Khajuraho Group of Monuments is a group of temples of
Hindu and Jain Religion It is about 175 kilometers from Jhansi,
they are included in UNESCO world heritage sites. The temples are famous
for their Nagara-style architectural symbolism and their erotic
sculptors.
Most Khajuraho temples were built by the Chandels
dynasty. Each temple temple is decorated with a profusion of sculptures with
intricate details, symbolism and expressiveness .
image source-google maps
We started from Jhansi
for Khajuraho, reached the bus stand by 5:30am, but the bus was full by now.
And we were left with two choices, either travel by this bus standing all the
way or catch the next bus an hour later.
We boarded the first
bus as we were eager to get to khajuraho, and moreover, it was more than 36
hours we’d left Pachmari and our next destination was yet out of our reach.
So, after this somewhat tough four hour journey ( must say,
I missed my bike a lot) , we reached Chatrapur ( khajuraho was still 45 kms
away), and here, the local body elections again came into picture, and the bus
was not allowed to go further.
And to top it all, no
other transport was available. We roamed for sometime before we found a cab to
khajuraho. Finally, reached khajuraho at
12:30 pm and the things got surprisingly better ….
Checked in Hotel Jain near western group of Temples, it was a nice
staying option, nice tidy rooms with all the facilities viz tv, running hot water
etc available ( tariff, INR 375 For four of us). Got ready in short time, and
left for lunch. Had sumptuous lunch at Agarwal – marvari bhojanalaya, after all we hadn’t taken even a tea since
morning ,and adding to this, the food
was good and was priced at Rs.50 a full meal. so,we eat our fill.
Went to visit southern group of temples first
Chaturbhuj
Temple: The temple has a
huge statue of Lord Vishnu in its sanctum.
Duladeo temple: Dedicated to lord Shiva the temple has a
unique serenity and the place is beautifully maintained. Locals call it dhula-
dulhan mandir
Eastern Group of temples-
Jain temples:
Parsvanath temple- is the largest among jain temples having
an idol of Parsvanath.
Adinath temple-Its also a beautiful temple.
Vamana temple: Dedicated to Vamana, an incarnation of lord
Vishnu , the temple is built upon a high masonry platform .
Came back to square near Western group of temples, roved
around for sometime before going to watch , sound and light show.
Day2: western group of temples
Despite our best efforts, we managed to enter western group
of temples only by 7:45 am .
Temples
are just so beautiful that they rendered
me immobile for a while, standing there I engrossed myself in the thoughts of
the era when these temples would be at their glorious peak.
Image source- Wikipedia (architectural explanation)
The temples look golden under sun and the carvings on the
temples look as if they are made up of gold.
First temple we visited was The Laxmana temple,
dedicated to Vishnu. The sanctum has a three headed idol of Vishnu’s avatars ,
Narasimbha and Varah. Then we visited Varaha temple situated in front of the
Laxmana temple
Visited Kanderia mahadeo temple, the grandest among all the
temples the sanctum sanctorum enshrines a Lingam . up next was the Jagdemba temple built on
same platform .
Finally visited the Chitragupt temple, dedicated to Sun god
facing east.
We left the temple compound and moved hurriedly to our hotel
to pickup our luggage , we’d to reach the khajuraho railway station an soon as
possible to catch the khajuraho- jhansi
passenger train which was scheduled to depart at 12:20 pm . Reached station in
time.
Khajuraho Railway station
The whole experience of visiting Khajuraho was beyond words. Loved the place
Khajuraho ke nidar kaladhar; Amarshila
mein gaan tumhara
(O!
bold and fearless artist of Khajuraho, your eternal creations sing your glory)
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