Tirtha Atlas

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

1126 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
Ancient · Hindu · India

Udayagiri Caves

उदयगिरि और खंडगिरि

Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh · 23.5381°, 77.7728°

Vishnu and Shiva, with one cave dedicated to the Jain tirthankara ParshvanathaGuptaearly Gupta rock-cut architecture
Sacred since
300 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
early 3rd–5th c.; principal caves consecrated 401 CE
Gupta

History & significance

A hillside of rock-cut sanctuaries near Vidisha holding some of the oldest surviving Hindu temple architecture and iconography in India, including the great Varaha panel, and the only Gupta site with securely dated royal inscriptions.

Sthala katha — the legend

The Varaha panel shows Vishnu in boar form lifting the earth goddess Bhudevi clear of the demon Hiranyaksha.

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Related sites

Dhamek Stupa, Sarnath
Sarnath, Varanasi · India
current stupa c. 500 CE over Mauryan core
Mahabodhi Temple
Bodh Gaya · India
current brick temple 5th–6th c. CE
Nalanda Mahavihara
Nalanda · India
founded 5th c. CE (Kumaragupta I)
Pashupatinath Temple, Mandsaur
Mandsaur · India
5th–6th c. (Gupta era)
Bagh Caves
Bagh, Dhar · India
5th–7th c. CE; repairs recorded 487 CE
Dashavatara Temple, Deogarh
Deogarh, Lalitpur · India
early 6th c. (Gupta)

Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-27 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Gupta