This trail will take you to the Buddhist caves located at Kadia Dungar. Kadia Dungar is a small elongated hillock located near the village of Zazpor in Jhagadia Taluka, in the Bharuch district of Gujarat. Among a range of hills about 500 ft. high, Kadia Dungar has 7 Buddhist caves, with water tanks on top and a lion pillar at its foothills. The caves are the first of its kind to be found in the region of south Gujarat, and are said to be of the Kshatrap period (1-3 century AD). According to local beliefs, they were made by the Pandavas during their period of exile, and the legend of Bhima’s marriage with Hidimba is also associated there. At present, there is an ashram located at the foothills and many temples on the top of the hill.
The Kadia Dungar caves are similar to the caves found in Saurashtra and Junagadh, but far simpler, suggesting that they belong to earlier times, adding great importance to the region of south Gujarat. Kadia Dungar has also yielded evidence of mining activities for rhyolite, and some sculptures have been found and identified at various sites to be made of the rhyolite from Kadia Dungar. The finding of microlithic industries around Kadia Dungar has proven prehistoric activities of humans in the region, and the use of locally available stone.
This guided tour is free.
