Karla (cave monastery)
Karla (also Karli ) is a Buddhist temple and monastery complex peeled out of the granite rock of the Dekkan Plateau (India) from the period between the 2nd BC and the 2nd / 3rd centuries. AD century. The complex consists of several caves ( viharas ) and a large prayer or transformation hall ( chaitya ).
location
The Karla Cave Monastery is located on an old trade route between the sea and the Dekkan Plateau, about halfway between Mumbai and Pune in the Indian state of Maharashtra at an altitude of about 770 m above sea level. d. M. The ports on the nearby coast of the Arabian Sea (e.g. Chaul , Semylla ) had been around since around 1000 BC. BC in the west with the Red Sea and the Mediterranean cultures and with Sumatra , Java , Cambodia and China in the east. The nearest town - accessible by train - is Lonavla ; from there it is about 12 km with a motor rickshaw. A 20-minute ascent via a 100 m high and 800 m long staircase leads to the monastery. Most pilgrims, including many fishermen from the coast, do not come because of the Buddhist caves, but because of a Hindu temple right in front of the main cave.
history
Most of the Karla caves date from the 2nd century BC. Until the 2nd / 3rd Century AD; the Chaitya hall should belong to an early construction phase. Sculptural works were also carried out afterwards; when exactly the cave monastery was abandoned is unclear. In front of the entrance to the main hall is a centuries-old temple of the regionally revered Hindu goddess Ekviradevi , who attracts many pilgrims from the area (all the way to Mumbai); she could be a local form of the goddess Kali , as animal sacrifices are made to her almost every day .
architecture
Like all man-made caves, Karli's buildings were carved out of the rock from front to back and from top to bottom. This technique made it easier to remove the rubble, which could simply slide downwards; at the same time, no scaffolding had to be erected and the workers were better protected from falling stones. It is unclear whether the monks lent a hand in the construction of their monastery themselves - in the first phase of construction they were likely to have worked themselves, but with increasing income from the monastery (donations, foundations, pilgrimage gifts), the extremely arduous and artistic work was mostly done by paid stonemasons .
Entrance area
To the left of the entrance to the Chaitya Hall there is a mighty, 15 m high fluted column, completely carved out of the rock, with a bell-shaped capital and an attachment consisting of four lions looking in all directions. This theme can already be found in the Ashoka columns of the 3rd century BC. BC (cf. Sarnath ) and was imitated here perhaps a century later; a previously opposite counterpart has disappeared.
When decorative figures in the actual entrance two stylistic phases can be distinguished: the mounted on the walls of the left and right of the entrance portal reliefs with small - in a European manner and on a lion throne - seated and of lovers ( mithunas flanked) Buddha figures could because of their antiquated figure style still late 4th century belong to; the three large elephants carved out of the side walls with Buddha figures sitting on them in a lotus seat should - due to the significantly better stone processing - be attributed to the 5th century or else were created by another hand.
The entrance itself is dominated by a huge window ( chandrasala or kudu ) with a keel arch as an outer panel. The window arch rests on stone beams, which are completely superfluous from a structural point of view; the lower ends of the arch are drawn in so that the arch as a whole forms a horseshoe arch . The smaller arch above the entrance door repeats the motif of the window and is also covered by a blinded keel arch, the tip of which protrudes into the large upper window.
Chaitya hall
The main attraction of the Buddhist monastery complex in Karla is the approximately 14 m high and 45 m deep Chaitya Hall, which is divided into a broad central nave and two narrow side aisles - forming a corridor - by two rows of 15 octagonal columns each. The bare side walls are left completely unadorned. The z. Columns, some of which are still provided with old inscriptions or graffiti , have a pot-shaped base and fluted bell-shaped capitals . The block resting above it is richly carved: kneeling or lying elephants with lovers ( mithunas ) as riders carry the vault of the temple and at the same time have disastrous ( apotropaic ) and sovereign meanings. The vaulted roof of the hall, carved out of the hard rock, is underpinned by a teak vault - structurally completely superfluous, but almost 2000 years old ; A stabilizing ridge purlin running through the top of the vault , as it was in earlier free-standing buildings made entirely of wood - but none of them preserved - is missing, however.
In the apse of the hall there is a stupa - also carved out of natural rock - about 3.50 m high and several times slightly stepped stupa , which monks and pilgrims could transform both directly and in the side aisles of the hall ( pradakshina ), whereby It can be assumed that the close walk around the stupa was only reserved for monks, secular dignitaries or wealthy merchants. The stupa has an originally preserved square umbrella attachment ( chhatri ) consisting of two parts , the lower, multi-stepped part of which is made of stone; the actual screen, however, is made of wood. The seven pillars of the apse, d. H. in close proximity to the stupa, have neither bases nor capitals.
Vihara caves
There are some in the vicinity of the Chaitiya Hall - e. Sometimes three-storey Vihara caves with cells carved into the side walls, which served as living rooms and bedrooms for the monks. Originally there were neither stupas nor cult images in these viharas - the latter were not added until the 5th century. Perhaps some of these dwellings (especially in later times) also served as hostels and storage rooms for the merchants who passed by with their caravans, who were certainly grateful for such services - and in the hope of good business; However, the servants of the caravan masters stayed with the animals and goods at the foot of the rock face even at night.
meaning
Karla's Chaitya Hall (rarer: Karli) is one of the oldest, best-preserved and artistically most significant early rock structures in India , carved out of the rock in an excellent manner . It is India's largest cave temple.
Surroundings
The Buddhist cave sanctuaries of Bhaja and Bedsa and the two forts of Lohagad and Visapur are very close by. The three cave complexes in the Lonavla area must be seen in connection with other cave monasteries in the vicinity of Mumbai (e.g. Kanheri and Mahakali ), the Pandavleni caves near Nashik and those near Aurangabad ( Aurangabad caves , Ellora and Ajanta ). The latter are the UNESCO - World Heritage attributed.
literature
- Andreas Volwahsen, Henri Stierlin (Ed.): India. Buildings of the Hindus, Buddhists and Jains. Taschen-Verlag, Cologne around 1994, ISBN 3-8228-9532-6 , p. 17ff.
- Bernd Rosenheim: The world of the Buddha. Early Buddhist Art Sites in India . Philipp von Zabern, Mainz 2006, ISBN 3-8053-3665-9 .
Web links
- Cave monasteries in India - Photos and text (Engl.)
- Photos of Buddhist cave monasteries
- Karla Caves - Photos and text (Engl.)
- Karla Caves - Photos and text (Engl.)
Coordinates: 18 ° 45 ′ 50 ″ N , 73 ° 28 ′ 0 ″ E