Brahma Vav is a
stepwell
Stepwells (also known as vavs or baori) are wells or ponds with a long corridor of steps that descend to the water level. Stepwells played a significant role in defining subterranean architecture in western India from 7th to 19th century. So ...
in
Khedbrahma,
Gujarat
Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
, India. It was built in 14th century.
History
The stepwell is situated opposite the
Brahma temple. Based on ornamentation of the miniature shrines in the stepwell, it is dated to 14th century. There is no inscription in the stepwell to ascertain its age.
There are some
paliya
The Paliya or Khambhi is a type of a memorial found in the western regions of the India subcontinent, especially Saurashtra and Kutch regions of Gujarat and also in Sindh region of Pakistan. They mostly commemorates the death of a person. These ...
(hero stone) dedicated to Dhabi gatekeepers of the village who died fighting Maharaja Shivsinhji of Idar around Samvat 1800. The inscriptions on them are worn out.
Digambara
''Digambara'' (; "sky-clad") is one of the two major schools of Jainism, the other being '' Śvētāmbara'' (white-clad). The Sanskrit word ''Digambara'' means "sky-clad", referring to their traditional monastic practice of neither possessing ...
Jains
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...
and Khedaval Brahmins consider the stepwell sacred and used to worship their patron deities in it.
Architecture
The stepwell is built with grey granite stone. It is constructed in east-west direction; the entrance is in the east and the well is in the west. It is long; of stepped corridor and the well of diameter. The stepwell becomes narrower as one goes downwards and to the well. It has four ''kuta'' (pavilion-towers) where fourth is attached to the well. The breadth is (including parapet wall) and (without parapet wall) at the entrance which decreases to in second ''kuta'' and in the third ''kuta''. It had row of miniature shrines as an ornamentation in the wall of shaft of the stepwell which suggests it was built in 14th century. They resemble temple spires and has niches. It has 27 niches without any idols now. It is now in despair due to lack of maintenance.
See also
*
Brahma Kund
Brahma Kund is a stepped temple tank in Sihor town of Bhavnagar district, Gujarat, India. It is located near the southern wall of the old town. It believed that it was constructed by Jayasimha Siddharaja.
History
The exact dates of Brahma Kund ...
*
Rani ki vav
*
History of stepwells in Gujarat Stepwells are wells in which the water is reached by steps. They are most commonly found in western India especially Gujarat where over 120 such wells are reported. The origin of the stepwell may be traced to reservoirs of the cities of the Indu ...
References
{{commonscat
Stepwells in Gujarat
Khedbrahma
Tourist attractions in Sabarkantha district