After only a day in Pune we head to the bus station where we immediately find a bus headed to Aurgangabad, 200 km to the north, (immediately as in: we arrive, ask when the next bus is leaving, are pointed in the direction of a bus that leaves five minutes later). The bus ride takes about five hours, and by Andrea’s account it is fairly painless thanks to the relatively decent roads in Maharashtra, though again painless means something very particular here. While the road is indeed in fairly good shape, the variety of vehicles (to use the term broadly) that utilize it turn the ride into a painful exercise in aggressive driving. On the side of the road are people walking or cycling; to their left are the “two-wheelers” i.e scooters and motorbikes, as well as diesel rickshaws; closer to the center are the ubiquitous trucks and busses, as well as cars, which are either big Landrover looking jeeps or tiny Indian style hatchbacks. This incredible diversity requires an assortment of creative maneuvers and wild passes . The bus is either speeding up to pass a scooter, slowing down to let a car pass, squeezing past a cyclist or perhaps stopped altogether for some water buffalo that are crossing the road. A constant speed is rarely maintained for more than 20 seconds, and the passengers stomachs suffer accordingly. Horns are used constantly to announce to all concerned that your vehicle is making a pass or simply in the area - the backs of trucks actually say "horn please" (they also have all sorts prayers, messages and public service announcements written on them as well). Thankfully our bus' horn is a mellow foghorn bass blast, far less excrutiating than the shrill shrieks of some of the other vehicles that pass. Reading is of course impossible as the bus lurches along, and sleeping is none too easy either. Luckily there is plenty to look at on the road – shrines, shops, shacks, people everywhere and fabulously colorful signs in Hindi and Marathi, which give me ample opportunity to practice reading nagri script. Aurangabad is needless to say a welcome site (not the world's most beautiful city, but at leats the bus has stopped moving) although not much time to enjoy the pause as we immediately (see above for definition of this word) find another bus leaving for Ellora where we will meet a group from TMV (our host institution) that is touring the famous Ellora and Ajunta caves.

We arrive late at Hotel Kailash, a few meters away from the Ellora caves and head for bed. Up before the sun (again) we hop into a car with the university group (a professor, two Sanskrit phD students, two exchange students from Japan and a driver) to drive the 70 km to Ajunta caves. Walking down to the caves from a viewpoint a few km away, the sight before us is quite stunning – a massive semicircular cliff 200 meters high with 30 or so caves carved into its side and a small river valley below. One can only imagine what it was like for pilgrims or travelers to come upon this sight after many days walk or ride, when the caves were still a vibrant center of Buddhist practice and life more than 1500 years ago. To see these caves crawling with monks instead of tourists would have been quite a sight indeed, especially after an arduous overland journey. After waiting for an hour for the “booking-walla” (this is actually a word in Hindi/Marathi; walla being the all purpose Hindi term that might be translated in English as “guy” or “man”, though in English we tend to use more specialized terms – booking “agent”, ticket “taker”, baggage “handler”), we are admitted into the caves. Its 10 am and Im already dehydrated and have a headache. You simply cannot drink enough water here (and its still the cool season). The caves are truly remarkable. Built over a 500-year period, they are basically divided into vihars (monasteries) and shrines, though many do double duty. The Ajunta caves fame comes form the wall paintings (similar to frescoes), many of which are still quite well preserved (in a relative sense). The larger caves are considered temples and visitors must take their shoes off. The caves are lit by low intensity lights which partially illuminated the paintings of Buddhas, bodhisattvas and the like. Its not easy to intepret or understand exactly what’s going on in the paintings or in the caves but we are lucky enough toward the end of the visit to run into Walter Spink, an art historian type who has made Ajunta his life work, and he explains something about his version of the cave’s history. As is often the case in Buddhist history (and maybe religious history in general?), the story is largely about the relationship between priests/monks and their aristocratic sponsors – all but as few caves are the product of sponsorship from emperors and their feudal lords, and when the dynasty fails and the patronage disappears, the caves soon fall into disuse.

By evening we are back at the Ellora caves, which are more famous for their carvings and sculpture. Unlike the Ajunta caves, which are solely Buddhist, these caves are divided between Buddhists, Hindus and Jains. All of the Ellora caves are free to enter except the massive Kailash temple, the world’s largest monolithic structure (i.e. structure made from a single piece of material, in this case stone). We walk around the Buddhist caves in the cool evening, saving Kailash for the next morning. We return before the sun again, walking around and above the temple, which is carved directly into the side of a cliff, before descending to the entryway. The temple, dedicated to Siva, is truly an unbelievable sight. The king who ordered its construction certainly knew what it means to build for posterity. Its sort of like a Hindu Parthenon carved into the side of a cliff, though without the monopolistic fame of the latter monument; Indian religious history is simply too venerable and geogrpahically diverse to have any one building hold that kind of singular fame, but if you're looking for an analogue in scope and majesty, the Parthenon is a good place to start. You could easily walk around the place for hours, especially if you're with someone who can decode the majestic statues, which honor all sorts of Gods in additiont to the great Destroyer. The carvings and statues of all manner of beast and deity are in great shape and the central temple inside with the requisite lingam (phallic icon of Shiv) is a powerful site. We leave reluctantly as the group is assembling for the bumpy ride back to Pune.