RISHESHWARA MAHADEO GUFA, Nandia

Herbert Daniel Gebauer - 27/04/2016

A temple built in front and inside a complicated cluster of rifts, shelters and cave chambers sacred to Risheshwara Mahadeo, an aspect of Shiva, are found in a gravitationally dislocated assemblage of rounded granite boulders (KUMAR, Ravindra 1996: 80: Precambrian: Early Middle Proterozoic Erinpura Granite). The talus cave offers some 50 to 100 m of passage length in chambers of different sizes and rift passages at various angles extending over a vertical range of more than 15 m. The greater part of the cave system is considerably modified by man: Built in floors, steps and platforms consist of polished marbles, while ceilings and both natural and man-made walls are whitewashed or even covered with light blue coloued enamel paint. This item is possibly identical with the –>Sirohi Cave of ADVANI (1981g). CAVE LEGEND: A narrowing rift with a natural floor of rocks buried in coarse sand and soil is believed to connect by a fabulous tunnel to the »hole« at –>Achaleshwar Mahandeva Mandir (Mt. Abu: Achalgarh), at a linear distance of 28 km to 234°. SITUATION: Indicated as »Cave« on the Survey of India sheet 45-D/13 (edition 1961) near the bottom of the south-eastern flank of Risheshwara Pahar (503 m asl), the prominent isolated hill less than 1 km ESE of –>Nandia village. CULTURAL HISTORY - Human use: The clean and well kept temple cave is sacred to Hindus (no shoes are allowed inside) and appears to be occupied all over the year by a residing pundita (pandit, priest), a pujari (temple guide), and several attendants. An "Australian" (perhaps Austrian) lady was said to have stood there for 12 years. CAVE LIFE: An "ulu" (owl), earth wasps and bat guano (Chiroptera) was seen on 23rd January 2001. The resident Shri Risheshwara Pandit (2001.01.23 personal communication) reported occasional visits by »cheetah« (hunting leopard, Felis jubata; say: wild cat, conf. felis).