Misplaced Pages

#109890

83-552: The Udayagiri Caves are twenty rock-cut caves near Vidisha , Madhya Pradesh primarily denoted to the Hindu gods Vishnu and Shiva from the early years of the 3rd century CE to 5th century CE. They contain some of the oldest surviving Hindu temples and iconography in India. They are the only site that can be verifiably associated with a Gupta period monarch from its inscriptions. One of India's most important archaeological sites,

166-472: A courtyard are matrikas (mother goddesses), eroded likely because of weathering. This is one of the three groups of matrikas found at Udayagiri site in different caves. The prominent presence of the matrikas in a cave dedicated to Shiva suggests that the divine mothers had been accepted within the Shaivism tradition by about 401 CE. Some scholars speculate that there may have been Skanda here, but others state

249-557: A date, but the inscription in Cave 6 does. The "love to Shambhu (Shiva)" is notable given the Varaha panel and royal sponsors of the Gupta era also revere Vishnu. The three caves are small excavations to the side of Cave 8. All three are next to each other. Their entrance opens north-northwest, and all have damaged Vishnu carvings. Cave 9 and 10 are rectangular niche like openings, while Cave 11

332-590: A donation to the temple. Some historians have suggested that the iron pillar in the courtyard of Quwwat-ul-Islam at the Qutb Minar site in Delhi originally stood at Udayagiri. The Delhi pillar is accepted by most scholars as one brought to Delhi from another distant site in India, but scholars do not agree on which site or when this relocation happened. If the Udayagiri source proposal is true, this implies that

415-456: A few of these caves are quite small. The significant caves include iconography of all three major traditions of Hinduism. Some of the caves have inscriptions. Caves 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 13 have the most number of sculptures. The largest is Cave 19. In addition, there are rock-cut water tanks at various locations, as well as platforms and shrine monuments on the top of the hill related to Shaivism, Vaishnavism and Shaktism. There were more of these before

498-423: A group of small Vaishnava shrines can be found. These small Vaishnava shrines are popularly known as Sadhavatara Temple. The temple comprises a large open pillared hall, in which the pillars are dedicated to the ten incarnations of Vishnu. These pillars date back from 8th to 10th century CE. Towards the western bank of the lake lie the ruins of sati pillars that date back to 9th or 10th century CE. One of these pillars

581-635: A large defensive wall were found on the western side of the city. Ancient Buddhist railings were also found just outside of the city, which had probably adorned a stupa . Numerous coins were found, including nine coins of the Western Satraps . The Heliodorus Pillar is a stone column, which was constructed in about 150 BCE. This stone column was erected by the Greek ambassador of the Indo-Greek King Antialcidas , who came to

664-559: A major city by the 3rd-century BCE. Michael Willis – an archaeologist and Curator of early South Asian collections at the British Museum , and other scholars revisited the site in the early 2000s. Once again no Buddhist evidence was found at the Udayagiri Caves, but more artifacts related to Hinduism and Jainism. According to Julia Shaw, the evidence collected so far has led to a "major revision" about presumptions about

747-579: A medical college located in Vidisha. It became functional in 2018 and received its first batch of students in the same year. The number of students admitted in 2018 was 150 whereas in 2019 the intake was increased to 180. Students are admitted to the college through NEET-UG examination. Floruit Latin : flōruit is the third-person singular perfect active indicative of the Latin verb flōreō , flōrēre "to bloom, flower, or flourish", from

830-618: A millennium ago it would have been nearer and directly on it. Udayagiri residents must have seen the sun directly overhead on the Summer solstice day, and this likely played a role in the sacred of this site for the Hindus. The site at Udayagiri Caves was the patronage of Chandragupta II, who is widely accepted by scholars to have ruled the Gupta Empire in central India between c. 380-414 CE. The Udayagiri Caves were created in final decades of

913-411: A passage prior to Cave 8 which consists of a natural cleft or canyon in the rock running approximately east to west. The passage has been subject to modifications, the sets of steps cut into the floor being the most conspicuous feature. The lowest set of steps on the right-hand side are eroded. Sankha Lipi or shell inscriptions – so-called because of their shell-like shape, are found on the upper walls of

SECTION 10

#1732772019110

996-522: A record of his marriage in 1197, a record concerning him might be written as "John Jones (fl. 1197–1229)", even though Jones was born before 1197 and died possibly after 1229. The term is often used in art history when dating the career of an artist. In this context, it denotes the period of the individual's known artistic activity, which would generally be after they had received their training and, for example, had begun signing work or being mentioned in contracts. In some cases, it can be replaced by

1079-441: A saint who was locally known as Lohangi Pir. This small domed building is a tomb, which has two Persian inscriptions on it. One of the inscriptions dates back to 1460 CE, while the other is from 1583 CE. The tank and a large bell-capital dating back to the 1st century BCE can be seen on the nearby hill. Near the tomb are the remains of a medieval temple that survived as a pillared crypt. These are dedicated to Goddess Annapurna. Lohangi

1162-558: A sanctum. Traces of two pilasters are seen on both sides of the entrance and there is a deep horizontal cutting above which shows that there was some sort of portico (mandapa) in front of the shrine. Inside there is a rock-cut image of Skanda , the war god, on a monolithic plinth. The mouldings and spout of the plinth are now damaged. The Skanda sculpture is desecrated, with his staff or club and parts of limbs broken and missing. The surviving remnants show an impressive muscular torso, with Skanda's weight distributed equally on both legs. Cave 3

1245-589: A swing and Torana is an arched gate - is a magnificent artwork of the 9th century or medieval period, situated in Gyaraspur. It is a developed, ornamental and decorated arched gate made of sandstone. On both of its pillars, Lord Vishnu's ten incarnations are engraved. Near it, four carved and sculpted pillars and beams seem to be the ruins of Trimurthy temple set on one raised platform, as Lord Shiva, Lord Ganesha, Goddess Parvati and their servants are sculpted on these pillars and beams. The gate may be an entrance gate for

1328-475: A temple for Vishnu, Shiva or Thirumurthy. Bajramath Temple is situated in Gyaraspur, on NH-146 behind the Sub-Judicial Magistrate and Tehsildar's Office. The temple faces the east, and was a Hindu temple later transformed into a Jain temple. It is just opposite the hill on which Maladevi temple is situated. Dashavtar Temple is situated on the north of the local lake, where ruins of

1411-531: A way that a majority of scholars would accept it. Archaeological excavations of the 20th century on mounds between Vidisha rampart and Udayagiri have yielded evidence that suggests that Udayagiri and Vidisha formed a contiguous human settlement zone in the ancient times. Udayagiri hills would have been the suburb of Vidisha located near the confluence of two rivers The Udayagiri Caves are likely euphemistically mentioned in Kalidasa text Meghduta in section 1.25 as

1494-488: Is Brahmi but the language is Prakrit , recording that Heliodorus erected the pillar as a Garuda Stambha to pay homage to Lord Vasudeva, who was later integrated as a manifestation of Lord Vishnu . Besnagar was known as Bhelsa during the medieval period. It became famous for the temple of Sun god Bhillasvamin. It was ruled by the Later Gupta king Devagupta of Malwa and Rashtrakuta king Krishna III . The name

1577-400: Is Sankha lipi, probably several versions of it given the different styles, all of which remain undeciphered. It is this which confirms that Udayagiri and Vidisha were inhabited and an active site of literate people before these caves were produced. Further, it also establishes 401 CE as the floruit for the existence and the use of Sankha lipi. The cave also has a flat top with evidence that there

1660-444: Is a bit bigger and has a square plan. Cave 10, the middle one is a bit higher in its elevation. Cave 12 is a Vaishnavism-related cave known for its niche containing a standing figure of Narasimha or the man-lion avatar of Vishnu. The Narasimha carving is flanked below by two standing images of Vishnu. Cave 12 is notable for having the clearest evidence that the cave was excavated into a rock with pre-existing inscriptions. The script

1743-487: Is a large rock right in the heart of Vidisha, within walking distance of the railway station, is of religious and historical significance in the region. Udaygiri is less than 10 km from Vidisha town. It is a series of at least 20 caves, containing both Hindu and Jain sculptures from the Gupta Era, sometime between the 4th and 5th century CE. According to Jain texts, Tirthankara Sheetal Nath attained nirvana here. It

SECTION 20

#1732772019110

1826-438: Is a square with 7 feet (2.1 m) side, while the sanctum is 7 feet by 6 feet. Outside, Cunningham reported four square pillars. The back wall of the cave has a deity carved into the rock wall, but this was damaged by chiseling later at some point. The iconographic markers are gone and the deity is unknown. Cave 2 is to the north of Cave 1, but still on the southern foothill isolated from the main cluster of caves. Its front wall

1909-426: Is about 14 feet long and 12 feet broad. The cave is badly damaged, but contains a historically significant inscription. Outside the cave, the empty hollow remnants provide the evidence that there was a mandapa outside this cave. To the sides of the entrance are eroded dvarapalas (guardian reliefs) with a bushy hairstyle found for dvarapalas in other caves. The cave is notable for its 4.5 feet (1.4 m) lotus carving on

1992-514: Is also well-connected by road. Vidisha is well known for its educational institutions. Many of the primary and secondary schools are affiliated with the Madhya Pradesh Board of Secondary Education . Some schools choose to be affiliated with Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). There is a Grant-in-Aid Autonomous College called Samrat Ashok Technological Institute (SATI). Atal Bihari Vajpayee Government Medical College ,

2075-595: Is an exclusively Hinduism and Jainism-related site, it being close to the Buddhist site of Sanchi and the Bhagavata-related Heliodorus pillar , and his dating parts of the site to between 2nd century BCE and early 5th century CE brought it to scholarly attention. The early Udayagiri Caves reports appealed to the prevailing conjecture about the rise and fall of Buddhism in the Indian subcontinent,

2158-448: Is basically a small hill where intricate sculptures have been cut out of the rocks. Maladevi temple is a grand Portal of ninth century CE, situated on the eastern slope of a hill and built on a huge platform cut out of the hillside and strengthened by a massive retaining wall, Maladevi temple's imposing structure provides a panoramic valley view, in Gyaraspur, about 40 km from Vidisha along NH-86. Hindola Torana - Hindola means

2241-704: Is best interpreted as Udayagiri around 400 CE. The Udayagiri Caves were first studied in depth and reported by Alexander Cunningham in the 1870s. His site and iconography-related report appeared in Volume 10 of Tour Reports published by the Archaeological Survey of India, while the inscriptions and drawings of the Lion Capital at the site appeared in Volume 1 of the Corpus Inscriptionum Indicum . His comments that Udayagiri

2324-604: Is carved with four sculptured faces that depict a seated group of Hara-Gauri. Girdhari Temple , which is known for its sculptures and fine carvings, is a popular attraction in Sironj. The ancient shrines of Jatashankar and Mahamaya are located close to this temple. Jatashankar Temple is situated 3 km towards the south-west of Sironj in the forest area. On the other hand, Mahamaya Temple is situated 5 km south-west of Sironj. Udayeshwara Temple , located in Udaipur village of

2407-612: Is dedicated to Jainism and all others to Hinduism. The Jain cave is notable for one of the oldest known Jaina inscriptions from 425 CE, while the Hindu caves feature inscriptions from 401 CE. There are a number of places in India with the same name, the most notable being the mountain called Udayagiri at Rajgir in Bihar and the Udayagiri and Khandagiri Caves in Odisha . Udayagiri, means

2490-465: Is drowning and overwhelmed in the cosmic ocean. Vishnu emerges in the form of a man-boar avatar. He, as the hero in the legend, descends into the ocean, finds her, she hangs onto his tusk, he lifts her out to safety. The good wins, the crisis ends, and Vishnu once again fulfills his cosmic duty. The Varaha legend has been one of many historic legends in the Hindu text embedded with right versus wrong, good versus evil symbolism, and of someone willing to go to

2573-529: Is first noted in an inscription of 878 CE by a merchant Hatiaka of Paravada community. The 12th-century Tri-shashthi-shalaka-purusha-charitra mentions an image of Bhillasvamin at Vidisa, along with a copy of Jivant Swami buried in the sand. Minhajuddin's Tabaqat-i-Nusiri states that the temple was destroyed by Iltutmish in 1233–34 CE. In 1293, Alauddin Khalji of the Delhi Sultanate sacked

Udayagiri Caves - Misplaced Pages Continue

2656-446: Is likely his minister Virasena. Cave 14, the last cave on the left hand side at the top of the passage. It consists of a recessed square chamber of which only two sides are preserved. The outline of the chamber is visible in the floor, with a water channel pierced through the wall on one side as in the other caves at the site. One side of the doorjamb is preserved, showing jambs with receding faces but without any relief carving. Cave 15

2739-632: Is reaching out to get one. This makes the cave notable as it sets the floruit for the widespread acceptance and significance of Ganesha in the Hindu pantheon to about 401 CE. The presence of all three major traditions within the same temple is also significant and it presages the norm for temple space in subsequent centuries. In addition to Durga, Cave 6 depicts the Hindu matrikas (mother goddesses from all three traditions). One group of these divine mothers are so "badly destroyed", states Sara L. Schastok, that only limited information can be inferred. The matrikas are prominent because they are placed immediately to

2822-409: Is small square cave without separate sanctum and pitha (pedestal). Cave 16 is a Shaivism related cave based on the pitha and iconography. The sanctum and the mukha-mandapa are both squares. Vidisha Vidisha (विदिशा, formerly known as Bhelsa and known as Besnagar and Bhaddilpur in ancient times) is a city in central Madhya Pradesh , India. It is located 62.5 km northeast of

2905-509: Is sometimes called the Skanda temple. Cave 4 was named the Vina cave by Cunningham. It presents both Shaiva and Shakti themes. It is an excavated temple of about 14 feet by 12 feet. The cave has a style that suggests that it was completed with the other caves. The doorway frame is plain but it is surrounded by three bands of rich carvings. In one of these bands, in a circular boss to the left of

2988-461: The Gupta dynasty belonging to the reigns of Chandragupta II (c. 375-415) and Kumaragupta I (c. 415-55). In addition to these, Udayagiri has a series of rock-shelters and petroglyphs, ruined buildings, inscriptions, water systems, fortifications and habitation mounds, all of which remain a subject of continuing archaeological studies. The Udayagiri Caves complex consists of twenty caves, of which one

3071-509: The Shungas , Nagas , Satavahanas , and Guptas , and was mentioned in the Pali scriptures. The Emperor Ashoka was the governor of Vidisha during his father's lifetime. His Buddhist Empress Vidisha Devi who was also his first wife, was brought up in Vidisha. It finds mention in Kalidasa 's Meghaduta . The ruins of Besnagar were inspected by Alexander Cunningham in 1874–1875. Remains of

3154-456: The "Silavesma on the Nicaih hill", or the pleasure spot of Vidisha elites on the caves filled hill. Between the 5th-century and the 12th-century, the Udayagiri site remained important to Hindu pilgrims as sacred geography. This is evidenced by a number of inscriptions in scripts that have been deciphered. Some inscriptions between the 9th and the 12th centuries, for example, mention land grants to

3237-605: The 'sunrise mountain'. The region of Udayagiri and Vidisha was a Buddhist and Bhagavata site by the 2nd century BCE as evidenced by the stupas of Sanchi and the Heliodorus pillar . While the Heliodorus pillar has been preserved, others have survived in ruins. Buddhism was prominent in Sanchi, near Udayagiri, in the last centuries of the 1st millennium BCE. According to Dass and Willis, recent archaeological evidence such as

3320-403: The 4th-century, and consecrated in 401 CE. This is based on three inscriptions: These inscriptions are not isolated. There are a number of additional stone inscriptions elsewhere at the Udayagiri site and nearby which mention court officials and Chandragupta II. Further the site also contains inscriptions from later centuries providing a firm floruit for historical events, religious beliefs and

3403-788: The 9th to the 10th century CE, as well as Harrappan art. Vidisha railway station is a railway station on the Delhi-Chennai, Delhi-Mumbai main line of the Central Railway, at a distance of 54 km from Bhopal , the capital of Madhya Pradesh. Sanchi on the Jhansi-Itarsi section of the West Central Railway and Bhopal to Bina triple electrified broad gauge lines, from Bina to Katni double electrified Lines, Vidisha 102 km from Bina, and Vidisha, 9 km from Sanchi, are more convenient. Vidisha

Udayagiri Caves - Misplaced Pages Continue

3486-686: The Basoda Tehsil, is one of the most prominent Hindu shrines in the region. The inscriptions found in this temple suggest that the Udaipur Town was founded by the Parmara King Udayaditya during the 11th century CE. Other inscriptions found at the temple suggest that Parmara King Udayaditya dedicated it to Lord Shiva. Vidisha Museum or Vidisha District Museum is the main museum of the city of Vidisha. The museum has many sculptures, terracottas and coins, especially from

3569-610: The Udayagiri Caves archaeological site as well as the wider archaeological landscape of this region. Willis and team have proposed that, perhaps Udayagiri was a Hindu and Jaina site all along, and that the evidence collected so far suggests that the Saura tradition of Hinduism may have preceded the arrival of Buddhism in this region. Many of the artifacts found in the area are now located in the Gwalior Fort Archaeological Museum . The caves were produced on

3652-480: The Udayagiri Lion Capital suggests that there was a Sun Temple at Udayagiri. The Surya tradition in Udayagiri dates at least from the 2nd century BCE, and possibly one that predated the arrival of Buddhism. It is this tradition that gives it the 'sunrise mountain' name. The town is referred to as Udaygiri or Udaigiri in some texts. The site is also referred to as Visnupadagiri, as in inscriptions at

3735-522: The Udayagiri hills and its caves are protected monuments managed by the Archaeological Survey of India . Udayagiri caves contain iconography of Hinduism and Jainism . They are notable for the ancient monumental relief sculpture of Vishnu in his incarnation as the man-boar Varaha , rescuing the earth symbolically represented by Bhudevi clinging to the boar's tusk as described in Hindu mythology . The site has important inscriptions of

3818-419: The ancient Indo-Greek capital of Taxila . In the 1960s, a team led by archaeologist Khare revisited a broader region, at seven mounds, which included the nearby Besnagar and Vidisha. The excavation data and results were never published, except for summaries in 1964 and 1965. No new evidence was found, but the layers excavated suggested that the site was a significant town already by 6th-century BCE, and likely

3901-432: The attached image): The characters are dressed in traditional dress. The gods wear dhoti , while the goddess is in a sari , in the Varaha panel. Cave 6 is directly beside Cave 5 and consists of rock-cut sanctum entered through an elaborate T-shaped door. The sanctum door is flanked by guardians. Beside them, on either side, are figures of Vishnu and of Shiva Gangadhara. The cave also has Durga slaying Mahishasura –

3984-400: The cave is an undated pilgrim record of somebody named Śivāditya. Cave 7 is located a few steps east of Cave 6. It consists of a large niche containing damaged figures of the eight mother goddesses, each with a weapon above their head, carved on the back wall of the cave. The cave is flanked by shallow niches with abraded figures of Kārttikeya and Gaṇeśa, now visible only in outline. There is

4067-399: The cave looked Buddhist, no Buddhist inscriptions or texts supported this, and it did not explain why these "Brahmanical prosecutors" did not demolish the nearby bigger Sanchi site. The working hypothesis then became that the Lion Capital platform stood on a Buddhist stupa, and that if excavations were done in and around the Udayagiri Caves hills then the evidence will emerge. Such an excavation

4150-618: The caves together. He called the Jain cave as number 10. Later studies identified the caves separately, and their number swelled to 20. A more detailed system was introduced before mid 20th century by the Department of Archaeology, Gwalior State , with Jain cave being number 20. Due to these changes, the exact numbering sequence in early reports and later publications sometimes varies. The complex has seven caves dedicated to Shaivism related caves, nine to Vaishnavism, and three to Shaktism. However,

4233-402: The ceiling. The famed early 5th-century Sanskrit inscription in this cave is on its back wall. It is five lines long, in a Vedic meter . Some parts of the inscription are damaged or have peeled off. The inscription links the Gupta king Chandra Gupta II and his minister Virasena to this cave. It has been translated as follows: The inner light which resembles the sun, which pervades the heart of

SECTION 50

#1732772019110

4316-763: The city as a general of Sultan Jalaluddin . The attack was illustrative of Vidisha's importance in the medieval era. In 1532 Bhilsa was sacked by Bahadur Shah of Gujarat Sultanate. It then passed on to the Malwa Sultans , the Mughals and the Scindias . Vidisha is considered to be Puranakshetras Jain tirtha . Vidisha is also believed to be the birthplace of Shitalanatha , the tenth tirthankar . There are 14 temples in Vidisha, among which Bada Mandir, Bajramath Jain temple, Maladevi temple, Gadarmal temple and Pathari Jain temple, built between 9th-10th centuries CE, are

4399-708: The claims in Persian made by Muslim court historians of Delhi Sultanate about the loot brought to Delhi after invasions particularly related to the pillar and Quwwat-ul-Islam, and particularly the Sanskrit inscription in Brahmi script on the Delhi Iron Pillar which mentions a Chandra's (Chandragupta II) devotion to Vishnu, and it being installed in Visnupadagiri. These proposals state that this Visnupadagiri

4482-458: The court of Bhagabhadra, a possible Sunga king. Dedicated to Lord Vāsudeva , this column was constructed in front of the temple of Vāsudeva. The pillar is situated about four kilometers away from the city on Vidisha-Ganj Basoda SH-14, located on the northern bank of the Vais River. It is a 20 feet and 7 inches tall stone pillar, commonly called Kham Baba . The script used in the inscription

4565-399: The deceptive shape-shifting buffalo demon. This is one of the earliest representations of this Durga legend in a cave temple. Of special note also is the figure of seated Ganesha in this cave, to the left of the entrance, and the rectangular niche with seated goddesses, located to the right. The Ganesha is potbellied, has modaka (laddu or rice balls, sweetmeat) in his left hand and his trunk

4648-436: The depths and do what is necessary to rescue the good, the right, the dharma . The Varaha panel narrates this legend. The goddess earth is personified as the dangling woman, the hero as the colossal giant. His success is cheered by a galaxy of the divine as well as human characters valued and revered in the 4th-century. Their iconography of individual characters is found in Hindu texts. The panel shows (the number corresponds to

4731-461: The development of Indian script. For example, a Sanskrit inscription found on the left pillar at the entrance of Cave 19 states a date of Vikrama 1093 (c. 1037 CE), mentions the word Visnupada , states that this temple that was made by Chandragupta, and its script is Nagari both for alphabet and numerals. Many of the early inscriptions in this region is in Sankha Lipi , yet to be deciphered in

4814-418: The door is depicted a man playing the lute, while another boss to the right shows another man playing the guitar. River goddesses Ganga and Yamuna flank the doorway on two short pilasters with bell capitals. The temple sanctum is dedicated to Shiva , with the sanctum containing an ekamukha linga, or a linga with a face carved on it. Outside its entrance, in what was a mandapa and now is eroded remnants of

4897-402: The evidence is unclear. The cave is also notable for depicting a harp player on its lintel, putting a floruit of 401 CE for this musical instrument in India. Cave 5 is a shallow niche more than a cave and contains the much-celebrated colossal Varaha panel of Udayagiri Caves. It is the narrative of Vishnu in his Varaha or man-boar avatar rescuing goddess earth in crisis. Willis has described

4980-465: The excavations of 1910s, but these were destroyed in the attempt to find evidence of Buddhist monuments underneath. Cave 1 is the southernmost cave and a false one because one of the side and its front is not of the original rock but added in. Its roof is integrated from the natural ledge of the rock. It moulding style is similar to those found in Tigawa Hindu temple. The mandapa inside the temple

5063-421: The hypothesis that Buddhist art predated Hindu and Jaina arts, and that Hindus may have built their monuments by reusing Buddhist ones or on top of Buddhist ones. Cunningham presumed that the broken Lion Capital at the Udayagiri Caves may be an evidence for these, and he categorized Udayagiri as originally a Buddhist site converted into a Hindu and Jaina one by "Brahmanical prosecutors". However, nothing in or around

SECTION 60

#1732772019110

5146-532: The learned, but which is difficult find among men upon the earth, that is the wonder called Chandragupta, Who * * * (damaged), Of him, like a saint among great kings became the minister [...], whose name was Virasena, He was a poet, resident of Pataliputra, and knew grammar, law and logic, Having come here with his king, who is desirous of conquering the whole world, he made this cave, through his love to Sambhu . – Cave 8 inscription; Translators: Michael Willis / Alexander Cunningham The inscription does not give

5229-471: The most prominent. These temples are rich in architecture. Near the eastern edge of the old town are the remains of a large temple of the late Paramara period known as the Bijamaṇḍal . The building was probably started in the second half of the 11th century. That it was never finished is evidenced by the unfinished carved niches and architectural pieces found round the base of the temple plinth. On top of

5312-601: The name of Bhilsa. When, in the year 1230, the Emperor Altamsh took possession of it, it was the seat of a Rajpoot prince of the Chohan clan. It was not, however, finally wrested from the Hindoos until the year 1570, under Akbar. As of the 2011 Census of India , Vidisha had a population of 155,959. Males constitute 53.21% of the population and females 46.79%. Vidisha has an average literacy rate of 86.88%, higher than

5395-535: The national average of 74.04%: male literacy is 92.29%, and female literacy is 80.98%. In Vidisha, 15% of the population is under 6 years of age. The town is situated east of the Betwa River , in the fork of the Betwa and Bes rivers, 9 km from Sanchi . The town of Besnagar, 3 km from present-day Vidisha on the west side of the river, became an important trade centre in the 6th and 5th centuries BCE, under

5478-521: The neighbourhood. A step-well of the 7th century is in the same campus and has, beside the entrance, two tall pillars with Kṛṣṇa scenes. These are the earliest Kṛṣṇa scenes in the art of central India. The dimensions of Bijamandal Temple at Vidisha are comparable to those of Konark in Orissa. Lohangi Pir is a rock formation in Vidisha District that derives its name from Shaykh Jalal Chishti,

5561-424: The northeast face of the Udayagiri hills. They generally have a square or near-square plans. Many are small, but according to Cunningham, they were likely more substantial because their front showed evidence that each had a structural mandapa on pillars in their front. The caves at Udayagiri were numbered in the nineteenth century from south to north by Alexander Cunningham , and he reported only 10 lumping some of

5644-424: The noun flōs , flōris , "flower". Broadly, the term is employed in reference to the peak of activity for a person or movement. More specifically, it often is used in genealogy and historical writing when a person's birth or death dates are unknown, but some other evidence exists that indicates when they were alive. For example, if there are wills attested by John Jones in 1204 and 1229, as well as

5727-413: The passage, giving it a significantly different appearance from what can be seen today. Cave 8 was named the "Tawa Cave" by Cunningham, after its crown that looks like the Indian griddle which locals use to bake their daily bread and call the baking plate as Tawa . The cave is a bit to the right of the passage. It is excavated into a hemispherical dome-shaped rock and has a large nearly flat rock crown. It

5810-400: The passage. These are quite large. Those inscriptions have been cut through to make the caves, which means they existed before the caves were created around 401 CE. The inscriptions had not been deciphered, and proposed interpretations have been controversial. The upper walls of the passage have large notches at several places, indicating that stone beams and slabs were used to roof over parts of

5893-503: The platform or nearby that was even vaguely Buddhist. The archaeological excavations in the 1910s in the area of the nearby Heliodorus pillar yielded unexpected results, such as the inscription of Heliodorus , which confirmed that Vāsudeva and Bhagavatism (early forms of Vaishnavism ) were influential by the 2nd century BCE, and which linked the Udayagiri-Besnagar-Vidisha region politically and religiously to

5976-497: The plinth is a small mosque made using pillars, one of which has an inscription dating probably from the time of king Naravarman ( circa 1094–1134). It is a devotional inscription revering Carccikā (i.e. Cāmuṇḍā), of whom he was a devotee. The miḥrāb suggests the mosque was constructed in the late 14th century. To one side of the Bijamaṇḍal is a store house of the Archaeological Survey of India containing many sculptures collected in

6059-425: The region. They are about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) west of the town of Vidisha , about 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) northeast of the Buddhist site of Sanchi , and 60 kilometres (37 mi) northeast of Bhopal . The site is connected to the capital Bhopal by a highway. Bhopal is the nearest major railway station and airport with regular services. Udayagiri is slightly north of the current Tropic of Cancer, but over

6142-477: The relief as the "iconographic centre-piece of Udayagiri". The Hindu legend has roots in the Vedic literature such as Taittariya Samhita and Shatapatha Brahmana , and is found in many post-Vedic texts. The legend depicts goddess earth ( Bhudevi , Prithivi) in an existential crisis after she has been attacked and kidnapped by oppressive demon Hiranyaksha , where neither she nor the life she supports can survive. She

6225-465: The right of Visnu. The outline of the seated matrikas in Cave 6 suggests that they are similar to early Gupta era iconography for matrikas such as those found in Badoh-Pathari and Besnagar archaeological sites. Outside the cave is a panel with an inscription that mentions Gupta year 82 (401 CE), and that the Gupta king Chandragupta II and his minister Virasena visited this cave. In the ceiling of

6308-516: The site was targeted, artifacts damaged and removed during an invasion of the region by Delhi Sultanate armies in or about the early 13th-century, possibly those of Sultan named Iltutmish . This theory is based on multiple pieces of evidence such as the closeness of its design and style with pillars found in Udayagiri-Vidisha region, the images found on Gupta era coins (numismatics), the lack of evidence for alternate sites so far proposed,

6391-405: The site. The term means the hill at 'the feet of Vishnu'. Udayagiri Caves are set in two low hills near Betwa River , on the banks of its tributary Bes River. This is an isolated ridge about 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) long, running from southeast to northwest, rising to about 350 feet (110 m) height. The hill is rocky and consists of horizontal layers of white sandstone, a material common in

6474-472: The state capital, Bhopal . The name "Vidisha" is derived from the nearby river "Bais", mentioned in the Puranas . The district was created as Bhilsa District in 1904 by joining the tehsils of Vidisha (also known as Bhilsa) and Basoda (but not Basoda State) which were then part of Gwalior state. After India's independence in 1947, the former princely state of Gwalior became part of Madhya Bharat state, which

6557-508: The temple, an ancient tradition that provided resources for the maintenance and operation of significant temples. These do not mention famous kings. Some of these inscriptions mention grant from people who may have been regional chiefs, while others read like common people who cannot be traced to any text or other inscriptions in Central India. One Sanskrit inscription, for example, is a pilgrim named Damodara's record from 1179 CE who made

6640-456: Was completed and reported by archaeologists Lake and Bhandarkar in early 1910s. No evidence was found. Bhandarkar, a strong proponent of the 'Buddhist converted to Hindu' site hypothesis, went further with excavations. He, state Dass and Willis, went so far as "to ransack the platform" at the Udayagiri Caves site, in an effort "to find the stupa he was certain lay below". However, after an exhaustive search, his team failed to find anything underneath

6723-409: Was damaged at some point, and the interior has been eroded by weather. It is about 48 square feet (4.5 m) in area and the only traces of two pilasters are visible, along with evidence underneath its roof of a structural mandapa. The doorjamb has some reliefs, but these are only partially visible. Cave 3 is the first of the central group or cluster of shrines and reliefs. It has a plain entrance and

6806-563: Was formed in 1948. Vidishā was the administrative headquarters of Bhelsa , or Bhilsa , during the Medieval period. It was renamed Vidisha in 1956. Vidisha is also amongst the 112 Aspirational District in the Aspirational District Programme launched by NITI Aayog in 2018. Towards the seventh or eighth century, Bhadravati was raised from its ruins by a Bheel chieftain, who surrounded it with walls, and gave it

6889-440: Was likely a structure above, but this structure has not survived into the modern era. Cave 13 contains a large Anantasayana panel, which depicts a resting figure of Vishnu as Narayana . Below the leg of Vishnu are two men, one larger kneeling devotee in namaste posture, and another smaller standing figure behind him. The kneeling figure is generally interpreted as Chandragupta II, symbolising his devotion to Vishnu. The other figure

#109890