Ancient Buddhist art and architecture serves as the foundation for the Indian aesthetic – naturalistic figures that depict graceful movement. The best examples of this style can be found in Buddhist rock cut caves, which contain Hellenistic-inspired paintings and sculpture (see our map of India’s quintessential Buddhist sites).

Use this guide to gain an appreciation of Buddhist art and architecture, especially when visiting the stupa at Sanchi and the caves at Ajanta and Ellora.

In this Approach Guide, we give travelers a condensed, yet comprehensive overview of Buddhist architecture and sculpture. By placing important facts and key architectural and artistic elements into context,we give you the ability to place sites in context and begin to draw your own connections among the places you visit.

Travelers can use our Approach Guide to understand the unique elements of Buddhist art and architecture, which have influenced sites throughout India and the rest of Asia.

We focus on helping travelers understand the following elements of the Buddhist culture in India:

• Architecture: By looking at architecture through the lens of history, we identify  and rulers that influenced the development of Buddhist architecture. history and description of architectural elements and styles that can be easily identified while touring.
• Sculpture and Painting.  Approach Guides gives examples of common depictions of the Buddha, including his hand positions (mudras) and what they all mean, and highlights other important Buddhist figures that appear in Buddhist art.
• Detailed Site Reviews. Finally, we review of the most important Buddhist architectural and artistic sites in India, including Ajanta, Ellora, and Sanchi.

This Approach Guide will be useful when visiting any Buddhist religious site, however, we have listed the areas that we highlight as having the most quintessential examples of religious architecture as it pertains to the Buddhist tradition.  All sites featured are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

In India (see our custom map)

• Ajanta Caves (near Mumbai, India). Features: unique architecture and well-preserved 5th century paintings
• Ellora Caves (near Mumbai, India). Features: the stunning Kailasa temple and rock-cut architecture from three religions: Buddhism, Hindu and Jain.
• Sanchi (near Bhopal, India). The stupa in Sanchi is the original stupa and served as the prototype for all others that followed.

Although this Approach Guide is oriented toward India, it is relevant to Buddhist sites in other geographies and will assist in understanding the following Approach Guides offerings.

In China

Ancient Buddhist Caves of China & India
Wooden Temples of China & Japan
The Stupa Form’s Transformation Over Time
Religion: Buddhism

In Southeast Asia

The Temples of Java
Cambodia: The Temples of Angkor
The Stupa Form’s Transformation Over Time
Religion: Buddhism

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