Barabar hills are noted for the caves and natural scenery . Situated about 16 miles to the north of the Gaya district headquarter Gaya and 15 miles to the sauth of the Jehanabad district headquarter Jehanabad state Bihar ( India ) and connected by a motorable road there are a group of Barabar hills with distinct peaks .The most conspicuous are peaks know as Murali , Suryankgiri, Nagarjun giri ,Sandhygiri , Siddheshwar , kauwadol giri ,Lalpahadi . Barabar hills are noted for the caves and natural scenery.For sheer panoramic grandeur and rugged natural beauty very few places in the jehanabad and Gaya district can be compared to the northern and southern portion of the Barabar hills . A small siddheshwar nath Temple on the suryankgiri siddheshwar peak contains a siddheshwar nath lingam called Baba siddheshvar nath , which from an inscription in 0ne of the neighbouring caves is known to be as old as of the th century and close by on the top of the Barabar hill are same curious caves used occasionally by wandering ascetics . This siddheshwar nat temple has attracted the attention of pilgrims from remote times even before the advent of Buddhism.Because of Buddhistic caves which came in to light due to excavation Barabar hills be came famous in the Buddhistic world.Siddheshvar nath temple is worshipped by the Hindus and thausand of pilgrim flock to this temple. Towords the south of Siddheshwar nath temple at its foot lies a small basin surrounded by Barabar pills with opening on the north east and south east where wall have been built . Towards the southern corner of the basin are two small seats of water which find an outlet underground to the south east and reappear in the sacred spring called patal ganga .
In the southern corner of the Barabar valley there is low ridge of granite rock about 500 feet long from 120 feet thick and 35 feet height in which some remarkable caves have been cut in the solid rock. On northern side lies a large cave called karna chaupada ( karna cave ) , at the western end which there is a raised platform which was probably the pedestal of a statue. The whole of the interior has been chiselled to a wonderful polish which shows the proficiency with which the Indian Masons of the third century B.C. where able to deal with such intractable material as the hard granite of the Barabar Hills .That the cave dated back to this early age is proved by an inscription on saken tablet at the western corner of the entrance recording the dedication of the cave by Magadh empire Ashoka himself . To the east of the doorway the rock has been cut away and some rude sculptures , representing a lingam and some Brahmani dal figures have been carved.on the opposite side of the ridge is the Sudama cave consisting of two chembers .The inner one is nearly circular and the ante chamber contain a shallow recess which may have been intended as a niche for a statue or as an entrance to another projected chamber.But the work was abandoned soon after its commencement and remains rough and unfinished while all the rest of the cave is highly polished. On the eastern side of the door way there is an inscription in prakrit pali and script brahmi character recording the dedication of the cave by Magadh empire Ashok
Lomash Rishi cave _ vaidic rishi Lomash cave on the same side of the ridge is similar to the Sudama cave both in the size and arrangement of its two chambers but the whole of the interior of the circular room has been left rough and both the floor and the roof of the outer apartment remain unfinished.The chisel marks are still visible on the floor while on the roof which has been only partial hewn the cuts of the chisel are still sharp and district. The excavation of the roof would appear to have been abandoned owing to the work having reached a deep fissure which forms one of the natural lines of cleavage of the rock.The doorway of the Lomash cave is othe same size and of the same Egyptian from as that of the Sudama cave but the entrance has been sculptured to represent the ornamental entrance of a wooden building.The ends of the roofing beams and the bamboo lattice work of the gable can be seen distinctly and belowthere is a frieze of elephant surrounding the doorway . In the space between this frieze and the doorway there is an inspection of the same character as those of the later princes of the Gupta dynasty . General Cunningham therefore assigns the date of this sculpture facade to the third century A . D . But the lomash cave it self corresponds so exactly with the Sudama cave that it must have been excavated at the same time the doorway being enlarged and ornamented later .
Vishvamitra cave - the fourth vishvamitra cave of the Barabar group is excavated in the large block of granite to the eastward of the main ridge. It is know ass vishwa jhopadi or the hut of brahmarshi vishvamitr and consistents of two rooms an inner apartment which is rough and unpolished and an ante chamber which is polished through out and contain an inscription it appears that the ancient name of the Barabar Hill was khalatika hill .The khaltika parvat in also mentioned in the patanjali mahabhashy and it lay on the royal road from kaling to Rajagrih and patliputra ( patna ) .
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