Cave 1 (Ajanta)
The cavity 1 of Ajanta is a housing cavity ( Viharahöhle ) and is at the east end of the cavity complex. It is one of the later caves, which can be proven by the late introduction of Buddhist shrines . It is known for its fine stone carvings and the well-preserved wall paintings inside and it probably dates from the 5th century AD.A veranda with finely worked columns forms the entrance to the cave, which has a large main hall, a cella with a shrine and includes the cells of the monks.
veranda
A courtyard is in front of the veranda. On the right side there is a cistern chamber , which today forms the entrance portal of the complex. To the left and right of the veranda there is a courtyard cell with column portals. The frieze above the left courtyard cell shows Prince Siddhartha's confrontation with the realities of aging, illness and death. This frieze is continued above the right courtyard cell with the depiction of the prince's renunciation (cutting off the hair, sending his horse back to the palace).
The veranda is 19.5 m long, 2.8 m wide and 4.1 m high. In front of the entrance there was a portico in front of it, but it is no longer preserved. The portico, which was still half-intact in the 1880s, later collapsed and its remains were dumped into the river bed during a misguided clean-up operation. The main colonnade remained largely undamaged. The veranda is supported by six pillars, which are flanked by two pilasters with cantilevered consoles . The two outer columns have a continuous octagonal shaft. The four inner columns have a short octagonal shaft above the base, show spiral fluting above them , followed by a flat pot shape, an abacus and cantilevered consoles decorated with friezes. The bases of the capitals are ornamented with mythical animals and floral designs.
In the central field of the capitals there are representations of the Buddha and scenes from the history of Buddha Shakyamuni : For example, the temptation by Mara on the far right column capital and the offer of rice pudding by Sujata on the right pilaster. The wide, rounded projections of the capitals are decorated with Mithuna pairs. The capitals are closed off by a narrow cover plate. Above the row of columns runs an architrave , above which there are two bands with fine reliefs. These show scenes from the life of the Buddha, elephant fights and hunting trips. The continuous continuation of the profile strips on the side veranda above the two courtyard cells is remarkable. To the left and right of the door adorned with figure reliefs, rectangular, unadorned windows were carved into the rock.
Main hall
The main hall has an almost square floor plan with a side length of 19.5 meters. It contains 20 finely crafted columns, arranged around a square, which form a 2.9 meter wide gallery. The capitals of these columns are decorated with richly varied motifs in almost identical pairs and, like the columns of the veranda, have cantilevered consoles. The central pillars are widened to emphasize the axial focus of the entrance to the cella .
Low thresholds on the floor and ceiling run in the square formed by the pillars. The thresholds, which run parallel to the veranda, continue to the side walls, where they connect with pilasters decorated with medallions . This creates an architectural grid that structures the main hall: The shape of the veranda is taken up and transferred to the main hall through the thresholds that run parallel to the veranda. The surrounding columns are also visually accentuated.
The cells
14 cells are attached to the main hall, four each on the left and right side and on the back wall, as well as two in the front corridor. There are two more cells on the sides of the porch and three more in the two courtyard cells. The lack of cells to the left and right of the rear of the main hall is atypical, which can probably be explained by a crack with an associated water ingress that prevented cells from building at these positions. In each cell, there are small niches on the back wall, which were probably used functionally and not as a personal shrine. The niches of the two courtyard cells have a larger format. Each of the cells has door holders that indicate that the cells can be closed. In the case of the most common type of door bracket, a recess was cut in the door frame into which holes were inserted above and below as door hinges.
Cella
At the end of the hall there is a 2.70 m deep and 8.30 m wide antechamber that leads to the cella, which has a side length of 6 m. The shrine vestibule is flanked by two narrowing columns with heavy consoles. These depict a goddess with servants in opposition to an old man, a motif that can also be found at the veranda entrance. A door decorated with friezes leads into the interior of the cella. Large double doors were added in front of the cella, which, as can be proven by signs of wear, were used for some time. In the shrine there is a larger than life seated Buddha connected to the back wall in Dharmachakrapravartana mudra , the Buddha's teaching gesture. Five Nagas are depicted in the base below him . The Buddha is accompanied by two bodhisattvas on his left and right .
Building process
Work flow
The workflow of the caves can be read from unfinished caves. All structural members are created from the existing rock and not added afterwards. The cave is hewn from top to bottom, first the ceiling, followed by the capitals and columns, as well as the shaft and base. Finally, the floor follows.
The hollowing out, the fine stone carving and the painting were a connected work process: the stone carving and the painting followed directly after the hollowing out. References from the lost wooden architecture, which is manifested in the friezes as well as in chaitya and kudu arches , are also recognizable.
columns
The pillars of the cave 1 have fine control over the design and finely turned flutes. The work process consisted of roughly hewing the rock into a square pillar from which the column was formed. Machining resulted in an octagonal shape, which was shaped into a 16, 32 or 64-fold faceted column by grinding the edges. By smoothly grinding these facets, a perfect circular shape was created. In rare cases, the number of facets was not increased by a factor of 2 (e.g. 8 to 16 facets), but by a factor of 3 (e.g. 8 to 24 facets).
literature
- B. Spuler (Ed.): Handbook of Oriental Studies . Department 2: India . Volume 18: Ajanta - History and Development . Part 1: Walter M. Spink: The End of the golden Age . Brill, Leiden et al. 2005, ISBN 90-04-14832-9 .
- Vidya Dehejia: Early Buddhist Rock Temples. A Chronological Study. (= Studies in ancient art and archeology ). Thames and Hudson, London 1972.
- Madanjeet Singh: Ajanta. Ajanta Painting of the Sacred and the Secular . Macmillan, New York NY 1965.
