Ellora Caves 6 to 9

Artisans built the Buddhist Ellora Caves 6 to 9 between 450 AD and 700 AD, making them key places to visit in Ellora Caves. Most of these buildings are viharas or temples. They are just big houses with many floors carved into the side of the rock. 

They have places for living, sleeping, cooking, and other things. Some of these monastery holes have shrines with images of saints, bodhisattvas, and Gautama Buddha. Ellora Caves tour packages offer visitors a chance to explore these remarkable structures.

Cave 6

Cave 6 contains three of the most beautiful figures at Ellora. The masons raised this in the seventh century AD. On the left is the goddess Tara, with quite a grave but kind expression on her face. On the right is the Buddhist goddess of learning, Mahamayuri, represented by her emblem, a peacock. Below is a student who seems to work hard at his desk. Interesting coincidence, Mahamayuri has a counterpart in Hinduism-Saraswati, her near-identical reflection.

Cave 7

In Cave 7, there is an immense plain vihara that is about 51 feet wide and 43 feet deep. Four beams hold up the roof. Three of the piers were broken off. Five rooms are started in the back wall, but only two are finished at the right end. The right end wall has three unfinished rooms, and the left end wall has four.

Cave 8

Cave 8 has two rooms and a shrine with a path that goes around it. The inside hall is 25 feet long and 28 feet wide. There are three rooms on the north side, and two pillars separate each end. At the door of the shrine are the usual dwarapalas and their helpers.

Inside, the Buddha is sitting with his helpers. This time, Padmapani has four arms and is holding the lotus flower. He also has deer skin over his shoulders. Little followers are sitting at his feet, and behind them is a tall woman holding a flower in her left hand and dwarfs above her head. The other tall male assistant has a friend who looks like her on his left.

A statue of Mahamayuri, which looks a bit like the one in Cave 7, is on the wall at the south door to the pradakshinapatha. The room on the outside is 28 feet by 17 feet and has a slightly higher stage. There is a sitting Buddha on the back wall of this room on the outside, with Padmapani and Vajrapani on either side.

Cave 9

The beautifully carved front of Cave 9 showcases six sitting Buddhas in elaborate arches, arranged in rows of three, two, and one from bottom to top. Between the arches are dwarfs playing and yakshas supporting them. 

In the border below, bhadrasana Buddhas, most likely the "Seven Historical Buddhas," alternate with standing bodhisattvas. Two pillars on the back wall split it into three sections. Buddha is sitting in the middle, and Padmapani and his female helpers are on the left.