Cave 1

This cave is a Later Vihāra or Residential cave which also has a Buddha shrine. It consists of a courtyard, porch, porch-end cells, hall, antechamber, and shrine. The Vihāra is 64 feet square and has 20 carved pillars. Residential cells are present on all three sides of the hall.

It is one of the last caves to be excavated at the site - and therefore is at the easternmost edge. It is the first cave you come across at the site today - right next to the entrance to Ajanta.

The porch is still mostly intact - it has multiple friezes - showing events from Buddha's life. The main hall is decorated with paintings - depicting stories from Buddha's past lives as well as incidents from his life as Siddhārtha Gautama. The two famous Bodhisatvas of Ajanta - are located on the walls right before the antechamber.

No inscription was found in this cave, therefore the patronage of this cave remains uncertain. Spink argues that Cave 1 was commissioned by Emperor Hariṣeṇa of the Vā̄kāṭaka dynasty.

The Buddha sits in padmāsana with his hands in the Dharmachakrapravartana mudrā, where the thumb and index fingers of both hands form a circle each. He is flanked by fly-whisk bearers and dwarfs carrying garlands. Some painted portions are still visible in this shrine. Notice the painted halo pattern behind the Buddha's head. Below the Buddha's seat there is a depiction of a row of disciples and deer flanking either side of a disc in the middle. It is clear from this that this represents the first sermon that the Buddha gave in the deer park at Sarnath, the day that the Dharmachakra, or the wheel of Dharma, started rotating.