Elephanta Caves

Just off the coast of Mumbai lies the Elephanta island. This strategically located island has been used as a base by the different colonial powers who, at various time periods had ambitions over the Indian mainland. However, these days, the islands are a major attraction because of the caves in the mountains.
After an hour’s journey from the Gateway of India in one of the innumerable boats available, one reaches the little jetty on the island. There are lots of islands scattered around, barely visible through the morning mist...and lots of sea traffic – from the smaller boats and yatches to the larger container ships, of various sizes and shapes, some so weirdly shaped that one wonders whether they’ll stay afloat at all??...

View from the boat jetty

From the jetty, there is miniature toy train for taking the people till the base of the mountain. I preferred to walk the distance, as it was alongside the water edge and it was fun to walk on the small rail tracks...
The path to the caves is through a steep uphill climb lined on either side with stalls selling curios and handicrafts. There is plenty of shade here, which along with the brilliant colours of the products create a beautiful atmosphere. There are people who will carry those who are physically not fit for the climb, on seats carried on shoulder.

On the top, one can get magnificent views of the sea extending to the distant horizon. The first thing about the caves one notices is their monumental scale – huge gaping openings are carved out of the face of the mountains. Massive columns prop up the voluminous interiors creating beautiful perspectives...the scale is massive. The play of light & shadow is pretty amazing. There are a number of shrines inside dedicated to various deities, with beautiful sculptures and carvings adorning the walls. In the main cave, there is a huge stone sculpture of Lord Shiva with all his 5 faces shown, while actually only 3 faces are present...the fourth face behind is implied and the fifth is not carved as it transcends the sight of mortals.

Entrance to the caves

Interior of a cave

The right side face is that of Bhairava – the fierce & terrifying form of Shiva, with serpent locks. On one side is his feminine face and on the centre is the face symbolising absolute knowledge.

The statue of Shiva

There are various caves with different images and sculptures. What one must really appreciate is the thought process behind such marvellous works...and also the technological advancement required to create such massive caves and sculptures. Truly, some of the caves are real engineering feats, with massive openings carved out from the mountain face, with huge cantilevered spans without even columns for support.

Further up, right on the summit are the Portuguese outposts, manned by 3 massive cannons of solid metal, each around 10meters long. From here, one gets unobstructed views in all directions...one can easily imagine the invincibility the Portuguese would have felt....

The massive canon on the hill-top

Sunset with the Mumbai skyline in the distance