Cave Temples of Ajanta

Now coming to Ajanta it may be said that it is not properly studied. A historical bias has been responsible for the lack of a coherent and unified picture. There are twenty nine caves, majority of which are Vihāras, the so called abodes of the monks and priests of the Buddhist Order. Caitya halls numbering about five are the Buddhists shrines attached to the principal Vihāras. Among these 29 caves caves III, IV, V, XIV, XXIV, XXV, XXVII, XXVIII and XXIX are left incompleted. Ajantā is famous for its paintings; but its contributions in the realm of building art, especially the vase and foliage capital formed the remarkable legacy of the Gupta Art. Ajanta cave-temples represent many centuries of growth of art and evolution of the Order. Both the schools of Buddhism, the Hīnayāna and Mahayana contributed to the Ajanta School of Indian Art, which in its onslaughts, powerfully contributed to all the three principle branches of Hindu Art—architecture, sculpture (iconography) and painting.

It is said that at Ajanta, a Hīnāyana order of priests had, towards the beginning of Christian era, excavated a group of large halls and monastic abodes, after which a quiescent period of four centuries intervened, when this Buddhist hierarchic settlement again sprang into life. These caves as already remarked signify two types of religious institutions established by convention, namely the Caitya hall or temple and Vihāra or monastery. In the later Mahayana phase (A.D. 450 to A.D. 612) however some changes were introduced especially in the excavations of Vihāras, the Caitya retained to all intents and purposes, the previous pattern of which the essential elements were the nave, aisles, apse, sūtpa and vaulted roof.