Pohale Caves

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Pohale Caves
Pohale Caves.jpg
Pohale Caves
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Coordinates 16°47′27″N74°11′28″E / 16.790872°N 74.191172°E / 16.790872; 74.191172 Coordinates: 16°47′27″N74°11′28″E / 16.790872°N 74.191172°E / 16.790872; 74.191172

Pohale Caves, also Pohala Caves or Pawala Caves, are a group of Buddhist caves located in Kolhapur District, Maharashtra, India, after 15km northeast of Kolhapur. [1] [2]

Maharashtra State in western India

Maharashtra is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is the second-most populous state and third-largest state by area in India. Spread over 307,713 km2 (118,809 sq mi), it is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to the southeast and Chhattisgarh to the east, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh to the north, and the Indian union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli to the north west. It is also the world's second-most populous subnational entity.

India Country in South Asia

India, officially the Republic of India, 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 south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west; China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north; and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; its Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand and Indonesia.

Kolhapur City Corporation in Maharashtra, India

Kolhapur is a historic city of Maharashtra. It is the district headquarters of Kolhapur district. Prior to Indian Independence, Kolhapur was a nineteen gun salute princely state ruled by the Bhosale Chhatrapati of the Maratha Empire.

The caves are rather plain and were excavated in a rocky area near Jyotiba's hill. [1] [2]

There is one large vihara, about square of about 34', with 14 columns on three sides and 22 cells around the central hall (7’ long, 5’ broad and 7’ high). [1] There is also a Chaitya, and one more cave with a raised rock-cut seat for a teacher, with a watern cistern. [1] [2]

Chaitya prayer hall from Buddhist tradition

A chaitya, chaitya hall, chaitya-griha, or caitya 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 apse at the end opposite the entrance, and a high roof with a rounded profile. Strictly speaking, the chaitya is the stupa itself, and the Indian buildings are chaitya halls, but this distinction is often not observed. Outside India, the term is used by Buddhists for local styles of small stupa-like monuments in Nepal, Cambodia, Indonesia and elsewhere. In the historical texts of Jainism and Hinduism, including those relating to architecture, chaitya refers to a temple, sanctuary or any sacred monument.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Revised Lists Of Antiquarian Remains In The Bombay Presidency. 1897. p. 285.
  2. 1 2 3 "ASI Mumbai Circle". www.asimumbaicircle.com.
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