Lokmat News Network
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:
The beautiful statue of Lord Buddha shining with radiant light in the darkened cave number 10, and hundreds of history enthusiasts and tourists, who witness this moment, express a sense of gratitude after seeing the glowing, radiant face on Monday evening. In the world-heritage Ellora Caves, hundreds of history lovers experienced the mesmerising "Kiranotsav" and witnessed this rare sight, feeling blessed as they observed it with their own eyes.
The Ellora Caves, an incredible example of architectural artistry, consists of 34 caves. Among these, 12 are Buddhist Caves. Cave number 10 is a Buddhist Chaitya (prayer hall), while the other Buddhist caves are Vihars (monasteries). Every year, as the sun moves towards the north, sun rays fall on the statue in Cave Number 10. On Monday evening, these rays touched the face of the Lord Buddha’s statue. Tourists from across the country and abroad gathered to witness this breathtaking sight. This ‘kiranotsav’ can be experienced by tourists for the next 5 to 6 days, said historian Dr Sanjay Paikrao.
15 minutes of radiance
Around 4.20 pm, the sun rays began to enter the cave. At precisely 5.04 pm, the sun rays fell on the face of the Lord Buddha’s statue, and a meeting of one radiance with another took place. This mesmerising moment was witnessed by hundreds of tourists until 5.15 pm.
Foreigners were amazed by the event
Foreign tourists also witnessed this rare event. After witnessing the sunrays, the only words that came from their mouths were, "It's amazing..." These foreign visitors not only attended the kiranotsav but also took the opportunity to study and observe this remarkable event.
Crowd control with police presence
This year, the number of tourists and history enthusiasts attending the event doubled. The cave was filled with visitors, and even outside the caves, there was a massive crowd. To manage this situation, the police had to be called in. Handling the crowd proved to be a challenging task for the police.