Sailing Through The Marble Rocks

Sailing Through The Marble Rocks @ Jabalpur, MadhyaPradesh

After the plunge at Dhuandhar, the Narmada river scratches its flow through a narrow valley having steep rocky walls n high cliffs on either sides, engraving a beautiful gorge on the Central Indian landmass.

Near Bhedaghat area of Jabalpur, row boats are available for guided trip on the river along the marble rocks. The boat gradually passes through marble rocks of various colors n shapes shimmering under the sun light.

In most of the cases, the boat man narrates some story relating love n the marble rocks in a comic style mixing with it latest released blockbuster musics which surely generates amusement among the boat-passengers(tourists).

While sailing on the boat, one can see 10-12 yr aged  kids diving into the water from the high cliffs to entertain the tourists. They charge minimal bucks for their act but the act brings most of the visitors heart into their mouths.  

The "marble rocks" is supposed to be a heavenly sight on a moonlit night which causes the boat charges to hike a bit on full-moon nights.

Bhojeshwar! The Majestic Shrine Of 11th Century. Yet left uncharted.

The Sun would shed within next half n hour! We were on our way back to Bhopal!

When we had booked the private car, the driver, said us that some shiv-mandir somewhere around Bhimbetka was also there in the site-seeing list.

But we could feel that he had himself scissored the list and was taking us back to Bhopal! The moment this "scissoring the list" fact was realized we asked him to take us to that spot!

He tried some 'general' excuses.
Bahut purana mandir hai wo bhi tuta phuta! 

Kafi raat ho jayega Bhopal lautne mein! 

Still we insisted him to take us! Finally, the car had to take a U-turn, then either a right or a left turn from the highway, and within minutes, we were on a rural type of road having Sakhua(Saal) trees & small bushes on either side. The car was literally rushing. Suddenly we could see a red-brick/granite temple structure at our distant site glowing beautifully in the soft sunlight!

The Red Granite Bhojeshwara Temple

Within minutes we reached Bhojpur Temple! The very first sight of temple, its really massive yet its impressively beautiful.

The temple was founded by  Raja Bhoj (1010-1053) after him, the place is named Bhojpur. It is an unfinished temple for Lord Shiva. It is believed that if completed, it would have been one of the largest in India. It can be cited as one of the best examples of temple architecture of the 11th - 13th centuries.

The Huge Lord Shiva
(The snap was taken from a distance to make it fit to the cam screen)

Lord Shiva of Bhojpur is called by the name Bhojeshwar. The lingam is huge!(height approx 7.5 ft with a circumference of approx 17 8 ft) The platform on which the lingam is set is even more huge (approx 21.5 ft sq)

It is said to have been composed of three superimposed limestone blocks. I previously had never seen such huge shiv lingams! Neither I ever thought that shiv-lingams could be this gigantic. I saw a ladder inside the sanctum. Naturally the ladder is very necessary for climbing up till the platform for worshipping Lord Shiva. I came to know from the guide that, in ancient times Elephants used to shower flowers on the lingam while it was being worshipped!

The temple dome is beautifully decorated

I was surprised by a thought! The temple stairs are so strong that even elephants could climb them on a regular basis! I really wondered!

The main entrance is decorated with exquisite sculptures of Yakshis. The side walls have beautifully designed carved balconies. 

Yakshis Sculptured On The Temple Entrance

Bhojpur is a indistinctive village far from the hustle-bustle of city. Though not many visit Bhojpur, and its not a regular tourist spot but it left me with a feeling of fulfillment. If I would not have visited Bhojpur, I feel I would have missed this still ignored shrine for life-time.

Caves of Bhimbetka! Retaining the earliest traces of human life!

Central India has lots of surprises in store for travellers.

Bhimbetka, quite a few kilometers from Bhopal was our first site seeing spot during our tour of few places of Madhya Pradesh. Before leaving for Bhimbetka, I had done no previous researches on how Bhimbetka could be n neither I had any intentions of knowing! When I physically came across the caves of Bhimbetka, I was literally awestruck! 

One of the massive rock structures out of many @ Bhimbetka rock shelter zone

The caves of Bhimbetka, today an archaeological site, were rock shelters 100,000 years ago! 

100,000 years from now takes us back to the prehistoric period of human history, the Paleolithic Era. Sculptures on the cave walls have mostly faded but some are still prominent. 

These rock shelters exhibit the earliest traces of human life on the Indian subcontinent, and the beginning of the South Asian Stone Age.

A mammoth can be seen in the sculpture.

Stone Age is something which I had probably read in the first chapter of social studies during my early primaries. It was an inexplicable feeling when I was seriously realizing that human beings literally existed 100,000 years back. 

Though for years I am knowing the facts of early-man, mammoth elephants, early men used to paint on cave walls, that day I was visualizing the traces of our the then ancestors. 

The cave wall paintings depicted many daily-life events of our very own early men. The caves also portray early evidence of dance.

These caves have been declared as World Heritage Site as well as considered as world’s oldest stone walls and floors.

Faded yet visible rock paintings, even after thousands of years.

 

Though the paintings on the walls were done by stone scratches on the rocks, the number of paintings are huge. Some Stone Age rock paintings found among the Bhimbetka caves are approximately 30,000 years old. 

But, I was wondering how can those paintings last this long! 21st century running! The paintings still visible! It was quite unbelievable!

Surprise!! Secret revealed.

The colors used in the paintings were vegetable colors and the drawings were made deep inside or on inner walls of the caves.

Oh my Gosh! Early men were so intelligent!

Representation of early man painting cave wall

The paintings on the walls of the rock shelter, the existence of an early rock-shelter culture surrounded by the civilized world yet unexplored, the primitive feel of Bhimbetka was an unexpected surprise to me! 

A view from hill top, natural vegetation all around!

Bhimbetka was just the first page of my tour to the few places of Madhya Pradesh. 

The rest pages will be turned ASAP!