Ellora Caves Ally With Ajanta Caves and Thich Nhat Hanh in Indra's Net

Summary: The Ellora Caves, like the Ajanta Caves, in Maharashtra, west India, anticipate Thich Nhat Hanh in the walking meditations that Indra's net accommodates.

Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh expresses ancient India's Indra's net of infinite interconnectedness as Interbeing, in which, for example, clouds are revealed in flowers: Thich Nhat Hanh @thichnhathanh, via Facebook Feb. 22, 2020

The Ellora Caves, just as the Ajanta Caves 60 miles (96.56 kilometers) away, in Maharashtra state, western peninsular India, affirm Indra's net and Thich Nhat Hanh in actual, architectural, artistic walking meditations.

Indra's net belongs to Indra (from Sanskrit इन्द्र, "raindrop-possessing"), king of the celestials and storm god of the Aryan settlers of northwestern India by 1700 B.C.E. Vedic (from Sanskrit वेद, "knowledge" and Greek -ικός, "pertaining to") hymns, as oldest Hindu religious and Sanskrit literary texts, by 800 B.C.E. configure a spiderweb-like universe. The 2,000-year-old Mahavaipulya Buddhavatamsaka Sutra (from Sanskrit महावैपुल्यबुद्धावतंसकसूत्र, "Flower Garland Scripture") and the 3,000 to 3,200-year-old Atharvaveda (from Sanskrit अथर्ववेद, "priestly knowledge") defer to Indra's net.

Both Vedic texts envision Indra establishing a four-sided, house-like world with corner-posted walls, sunrises as entryway and sunsets as exit, and thatched roof from overcast skies.

Indra's net furnishes one infinite spiderweb that features infinite numbers of infinitely faceted, polished gems that Indra fashioned at focal points where infinite connections fit together.

Each facet, each jewel, each connection in Indra's net generates to, and guards from all other facets, jewels and connections anyone and anything, everyone and everything. Indra's net harvests, helps, hoards and hurls the Interbeing of anyone and anything, everyone and everything in any and all happenings, peoples, places, things and times. Interbeing is the interpretative invention of Thich Nhat Hanh, Vietnamese-born ideator of nine Plum Village Tradition centers that include walking meditations among mindfulness practices and training.

Indra's net joins walking meditations in the ancient Buddhism of the Ajanta Caves and the Ellora Caves and in the modern Buddhism of Thich Nhat Hanh.

Placeful, placeless, timeless, timely Interbeing keys ancient Ajanta Caves and ancient Ellora Caves to ancient and modern walking meditations and Thich Nhat Hanh and vice versa.

Thich Nhat Hanh looks at ancient and modern Interbeing in his article, Indra's Net, for the September/October 2009 issue on Exploring Consciousness in the journal Resurgence. He mentions in the journal's 256th issue that "In Indra's net the one is present in the all, and the all is present in the one." He nestles walking meditations into Plum Village Tradition mindfulness practice and training sessions in Australia, Hong Kong, Thailand; California, Mississippi, New York; and France and Germany.

The Ajanta Caves and the Ellora Caves operated as earlier Theravada (from Sanskrit स्थविरवाद, "elders' doctrine") and later Mahayana (from Sanskrit महायान, "great vehicle") Buddhist centers.

Itinerant artisans, merchants and monks placed the Ajanta Caves and the Ellora Caves, as monastery caverns for permanent and temporary residents, proximitous to subcontinental trade routes.

Resident monks perhaps queued up daily walking meditations for themselves and for itinerant questors of Gautama Buddha (from Sanskrit गोतम, "brightness [dispels] darkness" and बुद्ध, "awakened"). Indra's net of Interbeing revealed the Buddhist founder (624 B.C.E.?-544 B.C.E.?) to contemporary participants in, and witnesses to, 45 years of walking meditations throughout northern India. It suggested him in any ancient walking meditations at the Ajanta Caves and the Ellora Caves respectively 1,300 to 2,300 and 800 to 1,600 years ago.

Indra's net of Interbeing teams ancient Ajanta Caves, ancient Ellora Caves and ancient walking meditations with their modern configurations and Thich Nhat Hanh, and vice versa.

Visitors find Kailasa, largest of Hindu rock-cut temples at Ellora Caves, in a faunal (lower left) and floral setting; Ellora Caves, Maharashtra, western peninsular India; Saturday, Sep. 5, 2009, 11:43:03: Sankarshan Mukhopadhyay (sankarshan), CC BY SA 2.0 Generic, via Flickr

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh expresses ancient India's Indra's net of infinite interconnectedness as Interbeing, in which, for example, clouds are revealed in flowers: Thich Nhat Hanh @thichnhathanh, via Facebook Feb. 22, 2020, @ https://www.facebook.com/thichnhathanh/photos/a.136121339634/10157246764074635/

Visitors find Kailasa, largest of Hindu rock-cut temples at Ellora Caves, in a faunal (lower left) and floral setting; Ellora Caves, Maharashtra, western peninsular India; Saturday, Sep. 5, 2009, 11:43:03: Sankarshan Mukhopadhyay (sankarshan), CC BY SA 2.0 Generic, via Flickr @ https://www.flickr.com/photos/runa-sankarshan/3927449297

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