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Pilgrimage Guide › Sacred Sites 19–27 › Kanheri Caves
Kanheri Caves are a complex of 109 rock-cut Buddhist caves inside Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Mumbai. For about a thousand years, from around the 1st century BCE to the 10th century CE, they were a major Buddhist monastery and centre of learning.
Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Borivali, Mumbai, Maharashtra
About 1st century BCE to 10th century CE
7:30 AM – 5:00 PM, closed on Mondays
Borivali station (Western line)
Mumbai (CSMIA)
Half a day
The name Kanheri comes from the Sanskrit “Krishnagiri”, meaning Black Mountain. Its 109 caves range from simple monks’ cells to grand chaityas (prayer halls), and include a clever water system of stone channels and cisterns that collected rainwater for the monks.
Kanheri was supported by the busy sea trade of ancient Mumbai. Inscriptions record gifts from merchants, monks and royal patrons, and both early (Hinayana) and Mahayana Buddhists used the site — making it one of the longest-used monastic sites in India.
This is one of the few ancient Buddhist monasteries that survive inside a large modern city. For about a thousand years, monks of both early and Mahayana traditions lived, taught and meditated here, and their inscriptions still record the gifts of merchants and royal patrons.
For Thai and Southeast Asian groups flying through Mumbai, it is an easy half-day pilgrimage. The forest setting of the national park gives the caves a calm, natural atmosphere for chanting and quiet reflection, away from the city noise.
Kanheri Caves are inside Sanjay Gandhi National Park at Borivali, in the northern suburbs of Mumbai. From Borivali station (Western Railway), take an auto or taxi to the park gate, then a park bus, vehicle or walk of a few kilometres through the forest to the caves. Separate entry tickets apply for the park and the caves.
October to March is the best time. The caves are open from 7:30 AM to 5:00 PM and are closed on Mondays. Weekends are busy with Mumbai visitors, so a weekday morning is more peaceful. In the monsoon (July–September) the park is very green, but trails can be muddy.
Prime Value Tours can include this sacred place in a private tour for your group, with an English or Thai-speaking guide, comfortable air-conditioned transport, vegetarian meals and unhurried time for chanting and meditation at every stop. Tell us your group size and travel dates, and we will plan the best route and send your quotation within 24 hours.
Kanheri Caves are inside Sanjay Gandhi National Park at Borivali, in the northern suburbs of Mumbai, Maharashtra.
The caves are open from 7:30 AM to 5:00 PM and are closed on Mondays.
There are 109 rock-cut Buddhist caves at Kanheri, from simple monks’ cells to large prayer halls.
The caves were used from about the 1st century BCE to the 10th century CE as a Buddhist monastery and centre of learning.
Go to Borivali station in Mumbai, take an auto to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park gate, then a park vehicle or walk to the caves.
Government-approved tour operator from Varanasi since 1999. Private Buddhist pilgrimage tours for Thai and Southeast Asian groups, with English or Thai-speaking guides.
