Nestled in the crook of the Charanadari hill in Deccan is a series of ancient temples and monasteries hewn out of the moutainside. Situated on the ancient north- south trade route or the dakshinapatha, the tiny mountain village of Verul - mutated today to Ellora -was a well- known stopover for traders, priests and pilgrims who plied the route to the western ports.

Beginning sometime in the 7th century, when the Chalukyas (AD 553 - 753) ruled the Deccan, these wayfarers decided to make their presence permanent. And excavation started on a number of Buddhist chaityas and viharas. The place found favour with missionaries of other faiths as well, and over the next five centuries, Hindus and Jains also built their temples in the rocks there.