Aurangabad

INTRODUCTION

Aurangabad is a city in Maharastra state in India. The city is a tourism hub, surrounded by many historical monuments, including the Ajanta caves 

While Aurangabad is known for the kind of industrial production and companies that provide employment to the local people the city is known for being the tourism hub of Maharashtra. Aurangabad has been surrounded by many historical monuments and structures like Bibi ka Mqbara and  Aurangabad certainly prospered as Khadki under the rule of malik Amber as he managed to spend money and his men would support the city well

PLACES TO VISIT IN AURANGABAD

1.  Bibi ka Maqbara

2. Aurangabad Caves

3. Ellora caves

4. Pitalkhora Buddhist caves

5. Pitalkhora Buddhist caves

Bibi Ka Maqbara

The Bibi Ka Maqbara is a tomb located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India. It was built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan's grandson and Aurangzeb's son Muhammad Azam Shah in memory of his beloved mother 'Rabia-ul-Daurani' alias 'Dilras Bano Begum'. It was commissioned in 1660 by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in memory of his wife Dilras Banu Begum and is considered to be a symbol of Aurangzeb's 'conjugal fidelity'. It bears a striking resemblance to the Taj Mahal, the mausoleum of Aurangzeb's mother, Mumtaz Mahal. Aurangzeb was not much interested in architecture though he had commissioned the small, but elegant, Pearl Mosque in Delhi.

Aurangabad Caves

The Aurangabad caves are twelve rock-cut Buddhist shrines located on a hill running roughly east to west, close to the city of Aurangabad, Maharashtra. The first reference to the Aurangabad Caves is in the great chaitya of Kanheri Caves. The Aurangabad Caves were dug out of comparatively soft basalt rock during the 6th and 7th centuries. The caves are divided into three separate groups depending on their location: these are usually called the "Western Group", with Caves I to V, the "Eastern Group", with Caves VI to IX, and a "Northern Cluster", with the unfinished Caves X to XII. The carvings at the Aurangabad Caves are notable for including Hinayana-style stupa, Mahayana art work, and the Vajrayana goddess. These caves are among those in India that show 1st millennium CE Buddhist artwork with goddesses such as Durga, and gods such as Ganesha, although Buddhist caves in other parts of India with these arts are older. 

Ellora Caves

Ellora is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the Aurangabad of Maharashtra, India. It is one of the largest rock-cut Hindu temple cave complexes in the world, with artwork dating from the period 600–1000 CE. Cave 16 features the largest single monolithic rock excavation in the world, the Kailash temple, a chariot-shaped monument dedicated to the god Shiva. The Kailash temple excavation also features sculptures depicting various Hindu deities as well as relief panels summarizing the two major Hindu epics. There are over 100 caves at the site, all excavated from the basalt cliffs in the Charanandri Hills, 34 of which are open to the public. These consist of 17 Hindu, 12 Buddhist, and 5 Jain caves, each group representing deities and mythologies prevalent in the 1st millennium CE, as well as monasteries of each respective religion. They were built close to one another and illustrate the religious harmony that existed in ancient India.

Pitalkhora Buddhist Caves

The Pitalkhora Caves, in the Satmala range of the Western Ghats of Maharashtra, India, is an ancient Buddhist site consisting of 14 rock-cut cave monuments which date back to the third century BCE, making them one of the earliest examples of rock-cut architecture in India. Located about 40 kilometers from Ellora, the site is reached by a steep climb down a flight of concrete stairs, past a waterfall next to the caves.

Pitalkhora Buddhist Caves

The Pitalkhora Caves, in the Satmala range of the Western Ghats of Maharashtra, India, is an ancient Buddhist site consisting of 14 rock-cut cave monuments which date back to the third century BCE, making them one of the earliest examples of rock-cut architecture in India. Located about 40 kilometers from Ellora, the site is reached by a steep climb down a flight of concrete stairs, past a waterfall next to the caves. 

CONCLUSION

The Aurangabad offers unique insights into how art interfaced with Buddhist practice in the western Deccan during the first 700 years of the Common Era by relating the evidence available at Aurangabad to what we see in other rock-cut sites evidence available at Aurangabad to what we see in other rock rock-cut sites of Ajanta Aurangabad they can't be automatically associated to the rest.