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The temples of Khajuraho are divided into the Western, Eastern and Southern groups.
The Western Group has 14 temples displaying Hindu erotic art of Khajuraho . Lying at the heart of the town the Western Group is the most famous with sculptures of mithunas (couples), gandharvas, apsaras, vidyadaras and kinaras.
The Kandariya Mahadeo is dedicated to Lord Shiva and is the biggest and most spectacular temple, with 800 statues of gods and goddesses, the marble lingam and ceiling that is 31 meters high.
The Lakshmana Temple has friezes of battle scenes and erotic poses, depicting both sides of the Chandela warriors’ lives.
The Chitragupta Temple is dedicated to the Sun God, and has many group scenes that reflect the lavish lifestyle of the Chandela courts.
The Matangesvara Temple has a 2.5-metre-high polished lingam of Shiva. This is the only temple that is actively used for worship.
The Devi Jagdamba Temple has a gorgeous image of Parvati. It is perhaps the most erotic temple of Khajuraho, but it isn’t clear till today as to which deity it is dedicated to.
Eastern Group of Temples are partly Jain and partly Hindu. The most striking is the Parsvanath Temple, with its exquisite sculptures depicting everyday activity.
Only a century old, Shantinath is the most recent of all the temples in Khajuraho.
The temple of Adinath has some fine carvings and is structurally similar to the Hindu temples of Khajuraho. In fact, it is this Jain-Hindu combination that is singularly interesting about the Eastern Group of temples.
Mainly built of granite and sandstone, the Temple of Brahma and Hanuman is one of the oldest temples in Khajuraho.
The Southern Group of Temples contains only two temples. The Duladeo Temple reveals Hindu erotic art of Khajuraho and is apparently newer than the Chaturbhuj Temple.
Some of the prominent Khajuraho excursions are:
The Panna National Park is spread over 546 km on the bank of the Ken River. One can see a variety of birds, antelopes, chinkaras, sambars, and boars here, and maybe even sight an elusive tiger. Panna also has only working diamond mines in India and the largest in Asia.
The Pandav Falls on the Ken River are 30 km from Khajuraho. It is believed that the Pandavas spent some years of their exile here.
The 150 years old Rajgarh Palace is at the foot of Maniyagarh hills and has now been converted into a heritage hotel.
Bandhavgarh is dominated by the 14th-century Bandhavgarh Fort and its national park where the first white tiger was sighted in 1951. The Ajaygarh Fort and Kalinjar Fort are other interesting places.
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