The village of Khajuraho is in the Chattarpur district of Madhya Pradesh. This place was the capital of Chandela kings from 9th to 13th century. These kings built 85 temples between 950 A.D and 1050 A.D. Out of these only 20 temples survive today. These temples were dedicated to Siva, Vishnu, Brahma and the Tirthankaras.
During this age India was called the Asian El Dorado. The people were prosperous and happy and the fertile land yielded plenty of crops, fruits and flowers. This climate was most conducive to creative efforts and temple-building emerged as its chief form.
The Khajuraho temples are of the Indo-Aryan type. Each temple stands on a high platform and the customary enclosure is absent. The temples are in three groups and occupy an area of about eight square miles. The western group, the largest and most important, is situated at the axis of the Lalguan-Rajnagar road. The eastern group comprises Brahmin and Jain shrines close to the present Khajuraho village. The southern group is almost one mile away from the south of the village.
The western group comprises the oldest Chaunsath Yogini, the Kendriya Mahadeva, the Devi Jagadambe, Chitragupta temple, Vishwanatha and Nandi temples. The other temples of this group are Parvati temple, Lakshmana temple, Matangesvara and Varah temples.
The Eastern group consists of Vamana temple, Javari temple, Brahma temple, Adinatha temple, Parsvnatha temple and several other Jain temples.
The Southern group has only two temples — Duladeo temple and Chaturbhuj temple.
The temples of Khajuraho present a unique art and sculpture. They have engraved figures of gods and goddesses, celestial nymphs and hand-maidens (‘apsaras’ and ‘surasundaris’), bold serpents and leonine beasts and myriads of women. ‘Mithuna’ couples (rioting figures of love and lust) have accorded Khajuraho a distinctive status. At the centre of each temple there is the statue of an honoured god.
In addition to these temples there is a small Archaeological Museum at Khajuraho, showing mainly sculptures collected on temple sites. The temples are visited by thousands of visitors every year.