Ghatotkach Caves are Buddhist caves located in Janjala village in Sillod taluka of Aurangabad district in Maharashtra. On the way to Ajantha Caves, there are Ghatotkach Caves from Golegaon to the left, from Ambhai village, fifteen kilometres above, near Borgaon. This cave may have got the name Ghatotkach because of the Ghatotkach village that was there in ancient times. Janjala village is situated on a plateau and on the right side of the village there are caves and Janjala fort is on the left side of the plateau. These caves are carved in the valley to the east of the fort and steps have been constructed by the Department of Archaeology to reach the caves. Despite being 28 km away from the world famous Ajanta Caves, Ghatotkach Caves seem to be neglected. There is a grand and spacious structure in the middle, with big pillars and small rooms on both sides of it. ... After descending the stairs, the first thing you see is an idol holding seven “cobra head” on the right side. Next to this idol there is another sculpture but it is not recognizable due to heavy wear and tear. From here onwards we are in front of the entrance gate. It is an assembly hall and has three doors to enter. Outside it there are carved corridors on the right and left sides and outside the right corridor there are many Buddha images carved while outside the left corridor there is an inscription of Varahadev carved on the wall. The Archaeology Department has put up a plaque with some information here. The front hall of the cave temple is spacious and has 20 octagonal pillars. The shape of the middle two and the two corner pillars and the carvings on them are different from the others. On the left side of the hall there is a statue of Buddha on the half-pillars and the verse Ye Dharma Hetuprabhava. In the back wall of the hall there are three sanctum sanctorum, in the main one there is a huge statue of Buddha seated on a throne in Dharmachakrapravartana posture with a deer under the seat and Dharma chakra in the middle. There are Chamardharini idols of Vajrapani on the right and Padmapani on the left but no lotus is visible in their hands. The remaining two small halls are empty. A total of twelve small caves have been excavated in this hall, 7 on the left side and 5 on the right side. Pillars are carved in front of the doors of the middle caves on both sides. After coming out of the hall, there are three partially carved caves on the left side, while on the right side there is a water tank partially carved in the rock, but the water in it is not drinkable. In the year 2013-14, while cleaning this tank, a sculpture came to light inside. There are four deer in this sculpture and all the four deer have a single head. In front of this cave, a partially carved two-storied cave can be seen on the other side of the valley. Though smaller than the Ajanta caves, the Ghatotkach caves are the first and most important of the Mahayana caves in western Maharashtra. To the north of the veranda in the large cave is a fragmentary inscription of twenty-two lines in Brahmi script of Varahadev, the minister of the Vakataka king Harishena. Its lower part is obscured and the upper part gives the genealogy of Varahadev from the beginning. This inscription mentions a princess of Ashmak. Vakataka king's minister Varahadev in AD. It is believed to have been donated to carve the caves in the 5th century. While caves 16 and 17 of Ajantha were being built, Varahadev started the construction of another caves by donating it at Ghatotkach, eleven miles from Ajantha. Although these caves remains incomplete, it is very important for determining the exact chronology of the Ajanta caves of the Vakataka period and for verifying the account of the Dandi. After the death of Vakataka king Harishena, his heir who came to the kingdom was dethroned by the kings who were under his power. Due to this incident in Vakataka history, the work of the caves at Ghatotkach remained incomplete. This cave was first noticed by Captain Rose and described by Mr W. Gooch Bradley. Ghatotkach Cave has been declared as a Protected Monument by the Department of Archaeology and is under the jurisdiction of the Assistant Director, Department of Archaeology, Aurangabad.
© Suresh Nimbalkar