As the moon takes its complete form on Buddha Purnima, The Trip decided to explore Maharashtra's most fascinating Buddhist caves, to get a taste of some nirvana

Meet a 15-feet tall Buddha at Ellora

Ellora, or Verul Leni, as it's locally called, has one of the world's largest rock-hewn monastic temple complexes in the form of the famous Ellora caves. The site is a part of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites list.

Hewn from 'Deccan Trap', a volcanic basaltic formation, these ancient caves from the 5 BC are thoroughly inspiring as they stretch up to the northern end of Ellora.
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Ellora Caves

Out of the 100 caves, numbers 1 to 12 are Buddhist, the earliest ones in Ellora.

They mainly comprise of viharas (monasteries) exemplary of India's finest cave architecture, with large, multi-storeyed structures paying homage to Lord Buddha.

Must see: Cave 10's cathedral-like Chaitya Hall, with its 15-feet Buddha statue in
a preaching pose. Also called the 'Carpenter's Cave', its ceiling gives the impression of having wooden beams
across it.

How to reach: Ellora is a 45-minute road trip north of Aurangabad, which in turn is about 7 hours away by train from Mumbai. The site is closed on Tuesdays.

Gasp at Ajanta's world-famous murals

Venerating the Buddha in all his glorious incarnations, the Ajanta Caves boast of breathtaking panoramic paintings and intricate sculpture.

In 1891, a British army officer, John Smith, accidentally discovered 30 caves from as early as the 2 BC. These caves revealed Theravadin Buddhist doctrines in fine art form.

Again, these caves were mainly used as residential and meditational purposes for Buddhist monks.

It took them hammer, chisel and deep devotion to carve the Buddha's images, his forms and the Jataka Tales around the walls.

Must see: Paintings of Buddha subduing the elephant (Cave 17), Nalagiri, the dream of Buddha's mother, Maya and a procession of female devotees for birth of the Buddha.

How to reach: From Jalgaon, the Ajanta Caves are just 90 minutes away. Mumbai to Jalgaon is a 6 hour journey. The site is closed on Mondays.