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Badami Caves
 Location
: Badami, Karnataka
Depicting
: Various Mythological Characters
Known For
: Cave Temples
Badami town is best known for its beautiful cave temple, cut into the cliff face of a red sandstone hill. They display the full range of religious sects which have developed in India. Two of them are dedicated to Vishnu, one to Shiva and the fourth is a Jain temple. There's also one natural cave which is a Buddhist temple.
The caves found here are as
Follows
:
Cave 1
:
The first cave made of red sandstone, dates back to 578 A.D. and was probably the first to be carved. One has to climb up 40 odd steps to reach the colonnaded verandah, a hall with numerous pillars and a square shaped sanctum hollowed in the control back wall.
Column shafts are masterfully crafted. On the ceiling one can see the paintings of amorous couples. Shiva and his consort Parvati, and a coiled serpent. The 18-armed lord Nataraja can be seen in 81 dancing poses.
Cave 2
:
Dedicated to lord Vishnu depicted here as a dwarf or 'Trivikrama' of awesome dimensions with one foot mastering the Earth and the other the sky, the second cave is atop a sandstone hill.
Vishnu here is depicted as a dwarf or. Another form of Vishnu portrayed here is as 'Varaha' or as a boar. Then there is a frieze endearingly depicting Vishnu as Lord Krishna.
Cave 3
:
 Still going higher up one comes across this cave antedating 578 A.D. The facade of the cave is nearly 70 feet wide, on the plinth one can see the carvings of ganas. The sheer artistry and sculptural genius makes this cave the highlight of Deccan art.
It gives a virtual insight into the art and culture of the 6th century like costumes, jewelry hairstyle lifestyle etc. The other attractions to be looked carefully in this cave are the high relief of Vishnu with a serpent, Vishnu as Narasimha (Vishnu as Man-Lion) Varaha, Harihara (Shiva Vishnu) and Vishnu as Trivikrama.
Cave 4
:
The only Jain cave, the construction of Cave four started in the 6th century and completed after nearly 100 years later then the earlier three caves.
Here one can see the carvings of the Tirthankara Parshavnatha with a serpent at his feet; Mahavira in a sitting posture also can be seen in the shrine.
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