Ajanta Caves 9 to 11

Ajanta Caves 9 to 11 showcase early Buddhist architecture and art, featuring chaitya halls, stupas, prayer halls, and meditation rooms. The nine to eleven caves in Ajanta show how buildings and art changed during the early Buddhist period. Cave 9 features a chaitya hall with a stupa and detailed drawings that illustrate the use of early Hinayana practices. 

One of the oldest caves, Cave 10, has a big prayer hall with carvings and paintings on the walls. Cave 11 is a small vihara with a Buddha sitting and rooms for meditation, making it a key highlight of Ajanta Caves tour packages.

Cave 9: One of the Oldest Chaitya Halls in Caves 9 to 11

The Cave 9 is an apsidal chaityagriha from the Hinayana period of Buddhism. It was built in the 2nd century BC. The chaityagriha has an entry door, two side windows, and a central hall. A row of 23 pillars divides the nave with side aisles (pradakshina) on either side, and a stupa stands at the center of worship.

The chaityagriha copies different types of wooden architecture. For example, the octagonal pillars that curve inward show signs of connecting wooden beams and joists, among other things. Sculptures of Buddha on the front and side walls facing the court indicate that people continued using the chaitya in later times.

There are two layers of drawings in the cave. The first layer dates from the second half of the 1st century BC, and the second layer dates from the 5th to 6th centuries AD, making it one of the places to visit in Ajanta Caves.

Cave 10: The Earliest Surviving Buddhist Paintings

Cave 10 is also a chaityagriha from the Hinayana school. It was built in the 2nd century BC. This cave has the oldest chaityagriha and was possibly the first dig at Ajanta. Captain Smith found this cave in 1819, and he wrote something on it in pencil.

There is a big hall in the middle of the cave and a nave with two aisles (pradakshina). A row of 39 octagonal pillars divides the space, leading to a rock stupa at the end of the nave that people honor. The cave has paintings from two different periods. The first ones are from the 2nd century BC, while the second ones date from the 4th to the 6th century AD.

Cave 11: A Simple yet Serene Vihara

Cave 11 contains a vihara from the early 5th century AD. It has a hall with six cells and a long bench, a porch with columns and four cells, and a holy room. The Buddha teaching pose in this cave is one of the first pictures at Ajanta.

The important thing about this Buddha is that it is connected to a stupa. This means a middle ground between worshipping stupas and worshipping images. It is interesting to see this cave. It shows how the Buddhist religion changed from the early Hinayana period to the later Mahayana period. There are pictures of the Buddha all the way around the round stupa.