Ajanta, Maharashtra, India
Be a lamp unto yourself. Work out your liberation with diligence.
—Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha (563–483 B.C.), father of Buddhism
On the cliff of a deep forest ravine overlooking the Waghora River in the Sahyadri Hills of southern India is a sacred treasure: twenty-nine rock-cut caves used as Buddhist monasteries and temples from the second century B.C. to the seventh century A.D. The tenacity it took to chisel these monuments out of volcanic rock is testament to spiritual devotion. The beauty of the friezes of the Buddha and bodhisattvas adorning the walls and ceilings of the caves speaks to the liberating light of such devotion.
If you want to clear your mind of worldly woes and open your heart for inner guidance, visit the Ajanta Caves. Fly into Mumbai (international airport) or Aurangabad (domestic airport). From Aurangabad, take a coach tour, bus, rental car, hired driver/car, or taxi to the caves, which are about an hour away. The caves are open 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and are closed Mondays.
Explore the caves mindfully, absorbing the beauty and serenity of this holy place. Focus on your breath, exhaling the stale air of doubt, inhaling the fresh air of knowing.
Around A.D. 650, the monks abandoned their Ajanta sanctuary in favor of the Ellora Caves, 62 miles away. The Ajanta Caves faded into obscurity until they were rediscovered in 1819 by a British hunting party that chased a tiger into one of the caves.