Category: Forspoken

Marvels of the past have turned into mysteries of the present, which continue to remain unsolved. A number of such mysteries fills the list and the Monolithic caves of Aurangabad in Maharashtra, India is one such an unsolved mystery. Nestled in Maharashtra, the Ellora caves is the largest rock-cut Hindu temple cave complex in the world and is also a UNESCO World Heritage site. The site is said to have been built by Rashtrakuta King Krishna I and the construction dates back to 600 AD to 1000 AD and consists of 34 monasteries and temples, which include 17 Hindu, 12 Buddhist and 5 Jain caves extending over more than 2km. Along with the intricate architecture, there is a number of…

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The wall building played a major role in ancient Chinese culture. The ancient belief that walls provide protection from threats laid the foundation for the creation of the Great Wall of China. According to the Travel China Guide, over twenty states and dynasties contributed to the construction of the Great Wall of China. The construction commenced in the third century BC and lasted up until seventeenth century AD which makes it more than 2,300 years old. The Great Wall spread across to the Northern border of the country as a military defensive project to protect the Chinese state from the nomadic tribes from the North. According to the history, it was during the reign of Emperor Qin Shi Huang that…

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Towering over 699 feet above ground and spanning over 400 acres of Northern Cambodian land lies the largest religious monument in the world. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992, Angkor Wat is the legacy of the Great Khmer Empire. The Khmer Dynasty, was founded by King Jayavarman the 2nd, who presented himself as the king of all kings, the universal monarch and thus was revered as a descendant of god, by his subjects. It is this reverence instilled in the population that fueled the construction of unimaginably massive monuments such as Angkor Wat, which, as per inscriptions, is said to have been built over 35 years with the labour of 300 000 men and 6000 elephants. Originally a…

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Whenever you hear about India, what is the first thing that comes to your mind? Among all those Bollywood songs, actors and Indian Sweets, Taj Mahal as an epitome of love and passion is most probably deep rooted in your hearts. Taj Mahal is the symbol of India’s rich culture and heritage. It was built by Shah Jahan in 1631 as a way of showing his devotion towards his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died on 7th June in the same year. Taj Mahal is declared by Rabindranath Tagore as ‘the tear-drop on the cheek of time’. Because it is cherished for its architecture, beauty and the grandeur. Moreover, Taj Mahal was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982. However, this article…

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Easter Island (indigenously known as Rapa Nui) which is a small island of 64 square miles in the South Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Chile, is best known for the unique cultural marvel to which it bears witness. The original Polynesian settlers who made this island their home, as far back as 300 A.D., also established a distinctive tradition of commemorative sculpture and architecture. The great stone figures erected by these early settlers in memory of their ancestors, were known as Moai Aringa Ora which means, ‘the living face of our ancestors’. Nearly 1,000 of these monumental statues remain in existence to this day, averaging 13 feet high and some even weighing as much as 80 tons. The largest…

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A trip to Egypt is indeed a bucket list-worthy tour. A camel ride under the sun along the bank of the longest river in the world, a walk among rich archeological sites that lay as the only reminiscences of a rich civilization, or better yet, as some say, the ruins of a lost civilization. Egypt indeed holds a special place in my heart as my first plane ride was a visit to Egypt. Among all the significant landmarks in Egypt, everybody remembers one monument as soon as they hear the name of the country: the pyramids. When I first saw huge blocks of rocks piled together in the shape of a pyramid, I was a six-year-old girl who was too…

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