Most visitors to Khajuraho come expecting erotic sculptures and leave having encountered something more profound.
The Chandela kings built these 22 temples to express a complete cosmological philosophy — that desire is not the opposite of spiritual liberation but one of the four legitimate goals of human existence. The erotic panels occupy a fraction of the carved surface. The rest is gods, celestial musicians, mythical creatures and devotional imagery of extraordinary beauty.
Without a guide who understands the theology, Khajuraho is a spectacle. With one, it is one of the most intellectually extraordinary places in India.
This 2 day Khajuraho tour covers the full UNESCO complex — western Hindu temples, Chausath Yogini and the eastern Jain temples.
Expert guide both days and all entry fees included.
5 Senses Tours is recognised by the Department of Tourism, a winner of the Outlook Responsible Tourism Award and the Tripadvisor Travellers Choice Award.
pick up will be from the hotel lobby
We start after breakfast to visit the Hindu Temple of Javari, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located on a high pedestal, this temple boasts of artistic interiors as well as exteriors. The exquisite carvings and the sculptures are magnificent.
Yogini is the term given to a female who practices yoga or a spiritual teacher of the Hindu. The temple has 64 different shrines for one yogini each. The central shrine is the largest and has a huge idol of Lord Shiva with his consort Goddess Parvati on Nandi the bull. The temple was made mostly of granite. Each yogini statue has a different posture from the other and is all exquisitely carved
he Kandariya was designed and built by the Chandela King Vidyadhara in the early 11th century. It was after Gazni Mahmud had invaded this region and destroyed it. The main attraction in the entrance area is a sacred Makara Torana that is simply eye-catching. The interior of the temple has intricately designed hallways, while the main hall has the prime deity of Lord Siva in the form of a linga. There is a lovely painting of a four-footed incarnation of Lord Shiva called Chatuspada.
This temple was built by the great Chandela ruler, King Yashovarman in the 10th century. The main idol here is of Lord Vaikuntha. This idol has three heads and four arms. This fantastic stone sculpture is accompanied by Narasimha or the lion avatar and Varaha or the boar avatar of the deity. The other attractive features are the statues of beautiful women with their partners in love.
Varaha is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu with a head of a boar on a human body, having four arms. Built by Chandelas in first century, the body of Varaha is filled with carvings among which the most beautiful is that of the Goddess Saraswati playing her veena.
Lord Shiva is depicted as a bridegroom here and thus the name ‘dulha’ turns into dhuladeo here. This was the last temple built in the whole group just on the banks of the Khodar River. This temple has a shape of a ‘saptadhara’ or a chariot driven by seven horses.
The Parshwanath temple is a Jain Temple built by the then Chandela Ruler Dhanga during the early 10th century. Various motifs of male, female, Gemini, trees, flowers, Ganga, Yamuna, etc can be seen on the walls here. In the temple there are many idols of female Goddesses playing musical instruments like gandarva, manjeera, shankha, mridanga and vadya.
The temple of Devi Jagadamba houses a gorgeous statue of Goddess Parvati. The temple has an intricately designed pyramidal roof. The other unique figures are of imaginative beasts and renditions of mythical shardulas like that of a body of a lion with a head of a parrot or boar or an elephant.
If you cancel at least 3 full day(s) before the scheduled departure time, you will receive a full refund.
If you cancel within 3 day(s) of the scheduled departure, you will receive a 0% refund.
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