SISTER NIVEDITA : The Ancient Abbey of Ajanta 

COMPILED WITH NOTES BY : Prasenjit Dasgupta • Soumen Paul

Sister Nivedita visited Ajanta with Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose, Lady Abala Bose and Ganen Brahmachari in the winter of 1909 as guests of Lady Herringham. For Nivedita the visit was definitely a pilgrimage. An ardent champion of the greatness of India, Nivedita immediately identified herself with the intellectual, religious and aesthetic world of Ajanta.

     The 'rediscovery' of the painted caves of Ajanta in 1819 by Madras Army Personnel in the wilderness of the Sahyadri Mountains in Maharastra is a momentous event in the history of modern India. The rediscovery was described at length for the first time by James Alexander in the Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland in 1830. Since then Ajanta, with its monumental architecture, vibrant sculptures, and rich array of paintings, continues to fascinate and inspire generations of archaeologists, artists, art historians and connoisseurs.