site
is a protected monument in the care of the Archaeological Survey of India,[7] and since 1983, the Ajanta
Caves have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Ajanta Caves constitute ancient monasteries and worship-halls of different Buddhist traditions
carved into a 75-metre (246 ft) wall of rock.[8][9] The caves also present paintings depicting the past
lives [10] and rebirths of the Buddha, pictorial tales from Aryasura's Jatakamala, and rock-cut sculptures
of Buddhist deities.[8][11][12] Textual records suggest that these caves served as a monsoon retreat for
monks, as well as a resting site for merchants and pilgrims in ancient India.[8] While vivid colours and
mural wall-painting were abundant in Indian history as evidenced by historical records, Caves 16, 17, 1
and 2 of Ajanta form the largest corpus of surviving ancient Indian wall-painting.[13]

Panoramic view of Ajanta Caves from the nearby hill

The Ajanta Caves are mentioned in the memoirs of several medieval-era Chinese Buddhist travellers to
India and by a Mughal-era official of Akbar era in the early 17th century.[14] They were covered by
jungle until accidentally "discovered" and brought to Western attention in 1819 by a colonial British
officer Captain John Smith on a tiger-hunting party.[15] The caves are in the rocky northern wall of the U-
shaped gorge of the river Waghur,[16] in the Deccan plateau.[17][18] Within the gorge are a number of
waterfalls, audible from outside the caves when the river is high.[19]

With the Ellora Caves, Ajanta is one of the major tourist attractions of Maharashtra. It is about 6
kilometres (3.7 miles) from Fardapur, 59 kilometres (37 miles) from the city of Jalgaon, Maharashtra,
India, 104 kilometres (65 miles) from the city of Aurangabad, and 350 kilometres (220 miles) east-
northeast of Mumbai.[8][20] Ajanta is 100 kilometres (62 miles) from the Ellora Caves, which contain
Hindu, Jain and Buddhist caves, the last dating from a period similar to Ajanta. The Ajanta style is also
found in the Ellora Caves and other sites such as the Elephanta Caves, Aurangabad Caves, Shivleni Caves
and the cave temples of Karnataka

THE IRON PILLAR OF DELHI

The iron pillar of Delhi is a structure 7.21 metres (23 feet 8 inches) high with a 41-centimetre (16 in)
diameter that was constructed by Chandragupta II (reigned c. 375–415 AD), and now stands in the Qutb
complex at Mehrauli in Delhi, India.[1][2] It is famous for the rust-resistant composition of the metals
used in its construction. The pillar weighs more than 6 tonnes and is thought to have been erected
elsewhere, perhaps outside the Udayagiri Caves,[3] and moved to its present location by Anangpal
Tomar in 11th century

Physical description
The height of the pillar, from the top to the bottom of its base, is 7.21 m (23 ft 8 in), 1.12 m (3 ft
8 in) of which is below ground. Its bell pattern capital is 306 mm (12 in). It is estimated to weigh
more than six tonnes (13,228 lb).[4] The pillar has attracted the attention of archaeologists and
materials scientists because of its high resistance to corrosion and has been called a "testimony
to the high level of skill achieved by the ancient Indian iron smiths in the extraction and
processing of iron".[5][6] The corrosion resistance results from an even layer of crystalline
iron(III) hydrogen phosphate hydrate forming on the high-phosphorus-content iron, which
serves to protect it from the effects of the Delhi climate.
Inscriptions
The pillar carries a number of inscriptions of different dates, some of which have
not been studied systematically despite the pillar's prominent location and easy
access

The inscription covers an area of 2′9.5″ × 10.5″. The ancient writing is preserved
well because of the corrosion-resistant iron on which it is engraved. However,
during the engraving process, iron appears to have closed up over some of the
strokes, making some of the letters imperfect.[8]

It contains verses composed in Sanskrit language, in shardulvikridita metre.[9] It is

written in the eastern variety of the Gupta script. The letters vary from 0.3125″ to
0.5″ in size, and resemble closely to the letters on the Allahabad Pillar inscription
of Samudragupta. However, it had distinctive mātrās (diacritics), similar to the
ones in the Bilsad inscription of Kumaragupta I.[10] While the edges of the
characters on the Allahabad inscription are more curved, the ones on the Delhi
inscription have more straight edges. This can be attributed to the fact that the
Allahabad inscription was inscribed on softer sandstone, while the Delhi
inscription is engraved on the harder material (iron).[11] The text has some
unusual deviations from the standard Sanskrit spelling, such as:[10]

pranśu instead of praṃśu: the use of dental nasal instead of anusvāra

mūrtyā instead of mūrttyā: omission of the second t

kīrtyā instead of kīrttyā: omission of the second t

śattru instead of śatru (enemy): an extra t

Inscription of King Chandra or Chandragupta II
The oldest inscription on the pillar is that of a king named Chandra (IAST:
Candra), generally identified as the Gupta emperor Chandragupta II.

Studies
In 1831, the East India Company officer William Elliott made a facsimile of the
inscription. Based on this facsimile, in 1834, James Prinsep published a
lithograph in the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
However, this lithograph did not represent every single word of the inscription
correctly.Some years later, British engineer T. S. Burt made an ink impression of
the inscription. Based on this, in 1838, Prinsep published an improved
lithograph in the same journal, with his reading of the script and translation of
the text.

Decades later, Bhagwan Lal Indraji made another copy of the inscription on a
cloth. Based on this copy, Bhau Daji Lad published a revised text and translation
in 1875, in Journal of the Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. This
reading was the first one to correctly mention the king's name as Chandra. In
1888, John Faithfull Fleet published a critical edition of the text in Corpus
Inscriptionum Indicarum.

In 1945, Govardhan Rai Sharma dated the inscription to the first half of the 5th
century CE, on paleographic grounds. He observed that its script was similar to
the writing on other Gupta-Era inscriptions, including the ones discovered at
Bilsad (415 CE), Baigram (449 CE), and Kahanum (449 CE). R. Balasubramaniam
(2005) noted that the characters of the Delhi inscription closely resembled the
dated inscriptions of Chandragupta II, found at Udayagiri in Madhya Pradesh.
THE TEXT WRITTEN IN THE TABLETS

Following is the Roman script transliteration of the text:[23]

Yasy odvarttayah-pratīpamurasā śattrun sametyāgatan Vańgeshvāhava

varttinosbhilikhitā khadgena kīrttir bhuje

Tirtvā sapta mukhāni yena samare sindhor jjitā Vāhlikāyasyādya pyadhivāsyate

jalanidhir vviryyānilair ddakshinah

Khinnasy eva visrijya gām narapater ggāmāśritasyaetrām mūr(t)yā karmma-

jitāvanim gatavatah kīrt(t)yā sthitasyakshitau

Śāntasyeva mahāvane hutabhujo yasya pratāpo mahānnadhayā pyutsrijati

pranāśista-ripor Yyatnasya śesahkshitim

Prāptena sva bhuj ārjitan cha suchiran ch aikādhirājayam kshitau chandrāhvena

samagra chandra sadriśīm vaktra-śriyam bibhratā

Tenāyam pranidhāya bhūmipatinā bhāveva vishno (shnau) matim

prānśurvisnupade girau bhagavato Vishnuordhidhvajah sthāpitah

Original location OF THE PILLAR

The pillar was installed as a trophy in building the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque and
the Qutb complex by Sultan Iltutmish in the 13th century.[28] Its original location,
whether on the site itself or from elsewhere, is debated.[29][30]

According to the inscription of king Chandra, the pillar was erected at

Vishnupadagiri (Vishnupada). J. F. Fleet (1898) identified this place with Mathura,
because of its proximity to Delhi (the find spot of the inscription) and the city's
reputation as a Vaishnavite pilgrimage centre. However, archaeological evidence
indicates that during the Gupta period, Mathura was a major centre of Buddhism,
although Vaishnavism may have existed there. Moreover, Mathura lies in plains,
and only contains some small hillocks and mounds: there is no true giri (hill) in
Mathura.

Based on paleographic similarity to the dated inscriptions from Udayagiri, the

Gupta-era iconography, analysis of metallurgy and other evidence, Meera Dass
and R. Balasubramaniam (2004) theorized that the iron pillar was originally
erected at Udayagiri.[15][32] According to them, the pillar, with a wheel or discus
at the top, was originally located at the Udayagiri Caves. This conclusion was
partly based on the fact that the inscription mentions Vishnupada-giri (IAST:
Viṣṇupadagiri, meaning "hill with footprint of Viṣṇu"). This conclusion was
endorsed and elaborated by Michael D. Willis in his The Archaeology of Hindu
Ritual, published in 2009.

The key point in favour of placing the iron pillar at Udayagiri is that this site was
closely associated with Chandragupta and the worship of Vishnu in the Gupta
period. In addition, there are well-established traditions of mining and working
iron in central India, documented particularly by the iron pillar at Dhar and local
place names like Lohapura and Lohangī Pīr (see Vidisha). The king of Delhi,
Iltutmish, is known to have attacked and sacked Vidisha in the thirteenth century
and this would have given him an opportunity to remove the pillar as a trophy to
Delhi, just as the Tughluq rulers brought Asokan pillars to Delhi in the 1300s.

THE GOL GUMBAZ

Gol Gumbaz (lit. 'Round Dome'),[1] also written Gol Gumbad,[2] is a 17th-century

mausoleum located in Bijapur, a city in Karnataka, India. It houses the remains of
Mohammad Adil Shah, seventh sultan of the Adil Shahi dynasty, and some of his
relatives. Begun in the mid-17th century, the structure never reached completion.
The mausoleum is notable for its scale and exceptionally large dome.

It is an important example of the southern regional style of Indo-Islamic

architecture.

The building is one of those put by UNESCO on its "tentative list" to become a
World Heritage Site in 2014, under the name Monuments and Forts of the Deccan
Sultanate

HISTORY OF GOL GUMBAZ

The construction of the Gol Gumbaz began in the mid-17th century, during the
close of Mohammad Adil Shah's reign, which was from 1627 to 1656.[1] It is
located directly behind the dargah of Hashim Pir, a Sufi saint; Richard Eaton views
this as suggestive of the close relationship between the ruler and the saint.[4] The
mausoleum was never completed; construction may have halted in 1656 due to
Mohammad Adil Shah's death that year

Architecture
The Gol Gumbaz is one of the most ambitious structures built by the Adil Shahi
dynasty. It is the most technically advanced domed structure to have been erected
in the Deccan,and one of the largest single-chamber structures in the world.The
architect of the structure is not known.[6] Bianca Alfieri asserts that the building's
size was a conscious decision made by Mohammad Adil Shah in order to rival the
architecture of the Ibrahim Rauza, the tomb of the ruler's predecessor Ibrahim
Adil Shah II.Alternatively, Elizabeth Merklinger suggests that the size was an
attempt to assert the stature of the Adil Shahi dynasty, in light of its later
absorption by the Mughal Empire.

The mausoleum is contained in a larger walled complex, with other buildings such
as a mosque, a naqqar khana, and a dharmshala

PLAN AND EXTERIOR

Despite the grand nature of the monument, the plan of the Gol Gumbaz is simple.
It is a cube 47.5 m on each side, topped by a hemispherical dome of diameter
approximately 44 m. domed octagonal towers, each divided into seven floors and
topped by a bulbous dome, line the four corners of the cube. The levels of the
towers are marked by arcades and contain staircases within.[2]

The walls of the structure are built of dark grey basalt and decorated plaster.[8]
Each side wall of the cube bears three blind arches; the spandrels of the arches
contain medallion motifs, and the central arch on each side wall is filled with a
stone screen containing doorways and windows. Cornices project from the
building, supported by corbels. Atop the cornices are rows of small arches,
themselves topped by large merlons. Leaves surround the base of the
mausoleum's dome, hiding the joint between the dome and its drum

INTERIOR
The interior is a huge single chamber that is approximately 41 m across and 60 m
high. In the centre of the chamber floor is a raised platform bearing the cenotaphs
of Mohammad Adil Shah, his younger wife Arus Bibi, his older wife, his favourite
mistress Rhamba, his daughter, and a grandson. The cenotaphs mark the location
of the actual tombs, which are found in a crypt underneath and accessed by a
staircase under the western entrance of the mausoleum. Though typical of Indian
Muslim tombs,this is the only instance of such a practice in Adil Shahi
architecture. Mohammad Adil Shah's cenotaph is covered by a wooden canopy;
Michell and Zebrowski speculate that this is a later addition. A half-octagonal
room is attached to the north facade of the building, though this is also a later
addition.

MATTANCHRRY
Mattancherry (Malayalam pronunciation: [mɐʈːɐːɲd͡ʒeːɾi]), is a locality in the city
of Kochi, India. It is about 9 km south-west from the city center. It is said that the
name Mattancherry comes from "Ancherry Mattom", a ''Namboodiri illam'' which
the foreign traders then pronounced it as Matt-Ancherry, gradually became
Mattancherry. The place where erstwhile 'Ancherry Mattom' located is now a
Tamil Brahmin settlement

Etymology

It is said that the name Mattancherry comes from "Ancherry Mattom", a

''Namboodiri illam'' which the foreign traders then pronounced it as Matt-
Ancherry, gradually became Mattancherry.

Another possible origin is from the Malabari Jewish community which states that
the name Mattancherry comes from two words, "Mathana" meaning "gift" in
Hebrew and "cheri" meaning land/Island in malayalam. According to Oral
traditions, the land was granted to them as a gift from the Hindu Rajah, hence the
name

Synagogue

A synagogue, sometimes referred to as shul,[b] and interchangeably used with the

word temple, is a Jewish house of worship. Synagogues have a place for prayer
(the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels), where Jews attend religious
Services or special ceremonies (including Weddings, Bar Mitzvahs or Bat Mitzvahs,
Confirmations, choir performances, or even children's plays), have rooms for
study, social hall(s), administrative and charitable offices, classrooms for religious
school and Hebrew school, sometimes Jewish preschools, and often have many
places to sit and congregate; display commemorative, historic, or modern artwork
throughout; and sometimes have items of some Jewish historical significance or
history about the Synagogue itself, on display.

Synagogues are consecrated spaces used for the purpose of Jewish prayer, study,
assembly, and reading of the Torah (read in its entirety once a year in weekly
Torah portions during religious Services). However, a Synagogue is not always
necessary for Jewish worship, due to adaptations during times of Jewish
persecution in countries and regions that banned Judaism, frequently destroying
and/or reappropriating Synagogues into Churches or even government buildings.
Halakha (Jewish "law," or Mitzvot, from the Mishnah -- the "Oral Torah") state that
communal Jewish worship can be carried out wherever a minyan (a group of at
least 10 Jewish adults) is assembled. Worship can also happen alone or with fewer
than 10 people, but there are certain prayers that are considered by halakha as
solely communal, and these can therefore be recited only by a minyan, depending
on sect of Judaism. In terms of its specific ritual and liturgical functions, the
Synagogue does not replace the symbol of the long-destroyed Temple in
Jerusalem (1st or 2nd Temple).

Origins
Although synagogues existed a long time before the destruction of the Second
Temple in 70 CE, communal worship in the time while the Temple still stood
focussed mostly on korbanot brought by the Kohanim (Aaronic priesthood line
of Rabbinical succession) in the Temple in Jerusalem. The all-day Yom Kippur
service, was an event in which the congregation both observed the movements
of the kohen gadol ("high priest") as he presided over the day's traditions and
processions, and administered prayers for success.

According to Jewish tradition, the men of the Great Assembly (around 5th
century BCE) formalized and standardized the language of the Jewish prayers.[3]
Prior to that people prayed as they saw fit, with each individual praying in his or
her own way, and there were no standard prayers that were recited.[citation
needed]

Johanan ben Zakai, one of the leaders at the end of the Second Temple era,
promulgated the idea of creating individual houses of worship in whatever
locale Jews found themselves. This contributed to the continuity of the Jewish
people by maintaining a unique identity and a portable way of worship despite
the destruction of the Temple, according to many historians.[citation needed]

Synagogues in the sense of purpose-built spaces for worship, or rooms originally

constructed for some other purpose but reserved for formal, communal prayer,
however, existed long before the destruction of the Second Temple.[unreliable
source?] The earliest archaeological evidence for the existence of very early
synagogues comes from Egypt, where stone synagogue dedication inscriptions
dating from the 3rd century BCE prove that synagogues existed by that date.
[unreliable source?] More than a dozen Jewish (and possibly Samaritan) Second
Temple era synagogues have been identified by archaeologists in Israel, and in
other countries belonging to the Hellenistic world.

Any Jew or group of Jews can build a synagogue. Synagogues have been
constructed by ancient Jewish "kings" (the English word "king" has a different
context lost in English translation; more appropriately translating to "leader"),
by wealthy patrons, as part of a wide range of human institutions including
secular educational institutions, governments, and hotels, by the entire Jewish
community of living in a particular village or region, or by sub-groups of Jewish
people arrayed according to occupation, ethnicity (i.e. the Sephardi, Yemeni,
Polish or Persian Jews of a town), style of religious observance (i.e., Reform,
Orthodox synagogue), or by the followers of a particular Rabbi (only in very
small congregations or ultra-orthodox Hasidism).

It has been theorized that the synagogue became a place of worship in the
region upon the destruction of the Second Temple during the First Jewish–
Roman War; however, others speculate that there had been places of prayer,
apart from the Temple, during the Hellenistic period. The popularization of
prayer over sacrifice during the years prior to the destruction of the Second
Temple in 70 CE had prepared the Jews for life in the diaspora, where prayer
would serve as the focus of Jewish worship.

Despite the possibility[dubious – discuss] of synagogue-like spaces prior to the

First Jewish–Roman War, the synagogue emerged as a stronghold for Jewish
worship upon the destruction of the Temple. For Jews living in the wake of the
Revolt, the synagogue functioned as a "portable system of worship". Within the
synagogue, Jews worshiped by way of prayer rather than sacrifices, which had
previously served as the main form of worship within the Second Temple

kamakhya temple

The Kamakhya Temple at Nilachal hills in Guwahati, Assam is one of the oldest and
most revered centres of Tantric practices. The temple is the center of the
Kulachara Tantra Marga and the site of the Ambubachi Mela, an annual festival
that celebrates the menstruation of the goddess. Structurally, the temple is dated
to the 8th-9th century with many subsequent rebuildings—and the final hybrid
architecture defines a local style called Nilachal.It is also one of the oldest of the
51 pithas in the Shakta tradition.An obscure place of worship for much of history
it became an important pilgrimage destination, especially for those from Bengal,
in the 19th century during colonial rule.
Originally an autochthonous place of worship of a local goddess where the
primary worship of the aniconic yoni set in natural stone continues till today,[9]
the Kamakya Temple became identified with the state power when the Mleccha
dynasty of Kamarupa patronised it first, followed by the Palas, the Koch, and the
Ahoms.The Kalika Purana, written during the Pala rule, connected Naraka, the
legitimizing progenitor of the Kamarupa kings, with the goddess Kamakhya
representing the region and the Kamarupa kingdom.

It has been suggested that historically the worship progressed in three phases—
yoni under the Mlechhas, yogini under the Palas and the Mahavidyas under the
Kochs.[12] The main temple is surrounded in a complex of individual temples
dedicated to the ten Mahavidyas of Saktism, namely, Kali, Tara, Tripura Sundari,
Bhuvaneshwari, Bhairavi, Chhinnamasta, Dhumavati, Bagalamukhi, Matangi and
Kamalatmika. Among these, Tripurasundari, Matangi and Kamala reside inside the
main temple whereas the other seven reside in individual temples. Temples for
individual Mahavidyas together as a group, as found in the complex, is rare and
uncommon.

In July 2015, the Supreme Court of India transferred the administration of the
Temple from the Kamakhya Debutter Board to the Bordeuri Samaj.

Ancient history of kameikha

The earliest historical dynasty of Kamarupa, the Varmans (350–650), as well as
Xuanzang, a 7th-century Chinese traveler ignored the Kamakhya; and it is
assumed that the worship at least till that period was Kirata-based beyond the
brahminical ambit.The first epigraphic notice of Kamakhya is found in the 9th-
century Tezpur plates of Vanamalavarmadeva of the Mlechchha dynasty.Since the
archaeological evidence too points to a massive 8th-9th century temple, it can be
safely assumed that the earliest temple was constructed during the Mlechchha
dynasty.From the moldings of the plinth and the bandhana, the original temple
was clearly of Nagara type, possibly of the Malava style.
The later Palas of Kamarupa kings, from Indra Pala to Dharma Pala, were followers
of the Tantrik tenet and about that period Kamakhya had become an important
seat of Tantrikism. The Kalika Purana (10th century) was composed and Kamakhya
soon became a renowned centre of Tantrik sacrifices, mysticism and sorcery.
Mystic Buddhism, known as Vajrayana and popularly called the "Sahajia cult", too
rose in prominence Kamarupa in the 10th century. It is found from Tibetan records
that some of the eminent Buddhist professors in Tibet, of the 10th and the 11th
centuries, hailed from Kamarupa.

St. Thomas Cathedral Basilica, Chennai

San Thome Church, officially known as St Thomas Cathedral Basilica and National
Shrine of Saint Thomas, is a minor basilica of the Catholic Church in India, at the
Santhome neighbourhood of Madras (Chennai), in Tamil Nadu. The present
structure dates to 1523 AD, when it was rebuilt by the Portuguese, over the tomb
of Thomas the Apostle, one of the Twelve commissioned by Jesus Christ. In 1896,
it was renovated in the Madras province according to neo-Gothic designs, as was
favoured by British architects in the late 19th century. It is one of the only three
churches of the apostolic age of ancient Christianity, known for enshrining the
tomb of an apostle and are still standing in the world today; the other two being
the St Peter's Basilica in Vatican City and Santiago de Compostela Cathedral in
Galicia, Spain. In antiquity, there was a basilica built over the tomb of the Apostle
Philip in Hierapolis of Phrygia, present-day Pamukkale.

History of St. Thomas the Apostle

According to the Bible, Saint Thomas was born in the Roman province of Judea.
He was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. He was one of the brothers of Jesus,
and was named Judah, called the Twin, aka Didymus. He was the one who
touched the wound of Jesus after he rose from his death. Later on in AD 52 he
came to Kerala, India, to preach about Jesus and later on he moved to present-day
Chennai. In AD 72 he was killed in St. Thomas Mount and he was buried in
Mylapore (presently Santhome) by his disciples, and a small structural building
(church) was built to mark his tomb.[citation needed]

Later on the tomb of St. Thomas was respected and maintained by Muslims and
they called the tomb as "Bothuma" (House of Thomas). Centuries later, it became
an abandoned structure although many pilgrims came to visit the tomb from East
and Kerala

Tower of Silence

A dakhma (Persian: ‫)دخمه‬, also known as a Tower of Silence, is a circular, raised

structure built by Zoroastrians for excarnation (that is, the exposure of human
corpses to the elements for decomposition), in order to avert contamination of
the soil and other natural elements by the dead bodies.[1][2][3] Carrion birds,
usually vultures and other scavengers, consume the flesh. Skeletal remains are
gathered into a central pit where further weathering and continued breakdown
occurs.

History of the tower of silence

Zoroastrian ritual exposure of the dead is first known of from the writings of the
Ancient Greek historian Herodotus (mid-5th century BCE), who observed the
custom amongst Iranian expatriates in Asia Minor.[2] In Herodotus' account
(Histories i.140), the Zoroastrian funerary rites are said to have been "secret", but
were first performed after the body had been dragged around by a bird or dog.
The corpse was then embalmed with wax and laid in a trench.[4]

The discovery of ossuaries in both Eastern and Western Iran dating to the 5th and
4th centuries BCE indicate that bones were sometimes isolated, but separation
occurring through ritual exposure cannot be assumed: burial mounds,[5] where
the bodies were wrapped in wax, have also been discovered. The tombs of the
Achaemenid emperors at Naqsh-e Rustam and Pasargadae likewise suggest non-
exposure, at least until the bones could be collected. According to legend
(incorporated by Ferdowsi into his Shahnameh; lit. 'The Book of Kings'), Zoroaster
himself is interred in a tomb at Balkh (in present-day Afghanistan).

Zoroastrian exposure of the dead is first attested in the mid-5th century BCE
Histories of Herodotus, but the use of towers is first documented in the early 9th
century CE. The doctrinal rationale for exposure is to avoid contact with earth,
water, or fire, all three of which are considered sacred in the Zoroastrian religion.

One of the earliest literary descriptions of such a building appears in the late 9th-
century Epistles of Manushchihr, where the technical term is astodan, 'ossuary'.
Another term that appears in the 9th- to 10th-century texts of Zoroastrian
tradition (the so-called "Pahlavi books") is dakhmag; in its earliest usage, it
referred to any place for the dead.

Writing on the culture of the Persians, Herodotus reports on the Persian burial
customs performed by the magi, which are kept secret. However, he writes that
he knows they expose the body of male dead to dogs and birds of prey, then they
cover the corpse in wax, and then it is buried. The Achaemenid custom is recorded
for the dead in the regions of Bactria, Sogdia, and Hyrcania, but not in Western
Iran.

The Byzantine historian Agathias has described the Zoroastrian burial of the
Sasanian general Mihr-Mihroe: "the attendants of Mermeroes took up his body
and removed it to a place outside the city and laid it there as it was, alone and
uncovered according to their traditional custom, as refuse for dogs and horrible
carrion".

Towers are a much later invention and are first documented in the early 9th
century CE.The funerary ritual customs surrounding that practice appear to date
to the Sassanid ra (3rd–7th CE). They are known in detail from the supplement to
the Shayest ne Shayest, the two Rivayat collections, and the two Saddars