Category

Monument

Duration

20 - 30 Minutes

M-Ticket

Accepted

Parking

Available

Water

Available

PhotoGrap

Available

Couple

Friendly

Baby

Friendly

Restroom

Available

Lounge

Available

GiftShop

Available

Dustbin

Available

Entry

FREE

Adult

FREE

Child

FREE

MobileCam

FREE

Camera

FREE

VideoCam

FREE

Overview

A perfect example of the rich cave history of Goa lies with the Arvalem Caves. These particular caves are situated in the small town of Bicholim which forms a part of North Goa. Goa possesses a very rich 'cave heritage'. Speak to any villager in villages like Harvalem and you get to hear the legend of the five Pandavas- Yuddhistir, Bhim, Arjun, Nakul and Sahadev having resided in the five caves at Harvalem. The Rudreshwara temple at Harvalem displays aignage which speaks of the so-called Pandavanchyo leni or Pandavanchy Houryo. 

The etymological roots of the village name Harvalem stands asfollows: Hara is shiva and Valem has come from the Kannad word for village ‘halli' - thus Hara-hall became Harvalem, a village very close to the town of Sanquelim or Sankhalim which again has evolved from Shankar - halli which again is a reference to Shiva, Hara or Mahadev. The village of Harvalem in the Bicholim Taluka showcases a beautifully serene, calm and green environs very much desired by the antient Buddhist monk in their journey of the attainment of peace, truth, bliss through deep contemplation and meditation. Close by is a beautiful waterfall, the famous ‘Harvalecho dhabdhabo‘ and the famous Rudreshwar temple.

The Buddhist monks have carved these five caves out of a sigle hard laterite rock. Here again ,we find that these Buddhist caves have been converted to shaivite caves. Shivlings of different shapes and sizes have been placed in these caves. These shivlings are carved out of granite. On the ‘ling' (phallus) which is aniconically representing the sun (Surya) has one line inscription which reads ‘Sambalur Vasi Ravih'. This inscription is palaeographically dated C 600 A.D. However, says the late Dr. V R Mistragotri in his book Socio- Cultural History of Goa from Bhojas to Vijayanagar, the date of the above inscription may be one century later i.e C 700 A.D. In the inscription Sambalur is nothing but Shivapur which means Hara-halli or Harvalli i.e. Harvalem. It could also be a reference to the bigger of Sankhlim or Shankar-halli lying next to Harvalem. Shambhu means Shiva and ‘ur'or ‘pur' means a town or a city in Sanskrit.

The Shivling and the inscription is assigned to the Bhoja period, the period of the Bhoja King Kapalivarman. As mentioned in my last piece on Lamgao caves the Shivling in the first Lamgao cave is also a assigned to the Bhoja period. There is another ling with an inscription in the Harvalem caves. In the copper plate inscription of the Bhoja king Kapalivarman there is mentioned of the Harvalem village. There is also mentioned of ‘udakapata' which means a waterfall which is none other than Harvalem waterfall. The cells in the caves have pillars. The Shivlings are placed on raised platforms. These caves makes a interesting sight-seeing. On my journey through Goa's pre-Portuguese past, I have realised that Goa in spite of having a very reach pre Portuguese built and unbuilt heritage has been projected only as a Portuguese heritage destination. Our Buddhist and Jain heritage sites should also feature prominently on our tourist itinerary. Lamgao, Harvalem, Rivona, Kudnem, Bandoda which showcase our Buddhist and Jain heritage respectively should be promoted as Heritage Tourism sites.

Things to carry

ID Card

Camera

Selfiestick

Sunglasses

Cap

Medicine

Sunscreen

Power Bank

Snacks

Things not allowed

Alcohol

Weapons

Pets

Skates

Smoking

Plastic Bag

Operational Hours

January to December

Redemption Process

• Upon completing your reservation, anticipate receiving a comprehensive email and SMS containing booking details. Present your SMS or booking confirmation email at the reception counter during check-in.
• Access your booking information easily by logging into your account on Explorebees.com and navigating to the "Active Bookings" page in the dashboard.

Environmental Note: In the spirit of environmental consciousness, please refrain from printing unless explicitly specified. Let's be mindful of our impact— trees have feelings too!

Cancellation Policy

• Unforeseen Circumstances : This activity requires good weather. In cases of unforeseen weather conditions or government restrictions leading this activity cancellations, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
• Refund Process : Refunds will be credited to the original booking payment source within 10 business days, and cash refunds will not be issued

Learn more about cancellations

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