Top Five Historical Places Of Ancient India

1. Ajanta caves

Ajanta caves

From the 2^nd century BCE to 480 CE in ancient India, Ajanta caves were built. Aurangabad, Maharashtra was the exact location. These are some of the fascinating and artistic monuments of ancient India. These caves include paintings and rock-cut sculptures. These sculptures show skills of craftsmanship and painting from that era. There are a total of 30 caves to visit. these caves are masterpieces of Buddhist religious art. These caves helped to grow the cultural aspects of India as a country.

The construction of these caves took two phases. The paintings in this cave depict the life of Gautam Buddha. they also depict various pictorial tales from Jatakmala. The 75-meter-long rock contains these caves Colonial British officer Captain John Smith discovered these caves, accidentally in 1819. Ajanta caves tell us about the rich cultural practices of the native Indian people Of that time. It is also a good example of the importance of religion in human life, particularly in the Indian subcontinent. Ajanta caves are the most remarkable creative achievements in man’s history. Ajanta caves are very important monuments to study Buddhism. they are important to study native Indians and their relation to foreigners. we also get an idea about their religious and cultural life.

2. Ellora Caves

Ellora caves

Ellora caves are located 100 km away from Ajanta caves. These caves are also located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. Ajanta caves are the largest rock-cut monastery-temple cave complexes in the world. These caves contain artwork related to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. There are a total of 100 caves.34 caves are open to the public. Caves 1 to 12 contain Buddhist monuments. Caves 13 to 29 contain Hindu and Caves 30 to 34 contain Jain monuments. All the caves contain mythological deities related to the respective religions and monasteries.

These caves are an example of religious harmony of that time because all caves are near to each other. these caves are carved on basalt rock. volcanic activity caused the formation of basalt rock here. Traikutakas and Vakataka dynasties built these caves. Kalachuri dynasty built Hindu caves. The Chalukyas dynasty built Buddhist caves. Rashtrakuta and Yadava dynasties built Jain caves. These caves with Ajanta caves are the largest tourist attractions in Maharashtra state.

3. Sanchi stupa

Sanchi Stupa

The monuments at Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh are one of the most important monuments related to Buddhism in India. The construction of these monuments started during the Mauryan emperor Ashoka. Buddhism was a major religion in India at that time. The Great Stupa at Sanchi is built upon relics of Gautama Buddha. The earliest construction of a great stupa started in the 3^rd century BC by Ashoka. The other two stupas were built later by the Shung and Satvahan dynasties. There is also a pillar of sandstone erected by Ashoka. There is also a temple, called Temple 40. This temple was also built in the third century BC. It is one of the first examples of temples in India.

These monuments also contain various inscriptions that are in the Brahmi script. The monuments mostly contain Jataka stories related to the life of Buddha. There is also mention of a war fought by various kingdoms of that time. who wanted to keep the relics of Buddha with them. The monuments at Sanchi drastically changed the understanding of early India and Buddhism.

4. Bodhgaya

Bodhgaya

Bodhgaya is located in the Gaya district of Bihar. It is the place where Gautama Buddha attained enlightenment. He attained enlightenment under a tree called a bodhi tree. Bodhgaya is a major Buddhist pilgrimage of ancient India. UNESCO declared the Mahabodhi temple, a world heritage site in 2002. Emperor Ashoka was the first one to build a temple here. Buddha came here in search of truth by giving up his royal life. He started self-mortification here. After six years he gave up his practice. He later discovered the Noble eightfold path without help from anyone. He practiced them and attained enlightenment.

During the period of the Gupta empire, in the sixth century, kings of that time developed the Mahabodhi temple. Ashoka built the original monastery and shrine here. we can see its symbolic representation at Sanchi. People of south-east Asia practiced Buddhism, therefore they built stupas here.

5. Nalanda

Nalanda

Nalanda was one of the oldest learning centers in ancient India. Nalanda was an ancient maha vihara. It was one of the first universities in India. It was a knowledge hub at that time. people from all over South Asia visited and studied here. Nalanda is a symbol of ancient Indian academics. Students at Nalanda studied Buddhism as well as Vedas, Sanskrit, medicine, and Samkhya. The establishment of Nalanda began during the Gupta empire which continued during other kingdoms as well.

Nalanda used to be a prosperous village in ancient India. Bhagwan Mahavira and Gautam Buddha both spent some time of their life in Nalanda. Emperor Ashoka also built some temples here. Chinese traveler Xuanzang visited Nalanda in 637 CE and also in 642 CE. We get most of the information about Nalanda from his texts. Today Nalanda is one of the major tourist destinations related to Buddhism in India.

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