CHHOTA MAHADEO GUFA
22.481900,78.411100
Description
NOTE 1: Barkachhar Pahar 22°29'25”N: 78°24'10”E: 1108 m (Everest 1830). NOTE 2: Jaistambha, also: Jai Stambh (vijaya stambha, Hindi, victory pllar) near 22°28'26”N: 78°26'10”E: 1060 m (Everest 1830, Survey of India sheet 55-J/07 edition 1976; Gebauer, H D 2000.12.29 GPS Garmin 12).NOTE 3: Hospital 22°28'31"N: 78°25'43”E (Everest 1830). NOTE 4: Twynham Pool, saffronised Rajyapal Sur, 22°28'39”N: 78°25'17”E (Everest 1830).
The sacred Chhota Mahadeo Gufa (small cave of the great god) is a moist rock shelter with some stalagmitic lumps (speleothems) associated with Shiva (note 1). SITUATION: A few metres above the north (right) bank of the river far way down in the Jambu Dwip (Jambudeep, Jambudip) Valley and on the southern flanks of Barkachhar Pahar (note 1). The site lies, according to GPS readings, at a linear distance of 2.72 km north-east (289°) from the seven way junction (note 2) Jaistambha / Jai Stambh (victory pillar) in –>Pachmarhi town. To reach the spot, walk from the seven-way junction Jaistambha to the Government Hospital (note 3) and take a hard topped but no more motorable small road towards the approximate north. This winding road descends through picturesque scenery to a small reservoir of Twynham Pool (note 4). Continue eastwards on the same level for about 75 m along a footpath to a fork with "road signs" (upturned U-shaped sandstone slabs with Devanagari lettering). The path downhill to the right hand side descends steeply to the wide open area of –>Jambu Dwip. The horizontal path straight on by and by looses height and finally ends at the sacred spot. CAVE DESCRIPTION: Chhota Mahadeo is definitely not a cave but nevertheless well worth a visit due to its gorgeous location. Craggy and water worn walls tower above a rapidly incising gorge resounding from waters struggling to fight their ways around and betwixt tumbled rocks covered with mosses and ferns flourishing in moist and murky shades of overhanging trees. Most luring for the caver is a high irregular crack in the opposite cliff face with dubious dark corners obscured by protruding ledges and fallen rocks. The crack is reached only by clambering over boulders precariously stacked over white water. Arrived at the other side, tectonical disturbance, gravitational decay and lateral abrasion have combined forces with resurging percolation waters to create a short rift cave which ends a few metres from the cave entrance in wedged boulders and impenetrable fissures. Occasionally, some water must flow from this rift which was -- except for condensated dew -- quite dry when visited after an interesting 36 hour rain on 1st January 2000. Some cauliflower stal (botryoidal calcite formations) were protruding from the sandstone surface. The sacred spot itself is a notch in a rock shelter adjacent to the left (downstream) of the rift cave. The shelter is very irregularly shaped and has no well defined floor or back wall: both consist of interrupted ledges at various heights commonly sheltered by a protruding rocky ceiling. In one wide horizontal notch stands a pointed mass of calcite, sadly disfigured by a rude cover of bright orange colour. A closer look reveals the lump to consist of originally five or six stalagmites which have, over the time, grown into a single mass. A small occurrence of flowstone is nearby and a couple of short, somewhat "immature" stalactites on the ceiling try hard to become noteworthy sooner or later. PACHMARHI GUIDE MAP (1996): »Chhota Mahadev … Revered as a sacred spot, this is a narrow point in the valley with rocks overhanging a stream and a small spring from which water cascades [drops!] down .« BANSAL (s.a., circa 1998): »Chhota Mahadeo. This natural small cave has a Shivalingam. A little stream [rather a running] comes from the rocks behind …« TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE (2002.09.15): »For pilgrims there are places like Chotta Mahadev, a narrow point in the hills …«DATING: The river flows barely 4 m or 6 m below the site. Even when assuming an inadequate slow incision rate of 1.25 mm/a, are the rift cave, the shelter and the secondary calcite deposits less than 5000 years old.
Documents
Bibliography 25/03/2016Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.6 | JAMBU DWIP SHELTERS 1 - 6 | ||
| 1.4 | BEE STREAM CAVE | ||
| 1.4 | BEE STREAM SHELTER 1 | ||
| 1.4 | BEE STREAM SHELTER 2 | ||
| 1.9 | Monte Rosa Cave 1 | ||
| 2.0 | DOROTHY DEEP SHELTERS 1 - 4 | ||
| 2.1 | IMLI KHOH | ||
| 2.1 | SATERI CAVE | ||
| 2.4 | Monte Rosa Shelters 1-4 |