The Śvetāmbara is one of the two main branches of Jainism, the other being the Digambara. Śvetāmbara in Sanskrit means "white-clad", and refers to its ascetics' practice of wearing white clothes, which sets it apart from the Digambara or "sky-clad" Jains whose ascetic practitioners go nude. Śvetāmbaras do not believe that ascetics must practice nudity.
Girnar is an ancient hill in Junagadh, Gujarat, India. It is one of the holiest pilgrimages for Jains, where the 22nd Tirthankar, Lord Neminath attained nirvana along with other five hundred and thirty three enlightened sages. This is well described in ancient texts such as Kalpa Sūtra written by acharya Bhadrabāhu.
Shikharji, also known as Sammet or Sammed 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. Parshvanath is one of the earliest Tirthankara who is acknowledged as a historical figure. The Jain sources place him between the 9th and 8th centuries BCE whereas historians consider that he lived in the 8th or 7th century BCE.
Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is located in Panchmahal district in Gujarat, India. It is located around the historical city of Champaner, a city which was founded by Vanraj Chavda, the most prominent king of the Chavda Dynasty, in the eighth century. He named it after the name of his friend and general Champa, also known later as Champaraj. The heritage site is studded with forts with bastions starting from the hills of Pavagadh, and extending into the city of Champaner. The park's landscape includes archaeological, historic and living cultural heritage monuments such as chalcolithic sites, a hill fortress of an early Hindu capital, and remains of the 16th-century capital of the state of Gujarat. There are palaces, entrance gates and arches, mosques, tombs and temples, residential complexes, agricultural structures and water installations such as stepwells and tanks, dating from the eighth to the 14th centuries. The Kalika Mata Temple, located on top of the 800 metres (2,600 ft) high Pavagadh Hill, is an important Hindu shrine in the region, attracting large numbers of pilgrims throughout the year.
Jirawala Tirth is a Śvetāmbara Jain temple in Jirawala village of Sirohi District in Rajasthan, India. It is situated 58km from Abu Road. The temple is an important Śvetāmbara Jain pilgrimage center, and the Jirawala Parshvanath idol is one of the 108 prominent Śvetāmbara Parshvanath idols.
Mahakali is the Hindu goddess of time and death in the goddess-centric tradition of Shaktism. She is also known as the supreme being in various Tantras and Puranas.
Pavagadh is a municipal operated region in Panchmahal district about 46 kilometres (29 mi) away from Vadodara in Gujarat state in western India. It is known for a famous Mahakali temple which is one of the 51 Shaktipeeths and draws thousands of pilgrims every day. However, as per records, this was originally a Jain temple belonging to the Svetambara Achalgaccha sect, whose Adhistayika Mahakali's idol was installed here in the 12th century. This locality Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park was declared by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 2004.
Śāntinātha or Śānti is the sixteenth Tīrthaṅkara of Jainism in the present age. According to traditional accounts, he was born to King Vishvasena and Queen Aćira of the Ikshvaku dynasty in the north Indian city of Hastinapur. His birth date is the thirteenth day of the Jyest Krishna month of the Indian calendar. He was also a Chakravarti and a Kamadeva. He ascended to the throne when he was 25 years old. After over 25,000 years on the throne, he became a Jain monk and started his penance.
Mahakali Mata Temple is a Hindu goddess temple complex and pilgrim centre at the summit of Pavagadh Hill in Panchmahal District, India, with in the Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park.The Goddess Kalika Mata was being initially worshipped by local Bhil and Koli people, until She was later invoked and installed by Vishvamitra on the top of Pavagadh Hill. Here, She is worshipped in the form of Durga or Chandi. Here, in the temple, the Kali Yantra is worshipped. It dates from the 10th or 11th centuries. The temple has three images of goddesses: the central image is of Mahakali Mata, flanked by Kali on the right and Bahucharamata on the left. The idol of Mahakali originally belongs to the Achalgacch of Svetambara sect of Jains that was established on the hill in the 12th century, installing the Mahakali devi as the Adishtayika of the newly formed Achalgacch. Pavagadh was an Ancient Jain Tirtha. On Chitra sud 8, a fair is held at the temple which is attended by thousands of devotees. The temple is the site of one of the 51 Great holy Shakti Peethas. One can easily reach the temple by ropeway.
Pavagadh Hill is situated within a plain in Panchmahal district, Gujarat, western India. A volcanic eruption occurred in the region approximately 500 million years ago and the etymology of Pavagadh is associated with this eruption: Pav-gadh means "one fourth hill" or "fire-hill". At its base is the historical city of Champaner, while the hill station of Pavagadh was built upon the volcanic cone itself. With Champaner, Pavagadh hill forms the Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site which is spread over an area of more than 1,329 hectares. Known for its forts, there are also dozens of heritage structures on the hill. The site is 50 kilometres (31 mi) east of Vadodara and 68 kilometres (42 mi) south of Godhra.
There are eleven different types of buildings at the UNESCO-protected Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park in Gujarat, India, including mosques, temples, granaries, tombs, wells, walls, and terraces. The monuments are situated at the foot of and around the Pavagadh Hill. The Baroda Heritage Trust lists 114 monuments in the area, of which only 39 are maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India, due to limited funding. The Forest Department owns 94% of the land here, while the temple trusts and other sectarian establishments provide facilities for boarding and lodging to pilgrims and tourists. On the southern side near the foot of the hill some dilapidated houses and the foundations of Jain temples can also be seen.
Chandraprabha or Chandranatha is the eighth Tirthankara of Tīrthaṅkara of Jainism in the present age. According to traditional accounts, he was born to King Mahasena and Queen Lakshmana Devi at Chandrapuri to the Ikshvaku dynasty. According to Jain texts, his birth-date was the twelfth day of the Posh Krishna month of the Indian calendar. He is said to have become a siddha, a liberated soul which has destroyed all of its karma.
There is a group of temples of Jainism on Mount Girnar near Junagadh in Junagadh district, Gujarat, India. While almost all the temples belong to the Śvetāmbara sect, some also belong to the Digambara sect. The hill and some of the temples are considered sacred by both Digambara and the Śvetāmbara branches of Jainism.
Mandaragiri or Basadi-betta is a Jain pilgrimage located on Mandaragiri Hill in Tumkur district in the Indian state of Karnataka.
Ratnaprabhasuri was a Śvetāmbara Jain ascetic and the 6th successor in the lineage of the monastic heads of the Chaturvidha Sangha's Upkeśa Gaccha. He succeeded Swayamprabhasuri and is believed to have existed in 6th–5th century BC. He is most well-known as the founder of the Oswāl clan of Śvetāmbara Jains.
Upkeśa Gaccha is the oldest gaccha of Śvetāmbara Jainism. It is one of the 84 gacchas of the Śvetāmbara sect that were once in existence. Unlike most other gacchas that follow Mahavira's lineage and begin with his disciple Sudharmaswami, it follows the lineage of the 23rd Tirthankara Parshvanatha and is said to have begun with his prime disciple Ganadhara Shubhadatta. It went extinct in about 1930 CE.
Aryarakshitsuri was Śvetāmbara Jain monk and the founder of the Achal Gaccha of the Śvetāmbara sect of Jainism. He was a contemporary of Hemchandrasuri and is said to have met him.
Kalyansagarsuri was a 16th century Jain ascetic, reformer, philosopher, and researcher belonging to the Achal Gaccha of the Śvetāmbara Murtipujaka sect of Jainism.
