India 2018 (part X): Lonar Crater

Lonar Crater, Maharashtra:

view of Lonar Lake and Kumareshwar Temple

We left Aurangabad in the early morning and travelled to a secret treasure of central Maharashtra: the Lonar Crater.

The Lonar Crater formed about 50,000 years ago by a high-velocity meteor impact. The resulting depression is filled by an almost circular lake which is surrounded by lush green forest. Many temples have been built along its shore between the 11th and 13th century AD – some are still actively used, while others are more and more ruined. The Hanuman Temple lies a bit further away from the lake and is famous for a reclining statue of the god believed to be carved from a piece of the meteor itself. Another beautiful sight is the Daitya Sudan Temple, which was constructed in the 10th century AD and features highly intricate carvings on its facade.

Lonar Crater

Lonar Lake

Ramgaya Temple

a dung beetle

Ramgaya Temple

ancient carvings

ancient ruined temple

beautiful lizard

ancient temple

Shiva Lingam

hiking through the forest

forest

millipedes

a curled-up millipede

at the shore of Lonar Lake

temple ruins

ancient ruined temple

Kamalja Devi Temple

another ruined temple

at the shore of Lonar Lake

ancient ruined temple

ancient carvings

Nandi sculpture

Shiva Lingam

a well

Kumareshwar Temple

ancient “naughty” carving

Kumareshwar Temple

Nandi sculpture

stairs down to Lonar Lake

Gomukh Temple

Hanuman Temple

sculpture of Hanuman

the statue before and after “cleaning”

at the Daitya Sudan Temple

Daitya Sudan Temple

at the Daitya Sudan Temple

I really enjoyed the beauty of Lonar Lake, but the vast abundance of India’s heritage – with fantastic ancient monuments wherever you go – was even more impressive.