January 2019: Advanced Technologies & Wisdom of Ancient India Tour

A transfer representative will meet you at the airport to assist you with entry formalities and escort you to our luxurious Hotel in Hyderabad. We will all enjoy a Welcome Dinner together followed by a meeting for introductions and surprises!

Overnight Hyderabad (D)

Swayambhudevi Alayam temple, located inside the fort is dedicated to Mother Earth, With Suzan to guide us, we’ll discuss the advanced knowledge that must have been utilized to fashion these rock-hewn structures, as well as the question of the dating of the site’s origins.

Overnight Hyderabad (B,L)

Today we’ll drive to Ahmedabad and visit the Adalaj Stepwell.

Adalaj is an exquisite example of Indian architectural work. The step well or ‘Vav’, as it is called in Gujarati, is intricately carved and is five stories deep. Such step wells were once integral to the semi-arid regions of Gujarat, as they provided water for drinking, washing and bathing. These wells were also venues for colorful festivals and sacred rituals.
Also called stepped ponds, Stepwells built between the 5th and 19th centuries, are common in Western India with over 120 such wells reported in the semi-arid region of Gujarat alone. Adalaj is considered one of the most popular. Evening Lecture by Patricia.

Overnight Ahmedabad (B,D)

After breakfast we’ll drive to Gajrat to visit the Sun Temple at Modhera is a Hindu temple dedicated to the Hindu sun god, Surya.

The architecture and imagery within this spectacular Sun Temple speaks to the cycles of the consciousness as a reflection of its observance of the cycles of the sun. Built on 23.6° latitude this structure is very close to the Tropic of Cancer. The sanctum sanctorum (Holy of Holies) is designed so that the first rays of rising sun lit up the image of Surya during solar equinox days —and on summer solstice day, the sun shines directly above the temple at noon casting no shadow.

The temple complex has three axially aligned components; the shrine proper (garbhagriha) in a hall (gudhamandapa), the outer or assembly hall (sabhamandapa or rangamandapa) and a sacred reservoir (kunda).

The Patan Step Wells or Rani-ki-Vav , is an exceptional example of a distinctive form of subterranean water architecture of the Indian subcontinent, the stepwell, which is located on the banks of the Saraswati River in Patan. Initially built as a memorial in the 11th century CE, the stepwell was constructed as a religious as well as functional structure and designed as an inverted temple highlighting the sanctity of water.

Rani-ki-Vav (Queen’s step well), impresses not only with its architectural structure and technological achievements in water sourcing and structural stability, but also in particular with its sculptural decoration, of true artistic mastery. It is an outstanding example of a subterranean stepwell construction and represents a prime example of an architectural type of water resource and storage system which is widely distributed across the Indian subcontinent. It illustrates the technological, architectural and artistic mastery achieved at a stage of human development when water was predominantly resourced from ground water streams and reservoirs through access of communal wells. In the case of Rani-ki-Vav, the functional aspects of this architectural typology were combined with a temple-like structure celebrating the sanctity of water as a venerated natural element and the depiction of highest-quality Brahmanic deities.

Overnight Ahmedabad (B,L)

This morning we’ll drive to Lothal, a vital and thriving trade center in ancient times, famous for its trade of beads, gems and valuable ornaments reaching to the far corners of West Asia and Africa. The techniques and tools they pioneered for bead-making and in metallurgy have stood the test of time for over 4000 years. Lothal is an ancient site of the Harrapn Culture, and is said to offer the largest collection of antiquities in the archaeology of modern India.

Next we’ll visit the Archaeological Museum, where some of the most prominent collections of Indus-era antiquities in India are displayed.

Overnight Ahmedabad (B,L)

After breakfast we will head to the airport for our transfer to Aurangabad. Upon arrival, we will check in to our hotel and enjoy a Lecture by Brien.

Overnight Aurangabad: 4 or 5 Star Hotel (B,D)

Today we will travel the short distance from Aurangabad to Ellora where an assemblage of shrines were excavated from a basalt rock wall. Official history dates it to the 6th to 9th century. Here we find 17 Hindu, 12 Buddhist and 5 Jain monuments.

Especially significant is the excavated Hindu temple called the Kailash Temple. It was carved out of a huge basalt cliff from the top down. Its architecture and sculpture reflect temple building traditions mostly connected those of Southern India. At the same time it is unique in its scope, layout and art. The mythological images depicted on the walls speak to cosmological processes and events – and the nature of our reality.

There are underground passages and water channels disappearing into the rock and many speak of ancient shafts that lead to underground chambers. Is this a pre-catastrophe sacred site which was reconstructed into the form of a Hindu temple by medieval Indian dynasties?

We will experience acoustic effects, see amazing stone work and feel the presence of ancient cosmic energies, spending the entire day at this breath-taking site, enabling us to explore all of its wonders.

Overnight Aurangabad: 4 or 5 Star Hotel (B,L)

In 1819 an English officer hunting tiger stumbled upon this site of ancient wonder. We are told that it was 2,000 years ago that 30 Buddhist shrines, meditation halls and monasteries were cut from the living Basalt rock of a ravine which forms the rock wall of a river valley.

The Ajanta Caves face the South, however, due to its horse-shoe shape, however the individual caves each face different directions, often aligning with known stellar and solar events. A treasure trove of architecture which reflects the Vedic cosmology, mathematics, painting and sculpture, all ancient spiritual sciences were put to the development of this very sacred site. We will examine the structure and discuss the historical dating of the site.

There are rock cut chambers inside some of the Ajanta caves in India that are incredibly resonant. Inside some of the chambers there are columns that ‘ring’ when tapped….each with a unique tone or frequency.

Did this system of caves originally have a different purpose and are they more ancient then currently thought?

Overnight Aurangabad (B,L)

After breakfast we will drive to the airport for our flight to Delhi. We’ll check into our room at a 5 star hotel and have dinner.

Overnight Delhi (B,D)

After an early breakfast we will make our way to the National Museum in Delhi, one of the largest museums in India. Established in 1949, it holds variety of articles ranging from pre-historic era to modern works of art.

Next we’ll visit the monuments of the Qutab complex, including Qutb Minar, Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, which was built at the same time as the Minar, and the much older Iron Pillar of Delhi. The mosque is one of the earliest extant mosques in India.

The Qutb Minar is the tallest brick minaret in the world, inspired by the Minaret of Jam in Afghanistan, it is an important example of early Afghan architecture, which later evolved into Indo-Islamic Architecture.

The Iron Pillar is notable for the rust-resistant composition of the metals used in its construction and has attracted the attention of archaeologists and materials scientists because of its high resistance to corrosion and has been called a “testimony to the high level of skill achieved by the ancient Indian iron smiths in the extraction and processing of iron.” The corrosion resistance results from an even layer of crystalline iron hydrogen phosphate forming on the high phosphorus content iron, which serves to protect it from the effects of the local Delhi climate. The pillar weighs over 6,000 kg, and is thought to have originally been erected in what is now Udayagiri by one of the Gupta monarchs in approximately 402 CE, though the precise date and location are a matter of dispute. It was transported to its current location in 1233 CE Can we really date it from the writings found on it? Afterwards we’ll drive to Agra in our air-conditioned coach.

Overnight Agra: Radisson Hotel (B,L)

The Taj Mahal represents Paradise, reflecting biblical, Mesopotamian and other ancient Near Eastern traditions. This is the paradise Mughal emperor Shah Jahan (reigned 1628–1658), wanted the love of his life Mumtaz to dwell in for all eternity. It was constructed using ancient Indian technologies, most of which have been lost today. The location chosen is an ancient sacred power site. Many mysteries surround the building of this magnificent structure, including its true origins and solar alignment.

Next we’ll visit the magnificent Agra Fort, also known as the “Lal –Qila”, “Fort Rouge” or “Qila-i-Akbari”, and is the highlight of the city of Agra, once capital of the Mughal Sultanate . A symbol of power, strength and resilience, as it stands today in full glory.
We’ll drive back to Delhi, check into our hotel and enjoy our Farewell Dinner. Overnight Delhi

Overnight Delhi (B,D)