Dilras Banu Begum @Bibi Ka Maqbara

The beauty of Road trips are the hidden gems that you chance upon! Look at one that we happened to chance upon in Auranagbad........

This monument is called Bibi Ka Maqbara or locally Mini Tajmahal. I haven't yet had a chance to visit Taj Mahal yet ~~ but am told this is a true replica(though less grander) of Taj Mahal...

"Bibi ka Maqbara" was started by Aurangazeb in honor of his first wife, Dilras Banu Begum and was completed by his son. Co-incidentally, it was designed by Ata-ullah, son of Ustad Ahmad Lahauri, the architect of the Taj Mahal.

Couple of Kms away from this place is Bhadra Maruti Temple - A temple that has a strong sufi influence The folk singers who pepper this temple courtyard are a pleasure to listen to - I have posted about it in detail on Cory's blog  few weeks ago(Do listen in to the video there)...



Both thee places can be clubbed up along wit Ajanta - Ellora Caves


Linking this to 2014 AtoZ Challenge - D is for Dilras Banu Begum, the queen whose mausoleum is Bibi Ka Maqbara 

Caves of Ellora

And with this post comes to end the Ajanta - Ellora bit of the travellogue. Did you know that these caves are separated by a good 40 Kms.....

Ellora caves are synonymous with "Kailash". Can you believe that this entire gigantic structure is carved from a single rock! All the pics you see below are of "Kailash" and they do not even cover half of it....

 

 

Ellora thou is a famous world heritage site, the place sadly lacks the basic Travel infrastructure in terms of Stay and food. The only saving grace is Hotel Kails - A boutique hotel that's a stones throw away from Ellora. I highly recommend this place - it definitely adds to the overall experience......

Also of interest to Hindu travelers is the fact that one of the twelve jyotirlings - Grishneshwar - is located hardly a kilometer away from Ellora Caves.

Linking this to 2014 AtoZ Challenge - C is for Caves of Ellora

Buddhist Caves - Ellora - Part 1

Did u know Ajanta & Ellora caves were rediscovered by accident. History has it that they were built centuries ago, but were later abandoned and soon forgotten. It was in 1819, that a British Hunting party sighted these caves purely by accident and the excavations have been going on since then.....

Ellora caves are widely spread out and need a minimum of one good day to traverse through. Unlike Ajanta Caves which are all Buddhist, Ellora caves have Hindu, Jain and Buddhist figures engraved in them......

There are 34 caves in all at Ellora, out of which the first 12 are the Buddhist caves.....

 Linking this to AtoZ Challenge - B is for Budhhist Caves @ Ellora