Tirtha Atlas

The sacred geography of the Indic world — every site mapped, dated, storied, and cited.

1126 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
Ancient · Buddhist · India

Pandavleni Caves

Nashik, Maharashtra · 19.9412°, 73.7486°

Gautama Buddha (viharas and chaitya; later bodhisattva and Tirthankara images)Satavahana / Western KshatrapaRock-cut
Sacred since
100 BCE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
1st c. BCE – 2nd c. CE (Kshatrapa and Satavahana)
Satavahana / Western Kshatrapa

History & significance

Twenty-four rock-cut caves above Nashik, mostly viharas with one chaitya, excavated over several centuries as donations by rulers, merchants and an Indo-Greek donor. Cave 10 records the patronage of Nahapana's viceroy Ushavadata around 120 CE and Cave 3, the largest vihara, was given by the Satavahana queen Gotami Balasiri in memory of her son Gautamiputra Satakarni around 150 CE; the inscriptions document the contest between the Satavahanas and the Western Satraps, and the site preserves an early rock-cut water system.

Open in Google Maps ↗Wikipedia ↗View on the atlas map

Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-27 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Satavahana / Western Kshatrapa