Mahavira, also known as Vardhamana, was the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism. He was the spiritual successor of the 23rd Tirthankara Parshvanatha. Mahavira was born in the early 6th century BCE into a royal Jain family of ancient India. His mother's name was Trishala and his father's name was Siddhartha. They were lay devotees of Parshvanatha. Mahavira abandoned all worldly possessions at the age of about 30 and left home in pursuit of spiritual awakening, becoming an ascetic. Mahavira practiced intense meditation and severe austerities for twelve and a half years, after which he attained Kevala Jnana (omniscience). He preached for 30 years and attained moksha (liberation) in the 6th century BCE, although the year varies by sect.
Shikharji, also known as Sammed or Sammet Shikharji, is one of the Holiest pilgrimage sites for Jains, in Giridih district, Jharkhand. It is located on Parasnath hill, the highest mountain in the state of Jharkhand. It is the most important Jain Tirtha, for it is the place where twenty of the twenty-four Jain tirthankaras along with many other monks attained Moksha. It is one of the five principal pilgrimage destinations along with Girnar, Pawapuri, Champapuri, Dilwara, Palitana and Ashtapad Kailash.
Parshvanatha, or Pārśva and Pārasanātha, was the 23rd of 24 Tirthankaras of Jainism. He gained the title of Kalīkālkalpataru.
Ācārya Bhadrabāhu was, according to both the Śvetāmbara and Digambara sects of Jainism, the last Shruta Kevalin in Jainism.
Padmāvatī is the protective goddess or śāsana devī (शासनदेवी) of Pārśvanātha, the twenty-third Jain tīrthāṅkara, complimenting Parshwa yaksha in Swetambara and Dharanendra in digambar the shasan deva. She is a yakshini of Parshwanatha.
Siddhachakra is a popular yantra or mandala used for worship in Jainism. It is also known as Navapada in the Svetambara tradition and Navadevta in the Digambara tradition. In the Svetambara tradition it is associated with the Namokar Mantra. It is related to the legend of King Shripala and his wife Mayanasundari. It is depicted as a Kalasha with the core of a blossomed lotus representing Navapada in the centre surrounded by guarding deities on petals. It is used in some rituals.
In Indic religions, a homa also known as havan, is a fire ritual performed on special occasions by a Hindu priest usually for a homeowner. The grihasth keeps different kinds of fire including one to cook food, heat a home, among other uses; therefore, a Yajna offering is made directly into the fire. A homa is sometimes called a "sacrifice ritual" because the fire destroys the offering, but a homa is more accurately a "votive ritual". The fire is the agent, and the offerings include those that are material and symbolic such as grains, ghee, milk, incense, and seeds.
Vijapur is a city and a municipality in the Mehsana district in the Indian state of Gujarat.
Jahaj Mandir is a Jain temple in the village of Mandwala in the Jalore district, Rajasthan, India. The temple is built in the shape of a boat and is carved from marble. The temple was founded in 1993 for the religion of Jainism.
Tapa Gaccha is the largest Gaccha of Svetambara Jainism.
Mahudi is a town in Mansa taluka of Gandhinagar district, Gujarat, India situated on the banks of Madhumati river, a tributary of Sabarmati River. It is a pilgrimage centre of Jains and other communities visiting temple of Jain deity, Ghantakarna Mahavir and Padmaprabhu Jain Temple. It was known as Madhupuri formerly.
Hiravijaya (1526–1595), also known as Muni Hiravijayji and Hiravijay Suri, was a high priest of the Tapa Gaccha monastic order, following the Jain Svetambara tradition. He is known for propounding the Jain philosophy to Mughal Emperor Akbar and turning him towards vegetarianism.
Kharatara Gaccha is one of Shvetambara Murtipujaka Gacchas. It is also called the Vidhisangha or Vidhimarga, as they regard their practices as scripturally correct.
The Palitana temples, often known only as Palitana, are a large complex of Jain temples located on Shatrunjaya hills near Palitana in Bhavnagar district, Gujarat, India. Also known as "Padliptapur of Kathiawad" in historic texts, the dense collection of almost 900 small shrines and large temples have led many to call Palitana the "city of temples". It is one of the most sacred sites of the Svetambara tradition within Jainism. The earliest temples in the complex date as far back as the 11th century CE.
Diwali in Jainism marks the anniversary of Nirvana or liberation of Mahavira's soul, the twenty-fourth and last Jain Tirthankara of the present cosmic age. It is celebrated at the same time as the Hindu festival of Diwali. Diwali marks the end of the year for Jains, and it likewise commemorates the passing of their twenty-fourth Tirthankara Mahavira and his achievement of moksha.
Buddhisagarsuri was a Jain ascetic, philosopher and author from British India. Born in a Hindu family, he was influenced by a Jain monk and later was initiated in asceticism, and later elevated to the title of Acharya. He wrote more than hundred books.
Gaccha, alternatively spelled as Gachchha, is a monastic order, along with lay followers, of the image worshipping Murtipujaka Svetambara sect of Jainism. The term is also used in the Digambara sect.
Jain festivals occur on designated days of the year. Jain festivals are either related to life events of Tirthankara or they are performed with intention of purification of soul.
Mahudi Jain Temple is situated in Mahudi town in Mansa taluka of Gandhinagar district, Gujarat. It is a pilgrimage centre of Jains and other communities visiting the temple of Jain deity, Ghantakarna Mahavir and the Padmaprabhu Jain Temple. It was known as Madhupuri historically.
The Nābhi-nandana-jinoddhāra-prabandha is a 1336 Sanskrit book in the prabandha genre written by the Jain scholar Kakka Suri (Kakkasūri). The main objective of the book is to record the renovation of the Rishabhanatha Jain temple on Shatrunjaya hill in Gujarat, during the Delhi Sultanate rule. The work also provides other information, such as a history of the author's spiritual lineage (gaccha) and a description of the Delhi Sultan Alauddin Khalji's military conquests.
