Tirthankara

The word tirthankara signifies the founder of a tirtha, a fordable passage across saṃsāra, the sea of interminable births and deaths. Tirthankaras are variously called "Teaching Gods", "Ford-Makers", "Crossing Makers", and "Makers of the River-Crossing". ==Historicity and Hagiography==

The Historical Tirthankaras Academic and historical consensus broadly accepts Parshvanatha (c. 8th century BCE) and Mahavira (c. 6th century BCE) as historical figures. Parshvanatha, the 23rd tirthankara, is understood as a predecessor who preached the "fourfold restraint" (chaturyama dharma). Mahavira is seen as a reformer and the final systematizer of Jain thought, who re-established the Jain monastic and lay community based on Parshvanatha's teachings, notably adding celibacy as the fifth great vow. The Hagiographical Tradition The lives of the other 22 tirthankaras are considered to be part of a sacred, cosmological history operating within vast, non-historical timeframes. Texts such as the Kalpa Sutra detail their lives, which follow a formulaic pattern: birth into a royal family, a period of worldly life, renunciation of the world (diksha), a period of asceticism leading to omniscience (kevala jnana), and finally, final liberation (nirvana). The Rishabhanatha Debate Rishabhanatha (or Adinatha), the first tirthankara, holds a unique position. He is credited within the tradition as the founder of human civilization, teaching agriculture, law, and social order. While he is a hagiographical figure, some scholars have speculated on a pre-historical link. They point to the nude standing figures and the prominent "bull" motif found on seals from the Indus Valley Civilization (c. 3300–1300 BCE) as possible, though unproven, evidence of a proto-Jain or proto-Rishabha cult. ==Theological Significance and Sectarian Views==

Tīrthaṅkara-naam-karma inside Gwalior Fort. Jain texts propound that a special type of karma, the tīrthaṅkara nama-karma, raises a soul to the supreme status of a Tīrthaṅkara. The Tattvartha Sutra, a major Jain text, lists 16 observances that lead to the bandha (bondage) of this karma: • Purity of right faith • Reverence • Observance of vows and supplementary vows without transgressions • Ceaseless pursuit of knowledge • Perpetual fear of the cycle of existence • Giving gifts (charity) • Practising austerities according to one's capacity • Removal of obstacles that threaten the equanimity of ascetics • Serving the meritorious by warding off evil or suffering • Devotion to omniscient lords, chief preceptors, preceptors, and the scriptures • Practice of the six essential daily duties • Propagation of the teachings of the omniscient • Fervent affection for one's brethren following the same path. Panch Kalyanaka (Five Auspicious Events) Five auspicious events called Pañca kalyāṇaka mark every tirthankara's life: • Chyavana kalyāṇaka (conception): When a tirthankara's ātman (soul) comes into their mother's womb. • Janma kalyāṇaka (birth): Birth of a tirthankara. Indra performs a ceremonial bath on tirthankara on Mount Meru. • Diksha kalyāṇaka (renunciation): When a tirthankara renounces all worldly possessions and becomes an ascetic. • Keval Gyan kalyāṇaka (omniscience): When a tirthankara attains kevalajñāna (infinite knowledge). A samavasarana (divine preaching hall) is then erected from where they deliver sermons and establish 'tirth (chaturvidh sangha). • Nirvāṇa/Moksha kalyāṇaka (liberation): Nirvana is when a tirthankara leaves their mortal body. It is followed by the final liberation, moksha, after which their soul resides in Siddhashila. ==Samavasarana==

(Ajmer Jain temple) After attaining kevalajñāna, the tirthankara preaches the path to liberation in the samavasarana. According to Jain texts, devas (heavenly beings) erect the heavenly pavilion where devas, humans, and animals assemble to hear the tirthankara. A samavasarana is a three-level structure. The lowest level, made of rajat (silver), is the parking space for vehicles. The second is the svarna (gold) level. All animals reside in the svarna level, while the highest level, made of precious gems, is reserved for various important figures, such as kings and their families, the devas and the ascetics. Humans and animals hear a tirthankara's speech in their language. It is believed that during this speech, there is no unhappiness for miles around the site. == Tīrthaṅkaras of the present cosmic age ==

Jainism postulates that time has no beginning or end. It moves like the wheel of a cart. The wheel of time is divided into two halves, Utsarpiṇī (ascending half cycle) and Avasarpiṇī (descending half cycle). 24 tirthankaras are born in each half of this cycle. In Jain tradition, the tirthankaras were royal in their final lives, and Jain texts record details of those lives. Their clan and families are also among those recorded in legendary stories. According to Jain canons, Rishabhanatha, the first tirthankara, founded the Ikshvaku dynasty, from which 21 other tirthankaras rose over time. Two tirthankaras – Munisuvrata, the 20th, and Neminatha, the 22nd – belonged to the Harivamsa dynasty. In Jain tradition, the 20 tirthankaras attained moksha on Mount Shikharji, in the present Indian state of Jharkhand. Rishabhanatha attained nirvana on Mount Ashtāpada (Mount Kailash), Vasupujya in Champapuri, Bihar, Neminatha on Mount Girnar, Gujarat, and Mahavira, the last tirthankara, at Pawapuri, near modern Patna. Twenty-one of the tirthankaras are said to have attained moksha in the kayotsarga (standing meditation posture), while Rishabhanatha, Neminatha, and Mahavira are said to have done so in the Padmasana (lotus position). == List of the 24 Tirthankaras ==

The following Sanskrit stotra written by Aarav Shah, perfectly states the names and major pilgrimage sites of the 24 tirthankaras: तीर्थस्थानानि-सप्तकम् 24 Tirthasthanas सुरगिरौ आदिनाथं च तारंगागिरौ अजितम्। श्रावस्त्यां संभवं चैव, कोसले अभिनन्दनम्॥ Translation:Adinath in Suragiri Hill(Shetrunjay), Ajitnath on Taranga hill, Sambhavnath in Shravasti and Abhinandan in Kosala(Ayodhya) साकेते सुमतिनाथं, कौशाम्ब्यां पद्मप्रभम्। सुपार्श्वं चन्द्रनाथं च, वाराणस्यां स्थिताः जिनाः॥ Translation:Sumtinath in Saket(Ayodhya), Padmaprabha in Kaushambi, Suparshva and Chandranath are the Jinas residing in Varanasi काकण्ड्यां सुविधिनाथं, शीतलं भद्रिकापुर्याम्। वाराणस्यां च श्रेयांसम्, वासुपूज्यं चम्पापुरे॥ Translation:Suvidhinath in Kakandi, Shitalnath in Bhadrikapuri, Shreyansnath in Varanasi and Vasupujya in Champapur काम्पिले विमलनाथं च, अयोध्यायाम् अनन्तं च। यस्य चिह्नं सुवज्रोऽस्ति, धर्मनाथं रत्नपुर्यां॥ Vimalnath in Kampil, Anantnth in Ayodhya and the one whose symbol is the great Vajra, Dharmanath in Ratnapuri शान्ति-कुन्थु-अरनाथान्, गजपुरे हस्तिनापुरे। मल्लिं च मिथिलापुर्यां, राजगृहे मुनिसुव्रतम्॥ Translation:Shantinath, Kunthunath and Aranath in Gajpur(in Hastinapur), Mallinath in Mithilapuri and Munisuvrat in Rajgruh जनकक्षेत्रे नमिनाथं, नेमिं च सिद्धपदगिरौ॥ पार्श्वनाथं अहिच्छत्रे, पावापुर्यां महावीरं॥ Translation:Naminath in Janakakshetra(Mithila), Neminath on Sidhhapadgiri(Girnar hill), Parshwanath in Ahichhatra, Mahavir in Pavapuri एतानि तीर्थस्थानानि, सायं प्रातः पठेन्नरः। सप्तजन्मकृतं पापम्, अल्पक्षणे विनश्यति॥ Translation:One should read(remember) these pilgrimage sites in the morning and night, (so) his sins of seven lives destroy in an instant Present cosmic age , 6th century In chronological order, the names, emblems and colours of the 24 tirthankaras of this age are: Next cosmic age The next 24 tirthankaras, who will be born in utsarpinī age, are: == Iconography and Art ==

A tīrthaṅkara is represented either in the lotus position (Padmasana) or in the meditation Khadgasana (Kayotsarga) posture. The latter, which is similar to the military standing at attention, is a difficult posture to hold for long and is preferred by Jains because it minimizes the amount of the body in contact with the earth, and thus the risk to sentient creatures living in or on it. If seated, they are usually depicted seated with their legs crossed in front, the toes of one foot resting upon the knee of the other leg, and the right hand lying over the left in the lap. Srivatsa is one of the ashtamangala (auspicious symbols), which sometimes resembles fleur-de-lis, an endless knot, a flower, or a diamond-shaped symbol. The bodies of tirthankara statues are exceptionally consistent throughout over 2,000 years of the historical record. The bodies are rather slight, with very wide shoulders and a narrow waist. Even more than is usual in Indian sculpture, the depiction takes relatively little interest in accurate depiction of musculature and bones but is interested in modeling outer surfaces as broad swelling forms. The ears are extremely elongated, alluding to the heavy earrings the figures wore in their early lives before they took the path to enlightenment, when most were wealthy, if not royal. Sculptures with four heads are not uncommon in early sculpture, but unlike the comparable Hindu images, these represent four different tirthanakaras, not four aspects of the same deity. Multiple extra arms are avoided in tirthanakara images, though their attendants or guardians may have them. == In other religions ==

The first Tirthankara, Rishabhanatha is mentioned in Hindu texts like the Rigveda, Vishnupurana, and Bhagwata Purana. The Yajurveda mentions the name of three Tīrthaṅkaras: Ṛiṣhabha, Ajitnātha and Ariṣṭanemi. The Bhāgavata Purāṇa includes legends about the Tirthankaras, particularly Rishabha. Yoga Vasishta, Chapter 15 of Vairagya Khanda, Sloka 8, gives the saying of Rama: Champat Rai Jain, a 20th-century Jain writer, claimed that the "Four and Twenty Elders" mentioned in the Book of Revelation (the final book of the Christian Bible) are "Twenty-four Tirthankaras". == See also ==