The Khajuraho Temples

The temples of Khajuraho, built by the Chandela dynasty around a thousand years ago in what is now Madhya Pradesh, are among the finest examples of medieval Indian temple architecture and a World Heritage Site. Once numbering many more, the surviving temples rise as clusters of soaring, mountain-like towers, and their walls are covered from base to spire in bands of exquisitely detailed sculpture: gods and goddesses, celestial dancers, musicians, animals and scenes of everyday and courtly life, including the frankly erotic carvings for which the temples are most famous and which express, in the thinking of their builders, the fullness of life and the divine. The largest, the Kandariya Mahadev, is a masterpiece of proportion and carving. Grouped mainly in a western enclosure, with further Hindu and Jain temples nearby, they are best appreciated slowly, tracing the astonishing stonework, and a sound-and-light show tells their story in the evening.

History

The temples were built under the Chandela dynasty, mostly between 885 and 1000 by one account, while their inscriptions put many of the survivors between 970 and 1030; the Lakshmana temple belongs to the reign of Yashovarman, the Vishvanatha to Dhanga and the largest, the Kandariya Mahadeva, to Vidyadhara. By the 12th century the site had 85 temples over 20 square kilometres, of which about 25 survive. The Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang described the place in 641, and al-Biruni named it in 1022 as the capital of Jajahuti. The temples were in use until the end of the 12th century; after the Delhi Sultanate's army under Qutb-ud-din Aibak seized the Chandela kingdom in the 13th century some were desecrated, and the rest, protected by their remoteness, were overgrown by forest until in the 1830s local Hindus guided the British surveyor T. S. Burt to them. The name comes from the Sanskrit words for date palm and bearer (Wikipedia, Khajuraho Group of Monuments).

What to look for

• Kandariya Mahadev Temple - the largest and most richly carved of the temples.
• The sculptured walls - the bands of gods, dancers and figures covering the towers.
• The western group - the main enclosure of the finest temples.
• The eastern and Jain temples - the further temples a short way from the main group.

When to go

October to March is the cool, dry season and the most pleasant; summer is very hot. The annual dance festival, usually in winter or spring, sets classical Indian dance against the floodlit temples and is a highlight. Early morning gives soft light on the carvings and fewer people.

What to expect

It is a compact site seen in a day, and while the western group is superb, the town of Khajuraho itself is small and offers little else, so it is often a fly-in, fly-out or overnight stop rather than a longer stay. It is somewhat off the main tourist routes, needing a flight or a long drive. The erotic carvings draw a certain giggling attention, but they are a small part of a vast and serious artistic achievement.

Nearby

The tiger reserves of Panna and Bandhavgarh are within reach; Orchha's palaces and cenotaphs lie to the northwest.

Key facts