Fabulous photos of the Kailas Temple and Ellora caves @NandKK 
Having been born and brought up in Aurangabad, I visited here uncountable times as part of school picnics and later accompanying guests who did not want to miss a visit to this UNESCO World Heritage site.
The third photo where you stand beneath is the most famous part of the caves that depict the 18-Day Mahabharat War and some stories from Ramayan.
Hence, they say the history and culture of India are carved in stone.
@Annaelisa , they created this rock-cut temple from top to bottom and it is the largest monolith structure in the world.
This was more than 2000 years ago.
6 Generations worked continuously working on the same plan over a period of 150 years.
Many kings and queens ruled the land, and they passed away but the work on the temple did not stop.
Also, it amazes modern people to know how they decided which part of the mountain to choose for the cutting.
This is because say after 50 years of work, if they find that there is an internal crack or some loose rock or a cavity at an undesirable place or there is a water body deep inside, the work of decades would be lost.
But as we see today, that did not happen. Hence this temple is also an engineering marvel.
Also, the artist who carved the beautiful statues and idols had only one chance at the carving, any mistake in it and the work would be useless.
But every carving is beautiful than the other. That is astonishing. Isn’t it?
Reminds me of another well-traveled local guide @TravellerG who has written about the Mahabalipuram Rock Temples in details.