Lenyadri
Buddhist caves in Junnar, India / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Lenyadri?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Lenyadri, sometimes called Ganesa Lena, Ganesh Pahar Caves, are a series of about 30 rock-cut Buddhist caves, located about 4.8 kilometres (3.0 mi) north of Junnar in Pune district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. Other caves surrounding the city of Junnar are: Manmodi Caves, Shivneri Caves and Tulja Caves. The Lenyadri caves date between the 1st and 3rd century AD and belong to the Hinayana Buddhism tradition.[1][2]
Lenyadri | |
---|---|
Location | Junnar, Maharashtra, India |
Coordinates | 19°14′34″N 73°53′8″E |
Twenty-six of the caves are individually numbered. The caves face to the south and are numbered serially from east to west.[1][3][4] Caves 6 and 14 are chaitya-grihas (chapels), while the rest are viharas (dwellings for monks). The latter are in the form of dwellings and cells. There are also several rock-cut water cisterns; two of them have inscriptions. The layout of the caves, in general, are similar in pattern and shape. They generally have one or two sides with two long benches for occupants' use.[1][3][4]
Two of the central cells of Cave 7 – originally a Buddhist vihara – were at an unknown later date appropriated for the worship of the Hindu god Ganesha. The rest of the cells and the hall of Cave 7 remain in their original form.[5] This Ganesha Lena vihara is one of the Ashtavinayak shrines, a set of the eight prominent Ganesha shrines in Western Maharashtra. In regional mythology, this is the Girijatmaja cave where goddess Parvati desired to be a mother and where Ganesha was born.[6]