Elephanta

In a country with such a high percentage of illiteracy, it is amazing how Indian culture has made its way to us in an unbroken thread through the labyrinth of history and through the dark centuries whose records show innumerable blank pages. This is because out culture has been conveyed through interesting legends and stories which have a spread to all four corners of our country, unsullied by time and unchanged by the environment. The stories in the Amar Chitra Katha series have been drawn until now from the legends of India based on literary sources. However, our culture, going back to 5000 years, has not come to use through literary sources alone. The written word, in prose, poetry or drama, is only one of them. The mother putting her child to sleep with a story, the grandmother feeding her grandchild and distracting him with exciting tales from the Puranas are how many of us have learnt our heritage. The temple storyteller or the wandering minstrel, singing tales of courage and romance, is a common sight to this day. Folk and classical dancers convey the stories of out legends through the exciting medium of the dance. The most permanent has been the transmitting of our culture through monuments, their sculptures and paintings. These have brought down to us the legends of ancient India with strength, sensitivity and grace. Whether the medium used was wood, stone, or paint, our artists and artisans have paid their homage to our great culture and kept intact the immortal myths and legends of India. This Amar Chitra Katha brings you legends depicted in some of the sculptures found on the island of Elephanta, across Bombay Harbour.