Living root bridges

Today  i am gong to tell you about a very beautiful bridge also called and
Living root bridge..so here i am once again to share my experience about the one of the wonderful place in india.

Living root bridges are a form of tree shaping common in the southern part of the Northeast Indian state of Meghalaya. They are handmade from the aerial roots of living banyan fig trees, such as Ficus elastica by the Khasi people and War Jaintia  peoples of the mountainous terrain along the southern part of the Shillong Plateau.

 

A living root bridge near the village of Kongthong undergoing repairs. The local War Khasis in the photo are using the young, pliable aerial roots of a fig tree to create a new railing for the bridge.

The pliable tree roots are made to grow through betel tree trunks which have been placed across rivers and streams until the figs' roots attach themselves to the other side. Sticks, stones, and other objects are used to stabilize the growing bridgeThis process can take up to 15 years to complete. The useful lifespan of any given living root bridge is variable, but it is thought that, under ideal conditions, they can in principle last for many hundreds of years. As long as the tree they are formed from remains healthy, they naturally self-renew and self-strengthen as their component roots grow thicker.
 

Locations of living root bridges

 Living root bridges are known to occur in the West Jaintia Hills district and East Khasi Hills district. In the Jaintia Hills, examples of Living Root Bridges can be found in and around the villages of Shnongpdeng, Nongbareh, Khonglah, Padu, and Kudeng Rim. In the East Khasi Hills, living root bridges nearby Cherrapunji are known to exist in and around the villages of Tynrong, Mynteng, Nongriat, Nongthymmai, and around Laitkynsew.East of Cherrapunji, examples of living root bridges are known to exist in the Khatarshnong region, in and around the villages of Nongpriang, Sohkynduh, Rymmai, Mawshuit, and Kongthong.Many more can be found near Pynursla and around the village of Mawlynnong.

 

History

 The local Khasi people do not know when or how the tradition of living root bridges started. The earliest written record of Cherrapunji's living root bridges is by Lieutenant H Yule, who expressed astonishment about them in the 1844 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal.I know that you guys are thinking why the history is so short but what to do we have only this much information about the history of this bridge but don't worry ahead we have more intresting about this bridge.

like this bridge there are also some of the bridge who are also an intresting things to the visitors her are some of the examples.

 

Examples of living root bridges

At over 50 meters in length, the longest known example of a living root bridge is near the small Khasi town of Pynursla. It can be accessed from either of the villages of Mawkyrnot or Rangthylliang.
There are several examples of double living root bridges, the most famous being the "Double Decker" root bridge of Nongriat Village, pictured above.
There are three known examples of double bridges with two parallel or nearly parallel spans. Two are in the West Jaintia Hills near the villages of Padu and Nongbareh, and one is in Burma Village, in the East Khasi Hills. There is also a "Double Decker" (or possibly even "Triple Decker") near the village of Rangthylliang, close to Pynursla.
 

 There is also an another bridge exit and this is also an intresting for visitors.

Other examples of living root architecture in Meghalaya

 

 The War Khasis and War Jaintias also make several other kinds of structures out of the aerial roots of rubber trees. These include ladders and platforms. For example, in the village of Kudeng Rim in the West Jaintia Hills, a rubber tree situated next to a football field has been modified so that its branches can serve as "Living Root Bleachers." Aerial roots of the tree have been interwoven in the spaces between several branches so that platforms have been created from which villages can watch football games.
This are some of the examples of the root bridges by seeing all this what do you think about all place and the nature and also the lifestyle of the people.Well according to me this place is awsome it is an very good example of  nature life.The visitors from all over the country says that when they come  at this place it feel relif and i am pretty sure when you will go there you are going to feel the  same like others.
Waterfall.

 There is not even the bridges but also a lot of things that attract the people.As i told you there are so many things abut the nature will definately take you to the next level.The life style of the people who live there is awsome.Today we all are changing the forest into city but by visitnig this site it realize that what mistakes  we are doing.I am not here to tell you about the mistakes we are her to know about the place and what intresting in that place and why people should visit this place.



9 Facts About Living Root Bridges in Meghalaya
 

 Can you tell me have you heard of the natural bridges which are scattered across Meghalaya? They're nothing less than a wonder for us. These astounding facts about living root bridges will make you love Meghalaya more. You call them natural wonders or bio-engineering, these aqueducts are the natural heritage of our country. The ingenuity of the tribal people is worth praising. People had to find a permanent solution to cross over the welled up rivers and streams. That's when they thought about the living root bridges. You'll be very surprised to know about these natural bridges as i was surpriesd when i reached there feel like to live my whole life there.

 

 Fact1

Natural and Man-Made The living root bridges were not built like concrete bridges but they were grown. Yes! It is a kind of tree shaping (bio-engineering). The rubber trees or the banyan trees were grown on the banks of the rivers. The aerial roots of these rubber trees were merged with the betel nut tree trunks which formed a horizontal path. As the years passed these roots grew and the natural bridges were formed.

 

Fact 2

 

The Architects of Living Root Bridges The forefathers of Khasi tribe were the original architects of living root bridges. Khasi tribe are one of the prominent tribes of Meghalaya. They had to come up with a permanent solution because the bamboo and wooden bridges could never withstand the heavy rains.

Fact 3

 

Built Over a Long Time Living root bridges take around 15-20 years to grow. They become stronger with age and more stronger than any modern concrete bridge.

Fact 4

Centuries Old The life span of these living root bridges are very long. Some bridges around are said to be 500 years old.

Fact 5

Many More – Scattered Across In regions of West Jaintia Hills district and East Khasi Hills district many living root bridges can be found. Among them, the root bridges found in Nongriat village and Mawlynnong village are famous.

Fact 6

Double Decker Bridges Double Decker root bridges are parallel bridges. The Umshiang Double Decker living root bridge in Nongriat village is the most popular one. There are 3 other such bridges which are found near the villages of Padu and Nongbareh. The Umshiang Bridge is said to be almost 2 centuries old (180 years).

Fact 7

 

Mawlynnong: God's Own Garden Mawlynnong is around 80km to Shillong and it is known as the 'cleanest village in Asia'. The people of the village put great effort to preserve their village. The green heritage and the pristine surroundings of Mawlynnong has put in a world tourism map.

 

Fact 8

Long and Strong The living root bridges become strong over the time. The heavy rains increase its growth and it can hold up to 50 people at a time. They grow around 50 - 100 feet long and makes a stable path for people to cross the water.

Fact 9

Stony Path Once the bridge skeleton is formed properly, the people put stones on the bridge to make a path, so that they can easily walk once it becomes totally stronger.

 

So this are the some of the facts about living root bridges as i mention you in the post that tourism and more so thats why am giving you the all information to you so you will know about this place more better.

 

So we have have only that much about the living root of in india i hope you like it and i suggest you to go there and visit the place once in you lifetime then you also write about this place like i did..so keep reading this i will meet you next time with another adventure place.

Ajanta caves

The walk way of Ajanta cave

The Ajanta Caves in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra state of India are about 30 rock-cut Buddhist cave monuments which date from the 2nd century BCE to about 480 or 650 CE.^[1][2] The caves include paintings and sculptures described by the government Archaeological Survey of India as "the finest surviving examples of Indian art, particularly painting",^[3] which are masterpieces of Buddhist religious art, with figures of the Buddha and depictions of the Jataka tales.^[4] The caves were built in two phases starting around the 2nd century BCE, with the second group of caves built around 400–650 CE according to older accounts, or all in a brief period of 460 to 480 according to the recent proposals of Walter M. Spink.^[5] The site is a protected monument in the care of the Archaeological Survey of India,^[6] and since 1983, the Ajanta Caves have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sculptures

This are the sculpture inside the caves.There are so many thing to see inside the caves as you can see if you come and visit the the Ajanta caves is one of the great place in India.

History

Like the other ancient Buddhist monasteries, Ajanta had a large emphasis on teaching, and was divided into several different caves for living, education and worship, under a central direction. Monks were probably assigned to specific caves for living. The layout reflects this organizational structure, with most of the caves only connected through the exterior. The 7th-century travelling Chinese scholar Xuanzang informs us that Dignaga, a celebrated Buddhist philosopher and controversialist, author of well-known books on logic, lived at Ajanta in the 5th century. In its prime the settlement would have accommodated several hundred teachers and pupils. Many monks who had finished their first training may have returned to Ajanta during the monsoon season from an itinerant lifestyle.
The caves are generally agreed to have been made in two distinct periods, separated by several centuries.

Paintings

Paintings of Padmapani and Vajrapani on either side of the Buddha in Cave 1

Mural paintings survive from both the earlier and later groups of caves. Several fragments of murals preserved from the earlier caves (Caves 9 and 11) are effectively unique survivals of court-led painting in India from this period, and "show that by Sātavāhana times, if not earlier, the Indian painter had mastered an easy and fluent naturalistic style, dealing with large groups of people in a manner comparable to the reliefs of the Sāñcī toraņa crossbars".
Four of the later caves have large and relatively well-preserved mural paintings which "have come to represent Indian mural painting to the non-specialist",^[32] and fall into two stylistic groups, with the most famous in Caves 16 and 17, and apparently later paintings in Caves 1 and 2. The latter group were thought to be a century or more later than the others, but the revised chronology proposed by Spink would place them much closer to the earlier group, perhaps contemporary with it in a more progressive style, or one reflecting a team from a different region.^[33] The paintings are in "dry fresco", painted on top of a dry plaster surface rather than into wet plaster.^[34]
All the paintings appear to be the work of painters at least as used to decorating palaces as temples, and show a familiarity with and interest in details of the life of a wealthy court.As this are few painting you see in the picture i hope you like it.It is very adventures for who like paintings.

This are some of the pictures from inside actully inside the ajanta caves there are so many numbers of cave.This are some cave number and pictures like 9 and10.As i already told you in above line that if you go there is a lot to see in the caves.There is also a Ellora cave but it is little ahead from there i am gonna tell you next time about that cave.

Caves

Cave One

Porch of cave 1

Cave 1 was built on the eastern end of the horse-shoe shaped scarp, and is now the first cave the visitor encounters. This would when first made have been a less prominent position, right at the end of the row. According to Spink, it is one of the latest caves to have been excavated, when the best sites had been taken, and was never fully inaugurated for worship by the dedication of the Buddha image in the central shrine. This is shown by the absence of sooty deposits from butter lamps on the base of the shrine image, and the lack of damage to the paintings that would have been happened if the garland-hooks around the shrine had been in use for any period of time. Although there is no epigraphic evidence, Spink believes that the Vākāţaka Emperor Harishena was the benefactor of the work, and this is reflected in the emphasis on imagery of royalty in the cave, with those Jakata tales being selected that tell of those previous lives of the Buddha in which he was royal.

Cave Two

Detail from Cave 2

Cave 2, adjacent to Cave 1, is known for the paintings that have been preserved on its walls, ceilings, and pillars. It looks similar to Cave 1 and is in a better state of preservation.
Cave 2 has a porch quite different from Cave one. Even the façade carvings seem to be different. The cave is supported by robust pillars, ornamented with designs. The front porch consists of cells supported by pillared vestibules on both ends. The cells on the previously "wasted areas" were needed to meet the greater housing requirements in later years. Porch-end cells became a trend in all later Vakataka excavations. The simple single cells on porch-ends were converted into CPVs or were planned to provide more room, symmetry, and beauty.

Cave Four

The Buddha in a preaching pose flanked by bodhisattvas, Cave 4

The Archaeological Survey of India board outside the caves gives the following detail about cave 4:"This is the largest monastery planned on a grandiose scale but was never finished. An inscription on the pedestal of the buddha's image mentions that it was a gift from a person named Mathura and paleographically belongs to 6th century A.D. It consists of a verandah, a hypostylar hall, sanctum with an antechamber and a series of unfinished cells. The rear wall of the verandah contains the panel of Litany of Avalokiteśvara".
The sanctuary houses a colossal image of the Buddha in preaching pose flanked by bodhisattvas and celestial nymphs hovering above.So i already told you about the cave that and number of caves. When i was gone for Ajanta cave for visit the i expirence that i had there was one of the greatest expirence i ever had.I know it will be same for you when you go there and visit the Ajanta cave.So what you waiting for go for Ajanta cave in this holidays...So i will see you next time with some another adventure and and place...till then enjoy your adventure.