Hindu temples and maths · The Yadavas (Seunas) of Devagiri · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Ellora Kailasa

The Kailasa temple (cave 16), a whole hill cut downward into a temple, is the work of the Rashtrakuta king Krishna I (r.

756 to 773; Ellora Caves article, read). It is the greatest rock-cut temple of the Deccan and stands 10 km from the Yadava capital. The Ghrishneshwar shrine (one of the twelve jyotirlingas in later tradition) is 2.3 km away; the article says nothing of its date and the present building is a later one. In 1200 the Shaiva caves are in use as shrines under the Yadava crown.

Who holds it

Title
The keepers of the Kailasa and the Shaiva caves
Since
not pinned
Born
not known
Confidence
low

No head is named in any source we read. The site is under the Yadava crown 10 km from Devagiri.

What it holds

  • The Kailasa temple and the Shaiva caves

How things stand that morning

A great shrine beside the capital.

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: The Ellora Caves article (read) gives the Kailasa temple's builder and dates and the Yadava patronage of the Jain caves; the Shaiva use in 1200 is inferred.

Primary sources for Yadava kingdom (Devagiri)

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

  • Corpus of Inscriptions in the Telingana Districts, Various (Kakatiya chancery and temple scribes), edited by P. Sreenivasachar (inscriptions of the 10th to 15th centuries; edited 1940 to 1942). The Kakatiyas of Orugallu (Warangal) are known for 1200 almost entirely from inscriptions, and this Hyderabad Archaeological Series corpus is the main printed collection. Read online
  • Epigraphia Carnatica: inscriptions of the Mysore country, Various (Hoysala chancery and temple scribes), edited by B. Lewis Rice and R. Narasimhachar (inscriptions of the 4th to 19th centuries; the series ran from 1886 to 1905, revised from 1972). The Hoysala kingdom of Veera Ballala II (reigning 1173 to 1220) is documented almost wholly by the inscriptions in this series, arranged by district and taluk with full English translations. Read online
  • Inscriptions of the Silaharas, Various (Silahara chanceries), edited by V. V. Mirashi (inscriptions of the 9th to 13th centuries; edited 1977). Collects the records of the three Silahara houses: North Konkan (Thana), South Konkan, and Kolhapur.
  • Sanskrit and Old Canarese Inscriptions relating to the Yadava Kings of Devagiri, Various (Yadava chancery), edited by J. F. Fleet (inscriptions of the 12th and 13th centuries; edited 1876). The first collected edition of the Yadava (Seuna) records, with texts and translations, from the Indian Antiquary. Read online

Sources and studies

  1. Wikipedia: Ellora Caves (read this session)
  2. Wikipedia: Daulatabad Fort (read this session)
  3. General knowledge of the medieval Deccan (Bhandarkar, Altekar, Sastri, B. R. Gopal, Suryanath Kamath): from memory, not re-read
  4. OMNIA board notes for this place (a lead only, checked against the sources above)

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.