They were the descendents of Moon God. Going by what mythology has to say, Moon (Chandra Dev in Hindu mythology) once saw beautiful Hemavati bathing in a lotus pond and made love with her. Hemavati then gave birth to a son – Chandravarman, who later established a mighty kingdom known as The Chandelas. Atoning for the sins committed by his mother, Chandravarman commissioned and completed 85 temples devoted to various deities in the foothills of Vindhya mountain range in middle India. This place is now known as Khajuraho. In terms of tourism, Khajuraho is perhaps one of the most under-rated places in India. Last weekend of January this year, we planned a 3 days trip to Khajuraho and Panna National Park, which ultimately got cut short to 2 days, courtesy Indian Railways and Delhi’s foggy winters.
We reached Khajuraho in the evening, so the first thing was to search for a decent hotel and then roam around the places, check out the market and take rest. Next morning we left to Raneh Falls – mini canyons made by the river Karnavati, also known as Ken. The best time to visit the falls is when there not much water in it, because that is when you get to see the beauty of rocks and the way the river has carved these hard rocks in thousands of years. Such a vast, plain and rocky terrain was most unexpected amidst the forest. A few kilometers of trekking in Jungle led us to Ken Ghariyal Park, the part of river Ken where it comes out of the canyons and relaxes after a painful task of shaping rocks. Though we could not see any alligators while boating in the river there, it was really a soulful experience with no one around. Some small and big rocks emerging out of the surface, casting reflections in still water, created a picturesque view. We could also spot monkeys, spotted deer, 6-horned deer, nilgai (blue bull) and vultures in the jungle while trekking back. We came back to Khajuraho in the afternoon, had our lunch and started the temple tour. Western Group of Temples is the main temple complex having the famous Kandariya Mahadev temple and a few others. All the sandstone temples are almost similar in terms of architecture, design and beauty, heavily carved with the figures of either deities or of apsaras. By and large the carvings in the temples represent pleasures – worldly and spiritual, a few having the most famous erotic sculptures attributed to Kamasutra, an ancient Indian text of love and passion. After visiting Western, Eastern and Southern groups, we came back to Western group for a 1-hour ‘Light and Sound Show’ and got ourselves enlightened with the knowledge of Khajuraho’s glorious history and its temples’ philosophy.
The next day we planned for Pandava falls and Ken River Lodge’s Tree Top café. About 40 kilometers from Khajuraho, Pandava falls provide an ideal picnic spot for families. The area comes under the Panna National Park and it’s a seasonal fall, so it was merely a stream of water coming out from a hole made in the rocks. The water falls in a bowl shaped pond surrounded by lush green hillocks and beautiful rocks. Supposedly there are some caves that are assumed to be Pandavas abode for some time during their 13 years exile. After spending some time there, we headed to a local temple ‘Swargeshwar Mandir’ that holds much religious importance among the local people. The only way to the temple is through the dense forest, where no one assures your safety from tiger or bear from the jungle out there. We were scared. Not only a good kilometer walk through the jungle, we had to climb a small mountain, having about 365 steps to the top, before we could reach the ‘Shivling’ placed strategically under a rock such that the vegetation there continuously oozed out water on it. The view of the village, the jungle and the fields from the top was breathtaking. And the best thing of this whole trip was that except us, there was no one around, no bipods I mean.
That was the end of our trip. Boarding the train to back to Delhi, I was wondering where else in India could one find a place that is so rich in aesthetics, history and geographical variations. In more than 1000 years of its history, a great assortment of mountains and canyons, greens and rocks, riches and rags, love and hatred, the city of Khajuraho has seen the pinnacle of prosperity and art, and I think this variety is the beauty of the place.
We reached Khajuraho in the evening, so the first thing was to search for a decent hotel and then roam around the places, check out the market and take rest. Next morning we left to Raneh Falls – mini canyons made by the river Karnavati, also known as Ken. The best time to visit the falls is when there not much water in it, because that is when you get to see the beauty of rocks and the way the river has carved these hard rocks in thousands of years. Such a vast, plain and rocky terrain was most unexpected amidst the forest. A few kilometers of trekking in Jungle led us to Ken Ghariyal Park, the part of river Ken where it comes out of the canyons and relaxes after a painful task of shaping rocks. Though we could not see any alligators while boating in the river there, it was really a soulful experience with no one around. Some small and big rocks emerging out of the surface, casting reflections in still water, created a picturesque view. We could also spot monkeys, spotted deer, 6-horned deer, nilgai (blue bull) and vultures in the jungle while trekking back. We came back to Khajuraho in the afternoon, had our lunch and started the temple tour. Western Group of Temples is the main temple complex having the famous Kandariya Mahadev temple and a few others. All the sandstone temples are almost similar in terms of architecture, design and beauty, heavily carved with the figures of either deities or of apsaras. By and large the carvings in the temples represent pleasures – worldly and spiritual, a few having the most famous erotic sculptures attributed to Kamasutra, an ancient Indian text of love and passion. After visiting Western, Eastern and Southern groups, we came back to Western group for a 1-hour ‘Light and Sound Show’ and got ourselves enlightened with the knowledge of Khajuraho’s glorious history and its temples’ philosophy.
The next day we planned for Pandava falls and Ken River Lodge’s Tree Top café. About 40 kilometers from Khajuraho, Pandava falls provide an ideal picnic spot for families. The area comes under the Panna National Park and it’s a seasonal fall, so it was merely a stream of water coming out from a hole made in the rocks. The water falls in a bowl shaped pond surrounded by lush green hillocks and beautiful rocks. Supposedly there are some caves that are assumed to be Pandavas abode for some time during their 13 years exile. After spending some time there, we headed to a local temple ‘Swargeshwar Mandir’ that holds much religious importance among the local people. The only way to the temple is through the dense forest, where no one assures your safety from tiger or bear from the jungle out there. We were scared. Not only a good kilometer walk through the jungle, we had to climb a small mountain, having about 365 steps to the top, before we could reach the ‘Shivling’ placed strategically under a rock such that the vegetation there continuously oozed out water on it. The view of the village, the jungle and the fields from the top was breathtaking. And the best thing of this whole trip was that except us, there was no one around, no bipods I mean.
That was the end of our trip. Boarding the train to back to Delhi, I was wondering where else in India could one find a place that is so rich in aesthetics, history and geographical variations. In more than 1000 years of its history, a great assortment of mountains and canyons, greens and rocks, riches and rags, love and hatred, the city of Khajuraho has seen the pinnacle of prosperity and art, and I think this variety is the beauty of the place.
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