Articles & Blog
207 articles
Girnar: Neminatha and the Sacred Ascent
The lofty Girnar hills near Junagadh in Gujarat enshrine the tirtha of Neminatha, the twenty-second Tirthankara, atop one of the steepest pi...
The Dilwara Temples of Mount Abu
On Rajasthan's only hill station, the Dilwara temples enshrine Jain marble carving at its zenith, five sanctuaries whose ceilings dissolve i...
Ranakpur: The Chaumukha Temple of a Thousand Pillars
Hidden in a wooded Aravalli valley in Rajasthan, the fifteenth-century Ranakpur temple honours Adinatha with a four-faced sanctuary and hund...
Shravanabelagola and the Colossus of Bahubali
On Vindhyagiri hill in Karnataka rises the 57-foot monolithic Gommateshwara statue of Bahubali, carved around 981 CE and bathed each dozen y...
Pavapuri: Mahavira's Nirvana and the Jal Mandir
At Pavapuri in Bihar, the last Tirthankara Mahavira attained final liberation, and a white marble temple now rises from a lotus lake at the...
Rajgir: The Five Hills of Ancient Magadha
Ringed by five hills in Bihar, ancient Rajgriha was Mahavira's frequent abode and a great centre of Jain and Buddhist history, dotted with h...
Champapuri: Birthplace of Vasupujya
Near Bhagalpur in Bihar, Champapuri is uniquely revered as the site of all five auspicious life events of Vasupujya, the twelfth Tirthankara...
Ayodhya: Cradle of the Tirthankaras
Beyond its wider fame, Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh is revered by Jains as the birthplace of five Tirthankaras, including Adinatha, the first te...
Kundalpur in Bihar and the Birthplace Debate
Near Nalanda in Bihar, Kundalpur is revered by Digambaras as the birthplace of Mahavira, at the heart of the long debate over Kshatriyakund...
Vaishali: Republic City and Mahavira's Land
The ancient republic of Vaishali in Bihar is closely tied to Mahavira's early life through Kshatriyakund, standing among the world's first k...
Hastinapur: Ancient Capital and Jain Tirtha
On the old bank of the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh, Hastinapur is revered as the birthplace of three Tirthankaras and the site of Adinatha's firs...
Mathura and the Jain Antiquities of Kankali Tila
The mound of Kankali Tila at Mathura in Uttar Pradesh yielded one of the richest troves of ancient Jain art, spanning centuries of stupas, i...