Cave of My Ancestors: Vishwakarma and the Artisans of Ellora

by Kirin Narayan

English 304 pages 1 edition

As a young girl, Kirin Narayan was enthralled by her father’s stories about how their ancestors had made the ancient rock-cut cave temples at Ellora. Narayan never forgot those stories. Later in life, she sought to learn more about the caves, especially the Vishwakarma Cave, a Buddhist worship hall dating back to the seventh century, which came to be venerated as the home of Vishwakarma, the Hindu god of making. Her quest to trace her family’s stories took her to Ellora, through libraries, archives and museums around the world, and across disciplinary borders. Cave of My Ancestors represents the perfect blend of Narayan’s skills as a researcher and writer. Equal parts scholarship, detective story and memoir, the book ably leads readers through centuries of history, offering a sensitive meditation on devotion, wonder, and all that connects us to place, family, the past and the divine.