A room in the Sanchi monastery. Two monks would share each one of these rooms (and I thought my room at Berkeley was small!).
One of the caves in Ellora, a place noted for its Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu sculptures. The Buddha is in the left background.
A Buddhist temple in India, established with the help of the Sri Lankan and Japanese Sangha. There are currently 30 million Buddhists in India, many belonging to the Ambedkar sect. Ambedkar Buddhists are formerly low-caste Hindus who've recently converted hoping to learn the qualities of self-reliance and self-respect Buddhism tries to preach. By converting they are not abandoning their culture as Buddhism originated in India and they are continuing the tradition of uplifting the downtrodden.
A kovil dedicated to Shiva near Aurangabad. Hindu kovils are often constructed with elaborate sculpting and engraving; much more time and creativity are given to designing kovils than Buddhist temples. Additionally, Hindu worship contains more ritual than Buddhism. In this kovil, males are required to remove their shirts near the phallus.
A courtyard in Aurangabad. This is an example of architecture introduced to India by the Persian Muslims in the Middle Ages. Aurangabad was named after Aurangzeb, son of Shah Jahan who built the Taj Mahal. Unlike his father, Aurangzeb held disdain for large artistic tombs and if I'm not mistaken he had himself buried in somebody's backyard.
A view from near the top of the fortress at Daulatabad. The original Hindu occupants of the fortress called it Deogiri and the name was changed after Aurangzeb seized it. Next to Sanchi this was my most favorite place in the entire trip. There was a lot of history, interesting military architecture, a nice hike to the top, and the place was not as touristy as some others (most of the tourists came from other parts of India).
My sister and I with some farmers from Hyderabad. These guys are here at Daulatabad exploring their culture like many of the tourists here. I traded my hand-made Sri Lankan keychain for one of their holy symbols for Durga. I really wish I brought more Sri Lankan stuff with me because these guys were really interested in their southern neighbor. India's a good country to bring junk from your own country to trade for their junk (maybe because we find each other's junk to be treasures).
The Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan to entomb his deceased young wife Mumtaz Taj Mahal. Shah Jahan was planning on building one for himself constructed of black marble but his son Aurangzeb got mad and imprisoned him. The Taj Mahal is made of white marble and in medieval times it must've glistened, but now it's gotten yellowed from pollution. Also, I really did not like the tourist-trap atmosphere and all the guys trying to make a quick rupee. Still, it's really beautiful and I can think of no better monument of love between a man and woman than this in the whole world.
Get your own Free Home Page