Jain Temples of India: Timeless beauty in stone

This post covers the Jain Temples of India, focusing on the ones in Rajasthan which includes famous Jain temple in Rajasthan like Dilwara, Ranakpur and Lodurva.

World over, engineering marvels of yesteryears are found in forts and civilization maintenance structures while their religious counterparts like temples and cathedrals combine the engineering prowess with architectural and artistic beauty.

India is no exception with its forts (like Golconda and Kangra) and its temples. This post is dedicated to one such architectural marvel of India: its Jain temple complexes. While these are similar in structure across all temples, they differ in their use of material (marble in Dilwara and yellow sandstone in Lodurva), and carvings (stone carvings in Ranakpur and lattice work in Jaisalmer). While Dilwara is one of the most famous jain temple in Rajasthan, Ranakpur, Lodurva and Jaisalmer are equally worth visiting.

If you’re traveling to Rajasthan, make a point to visit Jodhpur too. Check out this post to know more about its delectable local food and antique shopping experience.

History of Jain Temples in Rajathan: Dating back to 9th and 10th century AD

What follows, is an interesting observation we made during our trip to Rajasthan. Rajasthan has, in terms of ethnicity, as many or probably more non Jain Hindus than it has Jains; Why then the most beautiful temples in Rajasthan are all Jain temples and more importantly Rajasthan instead of Gujarat has these architecturally spectacular Jain temple complexes? Well, one of the guides to the Lodurva Jain temples, Jaisalmer gave us the answer – “In the 7^th – 9^th Century, the silk route passed through what was then the desert area in Rajasthan (including Jodhpur and Jaisalmer). The Jain communities, since the time immemorial, were the ones handling the business and accounts for the Kings and otherwise. While the Rajputs were more inclined towards making forts and palaces, the only thing their Jain Accountants asked for, was a beautiful temple in the fortress.” So, as the Jain communities spread across Rajasthan, more and more Jain temples (each better than the other in terms of intricate carving and breathtaking architecture) were made through the 9^th and the 10^th centuries.

Structure of most of the famous Jain temple in Rajasthan:
These temples have similar structures everywhere.
A main central sanctum or the Megha Mandap (as called at some places) which would house the sculpture of the Tirthankar to whom the temple is dedicated. This mandap or the central area would be segregated by the rest of the temple by means of intricately carved pillars, each of which is mostly unique and between each pair of pillars one can find a beautiful and intricately carved Toran (a stone sculpture of what most Hindu families hang outside the main entrance to the house). Surrounding this central sanctum would be a large number of (sometimes as high as 52) small sculptures, housed in small enclosures.

Keeping the heat away: an ingenious way

A striking fact about all the Jain temples is the white paint (I don’t know the constituents of the same) with which the pathways leading to the temples are painted – this painted pathway amazingly remains at normal temperature while the rest of the floor gets exceptionally heated up in the blazing sun making it very comfortable to go barefoot in the temple even in summers. Something our other temples should follow too.

Queues

Except for Dilwara, the other Jain temples do not see serpentine queues or any queues at all. Also, once these temples are open to non Jains (post 12noon) they do not close for any shayan or other procedures (unlike the Hindu temples which usually remain close from 1pm to 4pm)

I’ll start with the most famous of these Jain temples, although personally I found the other two much more stunning.

Dilwara Jain Temples –
Situated around 5km from Mt Abu, it opens at 12:00noon for non-Jains. While the temple pujaris double up as guides for the temple, I preferred taking a guide book from outside and visiting the temple on my own. Photography is strictly prohibited. Due to the huge number of devotees visiting this temple everyday, be prepared to wait in the queue for about an hour. We visited this as a couple without children and waiting in the queue with them could prove challenging.

The temple complex has 5 key temples –

• Vimal Vasahi (Shri Adi Nathji) dedicated to the first Jain Tirthankar lord Rishabh.
• Luna Vasahi (Shri Neminathji) dedicated to the 22nd Jain Tirthankar lord Neminatha.
• Pithalhar (Shri Rishabha Devji) dedicated to the first Jain Tirthankar lord Rishabh.
• Khartar Vasahi (Shri Parshva Nathji) dedicated to the 23rd Jain Tirthankar lord Parshva.
• Mahavir Swami (Shri Mahavir Swamiji) dedicated to the last Jain Tirthankar lord Mahavir

Ranakpur Jain Temples –

Another one in the league of beautiful Jain temples – made entirely of marble. Lying in a remote wooded valley, this complex of Jain Temples is the largest in India. The main temple built in 1439, Chaumukha Mandir (Four-faced Temple) is dedicated to the first tirthankara, Adinath. An inner sanctuary holds a four-faced image of Adinath. The interior composed of 29 connected halls is supported by a forest of 1444 pillars, no two alike in their carved decoration. There are many little shrines on the surrounding hillsides and the exterior of the main temple.

Like other Jain temples it opens at 12:00noon but unlike Dilwara, photography is allowed except of the statue of Mahaveer. While there is no stated requirement of being fully covered in the other Jain temples, Ranakpur is quite particular on this. There are no guidebooks available outside the premises and one has to completely depend on the temple guide or priest.

Lodurva Jain Temples –

One phrase to describe it would be “timeless beauty in yellow sandstone”. Made in the shape of a giant lantern, this Jain temple complex is entirely carved out of yellow sandstone and similar to the other architectural beauties of Jaisalmer, this temple is also full of lattice work.

If you’re traveling to Jaisalmer or planning a trip there, this post on a guide to Jaisalmer about what to see, where to stay, eat and shop might be very helpful.

While most of the Jain temples seen so far, had a carving depicting the Kalpa Vriksha in the main sanctum somewhere, this temple has a whole structure outside the main chamber, dedicated to the Kalpavriksha.

Located about 16kms from the Jaisalmer Fort, it’s a very nice drive (like most other roads in Rajasthan). The priest here, who doubles as a guide, has an immense interest in both the architectural and the spiritual aspect of the temple, making the visit memorable.