Lewis visits another UNESCO World Heritage Site: The Khajuraho Temples

Ater another long bus journey of two and a half hours, Lewis the Lion arrived in the town of Madhya Pradesh. This is famous for its UNESCCO World Heritage temples that were built over a millenium ago, between 950 and 1050 AD. At the time they were built there were over 85 temples on the site honouring both Hindu and Jain gods and goddesses. Today, there are only about 20 but of those remaining, generally, they have been very well-preserved.

Lewis the Lion thought that these sandstone Khajuraho Temples were just incredible. Even though these intricate carvings date from more than a thousand years ago, there are many aspects that are still true of human nature and society even in the 21st century. The images reflect all aspects of life, e.g. singing, dancing, music, war and socializing.

Lewis also learnt the significance of the four zones of the Hindu temple here. Roughly, each zone equates to 25 years of a man’s life. By the entrance is the porch which represents a man in his childhood – he needs to work hard here to find his place in the world. The next phase (and canopied section) represents partying and good times as a man enjoys becoming a husband and father. The next section represents the stage in life where a man would enjoy grandchildren and lastly, the fourth section (the section which is now closest to the altar) is the section where man should turn to prayer and dedicate himself to God.

As Lewis the Lion left these incredible temples and the town of Madhya Pradesh behind, he was greeted by a boy who had the biggest smile on his face, as you can see in the photo. Even though Lewis the Lion didn’t speak the boy’s language, he knew that a smile was a sign of welcome in any language. Lewis the Lion was truly humbled by the warmth of the Indian people on his visit here.

The biggest smile in India!

To find out more about Hinduism, click on this link.