The village of Lalitagiri is situated
in the state of Orissa. It lies at a distance of approximately 90 km
from the city of Bhubaneshwar. Lalitagiri dates back to the first
century and is considered to be one of the earliest Buddhist
establishments in the world. Even today, the ancient stupas, beautiful
sculptures and the caves make the place look like that of an ancient
age. The iconographical features of the Lalitagiri sculptures bear a
strong resemblance to Java and Southeast Asian prototypes.
A number of excavations have been carried out at Lalitagiri, by the
Archeological Survey of India. Among them, the most prominent one is
that of an ancient stupa. The stupa is said to contain relics preserved
in caskets of stone. Because of the age of the relics, as well as their
silver and gold contents, it is alleged that they belong to Lord Buddha.
Other excavations include black polished inscribed pieces of pottery of
Ashokan Brahmi script, Kushan inscriptions, ornamental Brahmi, etc.
All these artifacts have further strengthened the notion that Lalitagiri
was once a flourishing Buddhist center. A number of monuments have also
been unearthed at Lalitagiri. Of them, the most significant ones consist
of the ruins of an apsidal temple, encircled by monasteries and stupas.
The recent excavations at Lalitagiri have been linked to the Gandharva
School of art.
How to reach Lalitagiri
By Air
Bhubaneshwar is the nearest airport.
By Train
Bhubaneshwar is the nearest railhead and it well connected with almost
all the major cities of India.
By Road
There is a good road network, linking Lalitagiri with Bhubaneshwar and
a number of other cities.
