Kostaraya's cave

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On the South-east corner at the lakeshore is a hidden treasure of Badami Hills. There is a cave which is rarely visited by the tourists. One has to squat or crawl to enter there. Inside, there is a fairly large space with an exquisite relief of the Buddha (6’6” in height) on the wall facing the entrance. The Buddha is flanked by two celestial beings holding chamara (fly-whisk). The drapes and ornaments of the Buddha reveal a distinct Mahayana style. The Buddha is seated on a throne supported by lions below, and there are vyalis and makaras on both side of the backrest. There are also markings of a conch (shanka) and the wheel of Dharma (dharmachakra) on the backrest on the two sides of the Buddha. These represent the auspicious symbols of the teaching. It is said that Indra and Brahma beseeched the Buddha to expound his discoveries and turn the wheel of Dharma. They presented the Buddha with a conch-shell and a dharma-wheel respectively. A prabha (halo) is carved behind the Buddha’s head, and there is also a tree under which the Buddha is seated. The Buddha’s right hand is in abhaya-mudra (the gesture of giving protection) and the left hand is in dhyana-mudra (the gesture of meditation).

There is also a small carving of a yogi at one corner of the cave-wall. This could be either a Buddhist or non-Buddhist yogi. Though the right-hand shows tri-ratna mudra (the gesture of triple-jewels), there is a danda on the right side, which might indicate a relation to another ascetic order such as the Pasupatas who were also prevalent in this area. However, that carving is just done on a corner, and at a lower height than the Buddha, showing that whoever made that carving were not antagonistic to the presence of the Buddha statue there.

The cave is currently known as Kostaraya’s Cave. This name, Kosta Raya is attributed in a local legend to a Chalukya king (Raya) who had leprosy (Kosta). According to that legend, that king stayed in this cave and practiced till his leprosy was removed.         Source

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