Articles & Blog
207 articles
Pavagadh: The Hilltop Jain Shrines of Champaner
On the volcanic hill of Pavagadh in Gujarat, above the ruined city of Champaner, stand ancient Jain temples amid a landscape now recognised...
Nareli: A Modern Marvel Above Ajmer
On a hillside outside Ajmer in Rajasthan, the Nareli temple complex blends contemporary architecture with tradition in one of the most strik...
The Hutheesing Temple of Ahmedabad
In the heart of Ahmedabad, Gujarat, the nineteenth-century Hutheesing temple honours Dharmanatha in gleaming white marble, a masterpiece of...
Siddhakshetra, Atishaya Kshetra and Kalyanaka Kshetra
Jain sacred sites fall into distinct classes by their significance, from places of liberation to sites of miracles and the auspicious life e...
Paryushana Parva: Eight Days of the Soul
The most important festival for Svetambara Jains, Paryushana is an eight-day season of fasting, forgiveness and self-reflection that culmina...
Das Lakshana Parva and the Ten Virtues
For ten days the Digambara community contemplates the ten supreme virtues of the soul, one each day, in the festival that parallels Paryusha...
Samvatsari and the Grace of Michhami Dukkadam
On the concluding day of Paryushana, Jains everywhere perform annual confession and ask forgiveness of all beings with the words Michhami Du...
Mahavir Jayanti: Celebrating the Last Tirthankara
Mahavir Jayanti marks the birth of Lord Mahavira, the twenty-fourth Tirthankara, and is the most widely celebrated public festival of the Ja...
Diwali as Mahavira's Nirvana and the Jain New Year
For Jains, Diwali marks the final liberation of Lord Mahavira, and the following day of Bestu Varas opens a new year in his memory.
Kartik Purnima and the Pilgrimage Season
The full moon of Kartika closes the four-month monastic retreat and opens the pilgrimage season, drawing devotees to sacred hills such as Pa...
Jnan Panchami: The Festival of Knowledge
Also called Gyan Panchami, this day honours right knowledge, the scriptures that preserve it, and the duty to study and safeguard sacred lea...
Maun Ekadashi: The Vow of Silence
On this day devotees keep silence and fasting, honouring a great cluster of auspicious events in the lives of the Tirthankaras across the ag...