Kolvi Caves or Kholve Caves, are located at Kolvi village in the state of

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern s ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. They are carved out in laterite rock hill. This

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

site has stupas,

chaitya A chaitya, chaitya hall, chaitya-griha, (Sanskrit:''Caitya''; Pāli: ''Cetiya'') refers to a shrine, sanctuary, temple or prayer hall in Indian religions. The term is most common in Buddhism, where it refers to a space with a stupa and a rounded ...

s containing figures of

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

. An architectural style shows dominance of

Hinayana Hīnayāna (, ) is a Sanskrit term literally meaning the "small/deficient vehicle". Classical Chinese and Tibetan teachers translate it as "smaller vehicle". The term is applied collectively to the ''Śrāvakayāna'' and ''Pratyekabuddhayāna'' pa ...

sect in this region. The caves has statues of Buddha in the

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...

and standing position. The stupas and colossal statues of Buddha are archaeologically significant. Around Kolva village similar caves have been discovered which proves existence of prosperous Buddhist civilization in the region.

The caves

The caves are in state of natural weathering resulting complete damage on northern and eastern side, but their remains are important in the architecture. The group has 50 caves in which many caves have lost their figure faces due to decaying. Currently caves are not occupied. Few caves have open or pillared verandah. File:ASI Kholvi Caves plan.jpg, Kholvi Caves, plan and elevation File:Caves no 34 and 35.jpg, Kolvi Caves File:Ancient ruins and pillars.jpg, Kolvi Caves File:Kolvi Caves 2.jpg, Kolvi Caves Buddh idol.jpg, Buddha statue Ancient pillar.jpg, Rock-hewn

arch Ancient pillars.jpg, Pillars

References

External links

Protected monuments by archaeological survey of India in Rajasthan
{{Indian Buddhist Caves Buddhist monasteries in India Buddhist temples in India Colossal Buddha statues Buddhist caves in India Indian rock-cut architecture Former populated places in India Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India Caves containing pictograms in India Tourist attractions in Jhalawar district Caves of Rajasthan Buddhism in Rajasthan

The caves

Further reading

See also

References

External links