Jina is known as the one who conquers inner enemies like anger, greed, passion, ego etc. Ancient Indian, Greek and Chinese traditions advocated that it was braver for a man to conquer his desires than his enemies and that the hardest victory is over the self. The followers of the Jina are called Jains.

The picture is of Kundalpur near Nalanda in Bihar. It is believed to be the birthplace of Mahavira though two other sites also have the same claim.

Picture Credit: Ramanujam SR

Mahavira was the 24th and final Tirthankara of Jainism. He is tentatively dated to have been born in 599 BCE and achieved nirvana in 527CE, about 50 years before the birth of Buddha.

The 23rd Tirthankara, Parsvanatha is supposed to have lived 250 years before Mahavira.

The first Tirthankara, Rsabhanatha, Rishabhanatha or Vrsabha finds repeated mention in the Rig Veda. Some scholars suggest that the meditative posture depicted in Harappan seals is very similar to that practiced by Jain ascetics.

The picture is that of Tirthankaras from Karkala in Karnataka.

Source: “Jaina Shrines in India,” OP Tandon
Britannica.com

Picture Credit: Ramanujam SR

Tirthankara means a saviour who has succeeded in fording or crossing over life’s streams of rebirths. He has made a path for others to follow.

You may note that Hindus also call their sacred places as Tirthas. The word Tirtha (pilgrimage) is used in a similar sense. Visiting a Tirtha helps in winning over the cycle of birth and death.

The picture is that of Parsvanatha, the 23rd Tirthankara.

Source: “India : A Sacred Geography,” Diana Eck

Picture Credit: Ramanujam SR

The Kankali Tila is in Mathura. It is the site of archeological remains of Jain temples, stupas and sculptures. The historian Meenakshi Jain writes, “The ritual culture of images developed almost simultaneously in all three traditions of Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism, in the city of Mathura.”

The earliest image from Mathura is said to be the ‘Isapur Buddha’ from 15 CE. Before this innovation at Mathura, Gods were depicted aniconically – Buddha by a chakra, Mahavira by tri-ratna, Vishnu & Shiva by saligrama & linga. Deities and human figures were made but they represented Yakshas & Nagas and not Gods.

Source: “Vasudeva Krishna and Mathura,” Meenakshi Jain.

Picture Credit: Biswarup Ganguly, Wikimedia Commons

The five Jain temples made of marble are at Dilwara near Mount Abu in Rajasthan. They use the marble stones from Makrana as did the Taj Mahal. They were built between the 11th and 15th century by different rulers. They are the best specimens of the Maru-Gurjara branch of North Indian Nagara temple architecture attributed to the Solanki rulers of Gujarat. Profusely carved pillars, ceilings and flying arches in large, open pillared halls, are characteristics of this style. Ranakpur, also in Rajasthan has similiar architecture and intricacy.

Source: “The International Jaina Style,” Julia A B Hegewald

Picture Credit: Luna Vasahi

Shatrunjaya Hill is one of the holiest pilgrimage sites of Jains. It is in Palitana, 51 km from Bhavnagar in Gujarat. The sacred hill contains hundreds of shrines. It was sanctified when Rishabanatha, the first Tirthankara of Jainism, gave his first sermon on the hilltop.
The temples were built over 900 years starting from 11th century CE.

Kumarpal Solanki, a great Jain patron, built the first temples on this site. The temples were destroyed by Turkish Muslim invaders in 1311 AD. The saint Jinaprabhasuri, who was then 50 years old, presided over the temples, and later restored them to their glory.

Source: https://www.gujarattourism.com/saurashtra/bhavnagar/palitana-and-shatrunjaya-hill.html

Picture Credit: trawell.in

Deogarh in Uttar Pradesh has the largest collection of Jaina images numbering around 2000 and numerous Jain temples. Deogarh is more than the sum of its published monuments.. and is the greatest collection of Jaina images anywhere in India.

The Dashavatara temple in Deogarh is also considered as one of the earliest surviving Hindu temples.

Source: “Jainism: A Pictorial Guide to the Religion of Non-violence,” Kurt Titze, Klaus Bruhn

Picture Credit: Ed Senter, Flickr

Translated, Anekantavada literally means “no-one-perspective-ism”; in other words, the multiplicity and relativity of views. This means the arguments espoused by the various participants in a debate all hold some validity. A complete understanding of any truth requires the consideration and acceptance of a variety of viewpoints.

The story of five blind men and an elephant is mostly reckoned to be a Jain contribution. Ahimsa (non violence) and Anekantavada (many pointedness) are said to be the two basic pillars of Jain philosophical tradition.

Source: https://pluralism.org/anekantavada-the-relativity-of-views

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This is the Parsvanath temple in Khajuraho which also has a Jain temple complex. There are temples for Parsvanath, Adinath and Shantinath. The Parsvanath temple is one among the largest Jain temples. The temple architecture is similar to that of the other temples in Khajuraho, especially the Lakshmana Temple. Its sculptures show a predominance of Vaishnava themes, with sculptures of Parasurama, Balarama with Revati, Rama, Sita and Hanuman.

Source: “Khajuraho,” Krishna Deva, ASI

Picture Credit: Ramanujam SR

Hathigumpha (Elephant Cave) is in Udaygiri hills in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The cave has an inscription that describes the biography of one of the most powerful rulers of India – King Kharavela of the Mahamegavahana family. He was a great patron of Jainism and lived in early 2nd century BCE. He avenged the historical defeat of Kalinga at the hands of Magadhan kings, notably Ashoka. He brought back the image of Jina that had been taken from Kalinga to Magadha.

The 10th line of the inscription includes the phrase “Bharadavasa pathanam mahijayanam” in Prakrit.

Source: “The Hathigumpha Inscription of Kaharavela and The Bhabhru Edict of Asoka,” Shashi Kant

Picture Credit: Ramanujam SR

Chandragupta founded the Mauryan empire in the wake of Alexander’s invasion in late 4th century BCE, under the guidance of Chanakya / Kautilya. Chandragupta is ascribed with strong leanings towards Jainism. Megasthenes refers to the presence of Sramanas (Jain ascetics) at his court. He is said to have renounced his throne and accompanied the Jain saint Bhadrabahu to South India during a famine. Legend suggests that he died by practicing a fast.

A group of Jain temples called Chandragupta basadi at Chandragiri hill in Sravanabelagola, Karnataka commemorate his association with the place.

The Bahubali, (also known as Gomatesvara) deity at Sravanabelagola in Karnataka is 57 feet high. It is considered as the tallest monolith deity in the world. It is more than a 1000 years old. Every 12 years, in one of the greatest Jain rites, the entire deity is bathed in curd, milk and ghee.

Source: “Jaina Shrines in India,” OP Tandon

Picture Credit: Ramanujam SR

The Gwalior rock sculptures are unique for their colossal size and number. They are spread around the Gwalior fort in five groups and are several dozen in number. The rock cut sculptures are upto 57 feet tall. They were excavated in the 15th century in the reign of Tomara Rajas. Very soon after that, they were mutilated by Babur who has recorded the destruction in his own words.

Source: “Four Reports 1862-65,” Alexander Cunningham

Picture Credit: Ramanujam SR