janinism

navigate by keyword : ancient archaeological art artwork bhopal bhudevi boar brahmana brahmi cave caves characters complex conch cosmic cut depiction depths derivative durga dynasty earth face gupta hindu hinduism historical iconography important incarnation india indian inscription janinism legend lipi madhya man matrikas monument ocean oldest ornate pradesh protected rescuing rock ruins samhita sandstone sankha script shaivism shaktism shankha shatapatha shell shellscript shiva site spiral survey surviving taittariya temples text tusk twenty udayagiri undeciphered vaishnavism varaha vedas vedic vidisha vishnu

Entrance to Udayagiri Caves complex which has some of the oldest surviving Hindu temples & iconography, Madhya Pradesh, India Royalty Free Stock Photo

Udayagiri Cave 8 `Tawa`, excavated into a hemispherical dome-shaped rock, with large flat rock crown resembling an Indian griddle Royalty Free Stock Photo

Panel in Cave 5 of the Udayagiri Caves, Madhya Pradesh, India, depicting the legend of Vishnu in his incarnation as the man-boar Royalty Free Stock Photo

Niche with an image of the four armed Ganesha & a devotee carrying a banana plant, Udayagiri Caves, India Royalty Free Stock Photo

Close-up of Sankha Lipi shell-script inscription on rock face, Udayagiri Caves, Vidisha, India Royalty Free Stock Photo

Sankha Lipi shell-script inscriptions along passageway, Udayagiri Caves, Vidisha, India

Vishnu in his incarnation as the man-boar Varaha, rescuing Bhudevi from the cosmic ocean on his tusk, Udayagiri Caves, India Royalty Free Stock Photo

Eroded steps & cave openings along passage formed by natural canyon running east to west, Udayagiri Caves, Vidisha, India Royalty Free Stock Photo

Sankha Lipi is a term used by scholars to describe presently undeciphered ornate spiral characters assumed to be Brahmi derivative that resemble conch shells shankhas. The Udayagiri Caves, one of India`s most important archaeological sites, are twenty rock-cut caves in Madhya Pradesh, about 57 km from Bhopal, dating from the 5th century CE. They are notable for their ancient iconography of Vaishnavism Vishnu, Shaktism Durga & Matrikas and Shaivism Shiva. Udayagiri contains the largest deposit of these 5th century CE inscriptions.