Kulturerbe

Five Rathas

#2von 10 Orten zum Besuchen in MahabalipuramMahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu

Auch bekannt als Pancha Rathas · Pandava Rathas

Kurz gesagt

Öffnungszeiten: 06:00–18:00. Eintritt: ₹40 für Inder · ₹600 für Ausländer. Plane 1 hr ein. Beste Zeit: 16:00 – 17:00.

Aktualisiert am 18 September 2026 · Erstellt von Traveliac, KI-unterstützt · 4 Min. Lesezeit

Route anzeigenOffizielle Seite

Photo: Arupparia / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Öffnungszeiten: 06:00–18:00
Eintrittspreis: ₹40 für Inder; Ticket ab
Benötigte Zeit: 1 hr
Beste Tageszeit: 16:00 – 17:00
Beste Monate: Oct – Mar
Adresse: Five Rathas Road, Mahabalipuram, Chengalpattu District, Tamil Nadu 603104

Über Five Rathas

Five Rathas rise from a single elongated granite outcrop as five unconsecrated shrines, each carved to a distinct architectural template rather than assembled from separate blocks. Pallava king Narasimhavarman I, known by his title Mamalla, meaning 'great wrestler', commissioned the group in the mid-seventh century as what archaeologists read as a sculptor's workshop of prototypes — a stone catalogue of vimana roof styles rather than five working temples. Popular tradition names each ratha after a character from the Mahabharata (Dharmaraja, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula-Sahadeva, and Draupadi), but Archaeological Survey of India site plaques note plainly that this association is folklore layered on centuries after construction, not an inscriptional fact.

Beste Tageszeit: 16:00 – 17:00. For low-angle light across the carved plinths, after the midday tour-bus wave has cleared.

Öffnungszeiten von Five Rathas

Five Rathas öffnet um 06:00 und schließt um 18:00. Diese Zeiten gelten auch samstags und sonntags.

Öffnungszeiten: 06:00–18:00; Mon–Sun 06:00–18:00
Geschlossen an: Täglich geöffnet

Mon–Sun	06:00–18:00

Öffnungszeiten zusammengestellt aus tamilnadutourism.tn.gov.in und öffentlichen Quellen, zuletzt aktualisiert am 18 September 2026. Sie können sich ohne Vorankündigung ändern — vor der Reise bitte bestätigen. Wie wir diese Reiseführer schreiben

Eintrittspreis für Five Rathas

Entry fees for Five Rathas
Ticket	Preis
Indische Besucher	₹40
Ausländische Besucher	₹600
Kinder	Kostenlos
Kamera	Kostenlos

Covered by the same ASI composite ticket sold at Shore Temple, valid the same calendar day at both sites once bought at either counter. Children under 15 enter free. ASI revises fees periodically, so as of 2026, verify the exact figure at the counter.

Preise zusammengestellt aus tamilnadutourism.tn.gov.in und öffentlichen Quellen, zuletzt aktualisiert am 18 September 2026. Sie können sich ohne Vorankündigung ändern — vor der Reise bitte bestätigen. Wie wir diese Reiseführer schreiben

Beste Reisezeit für Five Rathas

Quiet
Moderate
Busy
Very busy

06:30 – 09:00
Morning OpeningBest time to go
First arrivals after opening; the compound is calm enough to photograph individual rathas without other visitors in frame.
Quiet
09:30 – 13:00
Coach Tour Window
Day-tour buses from Chennai concentrate here alongside Shore Temple. Paths between the rathas narrow with foot traffic.
Very busy
13:00 – 15:30
Midday Lull
Crowd thins as groups move on to lunch or other sites. Flat, harsh light makes this the least photogenic window.
Moderate
15:30 – 18:00
Golden-Light Session
Photographers and a second wave of domestic visitors return for the low-angle evening light on the granite plinths.
Busy

Geschichte von Five Rathas

Five Rathas were quarried and carved between roughly 630 and 668 CE, during Narasimhavarman I's reign, from a single ridge of pink-grey granite running along what was then the town's southern edge. None of the five structures was ever consecrated with a deity or opened for worship; unfinished plinth carvings on several rathas, abandoned mid-chisel, support the archaeological reading that Mamallapuram's stoneworkers used the site to trial different temple silhouettes before committing a finished design elsewhere in the Pallava kingdom. Bhima Ratha's barrel-vaulted roof previews the gopuram form that would dominate Tamil temple architecture for the next thousand years, while Dharmaraja Ratha's stepped pyramidal tower anticipates the vimana of Kanchipuram's later Pallava temples. A free-standing stone elephant and a Nandi bull, carved from separate boulders, stand beside the rathas as full-scale companion pieces, reinforcing the reading of the site as a workshop display rather than a temple complex. UNESCO listed the group in 1984 within the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram.

Regeln & Etikette in Five Rathas

Five Rathas requires the same ASI composite ticket sold at Shore Temple — ₹40 Indian / ₹600 foreign as of 2026 — and a ticket bought at either site admits the holder to both on the same calendar day. Climbing onto any of the five structures is prohibited and actively enforced by ASI guards stationed around the compound; the granite surfaces are original seventh-century stone with no restoration coating, and repeated foot traffic accelerates surface wear. Shoes may be worn throughout, since none of the rathas is an active shrine. Tripod photography and drone flights require advance written permission from the ASI Chennai Circle office, the same rule that applies across all Mahabalipuram monuments.

Tipps für den Besuch von Five Rathas

1
Five Rathas rewards a slow circuit rather than a straight walk-through — the five structures sit close enough together that visitors often photograph only the front three and miss Nakula-Sahadeva Ratha's apsidal, chariot-shaped rear wall tucked behind the stone elephant. Late afternoon light around 16:00–17:00 rakes across the carved plinths at a low angle and brings out relief details that flatten under the harsh midday sun. The compound has minimal shade, so carrying water is worth it even for a 45-minute visit. Combine the stop with Ganesha Ratha, a ten-minute auto ride or a manageable 20-minute walk north into town, to see a sixth, later-consecrated ratha built in the same quarrying tradition.

Anreise nach Five Rathas

Der rote Stern zeigt Five Rathas; die nummerierten Markierungen sind die 7 nächstgelegenen Orte aus unseren Reiseführern, jeweils mit ihrem Rang in der eigenen Stadt. Für Details auf eine Markierung tippen.

Five Rathas Road, Mahabalipuram, Chengalpattu District, Tamil Nadu 603104Route in Google Maps

Ab Shore Temple / ASI Ticket Counter
₹60–₹100
3 km · 8–12 min
Auto
Ab Chengalpattu Junction (CGL)
₹550–₹750
31 km · 50–65 min
Auto/cab
Ab Mahabalipuram Bus Stand
₹50–₹80
1.5 km · 18–20 min walk / 6 min auto
Auto

Nächster Flughafen

Ab Chennai International Airport (MAA)

approximately 58 km, 1h 15m–1h 45m by road via ECR/OMR depending on traffic.

Nächster Bahnhof

Ab Chengalpattu Junction (CGL)

approximately 29 km, 45–60 minutes by road.

Häufige Fragen zu Five Rathas

Are the Five Rathas active temples?

No. None of the five rathas was ever consecrated with a deity; ASI signage describes them as unfinished architectural prototypes carved by Pallava stoneworkers, not functioning shrines.

Is the ticket separate from the Shore Temple ticket?

No. The same ₹40 Indian / ₹600 foreign composite ticket, bought at either location, covers both Five Rathas and Shore Temple on the day of purchase.

Why are the five structures named after Mahabharata characters if they were never consecrated?

The Dharmaraja, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula-Sahadeva, and Draupadi names are a later folk tradition, not an original inscription; the ASI treats the association as legend rather than documented history.

Can visitors touch or climb the rathas?

No. ASI guards enforce a no-climbing, no-touching rule across the compound to protect the unrestored seventh-century granite surfaces from further wear.

Mit KI-Unterstützung aus offiziellen Quellen und öffentlichen Aufzeichnungen erstellt und erst nach den Prüfungen veröffentlicht, die beschrieben sind unter Wie wir diese Reiseführer schreiben. Niemand von Traveliac war persönlich vor Ort. Zuletzt aktualisiert am 18 September 2026. Wie wir Orte bewerten und prüfen