Author: jambudweep

Ranakpur The grandest of the Jaina temples built after 1300 is the Adinatha Vihara (vihara = temple) at Ranakpur. It covers an area of 3720 square metres and its twenty-nine halls are supported by 420 pillars, none of which are alike. Building began in 1389, and took fifty years to complete. It was the fortunate...

Sadri There is a direct daily bus that leaves Sirohi bus station in the morning and arrives at Ranakpur in the afternoon. From there it goes on to Udaipur. The last halt before reaching Ranakpur is Sadri. Readers of this guide are advised to alight at this pleasant township, ask their way to the nearby...

Mirpur The architecturally most im- portant building near Sirohi is the main temple of a group of four at Mirpur, also known by its former names of Hamipur or Hamiryadh. A bus-ride of about fifteen kilometres to the south-west, then a half-an-hour walk along a track leading towards the Abu mountain range, and the pilgrim...

Rajasthan Sirohi Sirohi and Southern Aravalli Range. With its two Jaina dharmashalas and a well-conducted bus station, Sirohi is a convenient stopover for travellers who are inclined towards discovering for them- selves lesser known, but in no way inferior. holy Jaina sites in the vicinity of this ancient city that was founded in about the...

Taranga Hill The photograph on the opposite page should suffice to show that there is more to see at Taranga than just another temple. Still, if it was only this one sacred edifice and the nearby Digambara shrine with the lofty manastambha in front of it, a much more tiresome journey than the one from...

Idar Idar, Digambara Jaina Temple raised on rugged ground high above the town. Idar is a pilgrim's centre for both Shvetambaras and Digambaras unlike Kumbharia which is exclusively Shvetambara. Its importance as a holy place (tirtha) is confined to being the birth-place of some outstanding acharyas and laymen of distinction. It attracts comparably few visitors,...

Kumbharia The five temples at Kumbharia, three kilometres beyond the popular holy Hindu site of Ambaji and the second destination of our grand tour, are a delight to the pilgrim with a camera. A written permit to photograph is freely obtainable from the manager of the temples. The first impression that awaits the visitor to...

Achalagadh  Achalagadh, group of Jaina temples perched on a north-eastern ridge of Mount Abu. To behold the Jaina temples of Achalagadh - seven kilometres north-east of Dilwara, but still on Mount Abu - is an absorbing sight. Pilgrims who take advantage of taking a room in one of the two dharmashalas should not miss to...