Early Brahmanical Rock Cut Caves at Katalgaon-Javade, District Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, India

Advent of Brahmanism in India is a complex process. The religion itself went through many transitions in the early centuries of Common Era. It faced great competition from other established religious traditions, such as Buddhism. Its arrival on the western coast of India was hitherto attributed to the late 5th/6th centuries CE on the basis of some cave temples and isolated images. This article presents the discovery of some early Brahmanical caves in coastal Maharashtra, India, and looks at the course of the journey of Brahmanism in a new light. It appears that the beginning of Brahmanical sects was earlier than what was thought before. The architecture as well as sculptural elements and narrative panels including their iconographic and art historical analysis are discussed in detail. It also talks about the geo-political settings of the early historic coastal Maharashtra.