Jainism is one among the two ancient religions that were born in India. Its origin dates back to 3000 B.C. during the time of Indus Valley Civilization. Jainism does not have a founder and the truth has been revealed time to time by the Trithankaras, who are great omniscient teachers who have achieved the highest spiritual goal of existence and later shows the followers the path of achieving it. The followers of Jainism believe that there were 24 great teachers the last of whom was Lord Mahavira who lived during 6th century B.C. Mahavira is considered as the man who gave Jainism its present-day form; however, he is sometimes wrongly called "the founder of Jainism".Jainism teaches the way to attain liberation and according to its philosophy bliss is to live a life of harmlessness and renunciation. As per the Jain philosophy, liberation is achieved by eliminating all karma from the soul and has three guiding principles, known as the 'three jewels' are right conduct, right belief and right knowledge. However, the highest principle Jain living is non violence. As the religion originated in India, there are several Jain pilgrimage sites in the country. Numerous Jain temples are found in different parts of the country and some of these dates back to 4[SUP]th[/SUP] and 5[SUP]th[/SUP] century A.D., which stands as an evidence that it is one of the oldest existing religions of the country. Some of the important Jain pilgrimage centers you would love to travel to are listed below. Dilwara Temples , Rajasthan Built during the 11[SUP]th[/SUP] century, Dilwara Temples are an important pilgrimage place for the followers of Jainism. It is a cluster of five temples situated about 2.5 km from Mount Abu in Rajasthan. These temples epitomize the exquisite and unique architecture of Jain temples. Made of marble, dappled by copse of simple beauty and excruciating grace, Dilwara temples are a remembrance of candor and prudence promoted in Jainism. These temples have intricate carvings that depict various gods and goddesses. Ranakpur , Rajasthan One of the five most important pilgrimage sites of Jainism, Raunakpur is situated in the state of Rajasthan. Nestled in the Aravali range, it is the home to extremely dazzling temples, the first to have been built by the Jain community. According to legends, the town of Falna donated more than 90 kg of gold for the inner decoration of this temple. With its beautiful marble carvings and 1500 pillars, each one of them are different from the other, Ranakpur is probably the most extensive of Jain temples in India, covering 40,000 square feet (3600m). The temple features 1444 elegantly carved pillars made of marble, which rank among the finest expressions of Jain sculptural art. Palitana , Gujarat A city situated on the Shatrunjaya Hills in Gujarat, Palitana is one of the most important pilgrimage places of Jainism. It is believed that all the Tirthankaras, except Neminatha, visited this place and myriad saints have attained salvation in this site. Considered as the most sacred by the Jains, this site consist of approximately 863 temples that are carved in marble. The main deity is Rishabhanatha (Adinath), the 1st Tirthankara who supposedly undertook this pilgrimage 99 times. Palitana is visited by thousands of pilgrims from all over the globe every year. Girnar , Gujarat Situated near Junagadh District of Gujarat at a distance of 327 km from Ahmedabad, Girnar is a group of mountains and is sacred for both Jains and Hindus. The site houses five important Jain temples and the most prominent Jain shrine is the rectangular Neminath temple which was completed between 1128 CE and 1159 CE. This is one of the most revered sites for the Jains as it is believed that the 22[SUP]nd[/SUP] Tirthankara, Neminatha attaines liberation here. The main temple dates back to 12[SUP]th[/SUP] century and Girnar is especially thronged by pilgrims during the Girnar Parikrama festival. Gomatheshwara temple , Shravanabelagola, Karnataka Gomateshwara is a massive statue standing at 60 feet (18 m) on a hilltop in a place called Shravanabelagola in the Hassan district of Karnataka. The statue was built in the 10th century AD by the Ganga minister and commander Chamundaraya in honor of Lord Bahubali is of the size Jains believe humans used to be. Huge number of pilgrims, devotees and tourists from all over the world visits this statue once in 12 years for an event known as Mahamastakabhisheka. For centuries, Shravanabelagola has been a major Jain pilgrimage site, which is visited by thousands of pilgrims. This statue is considered to be one of the largest monolithic statues in the world. Sammet Shikhar (Peak of Wisdom) , Bihar The place where 20 Tirthankaras out of 24 have attained liberation, Sammet Shikhar or Peak of Wisdom is one of the most revered pilgrimage destinations of Jainism. Situated on the Parsvanath Hills, which are about 4500 feet above sea level includes shrines that house the footprints of the 20 Tirthankaras. The main shrine on top of the Parsvanath Hills is dedicated to Parsvanatha, the 23rd Tirthankara. Pawapuri , Patna, Bihar An important site of Jain pilgrim, Pawapuri is a place situated near Patna, Bihar. It is the place where Lord Mahavira, the 24[SUP]th[/SUP] and the last Tirthankara delivered his last discourse as well as attained liberation on the day of Diwali. Dedicated to Lord Mahavira, a temple is built in the middle of the lotus lake and the place is visited by countless pilgrims and devotees every year. Jain Temple , Moodbidri, Karnataka A small town situated at a distance of 35 km north-east of Mangalore in Dakshina Kannada district, Moodbidri is known as the 'Jain Kashi' of South India and it is an ancient center of Jain learning. The town houses 18 Jain temples and the oldest of them is the 15th century Chandranatha Basadi, which is also known as the Thousand Pillars temple or 'Savira Kambada basadi'. This is a massive temple made of granite, which was built in the year 1430. The temple boasts of a valuable collection of jewel-encrusted metallic images of Jain Tirthankaras, and outstanding colossal columns in the Jain tradition, each with different carving. Taranga , Gujarat A Jain Temple of the Shvetambar sect, Taranga is situated in the Mehsana district of Gujarat. It is a major pilgrimage place of Jainism, which was constructed in 1121 by the Solanki dynasty king Kumarpal, advised by his teacher Acharya Hemachandra. The temple houses a 2.75 m marble statue of Adinatha. The complex of this temple consist of 14 shrines of which five are from the Digambar sect. Taranga is an important pilgrimage place for both the Digambar and the Shvetambar sect of Jainism.
