Jains and Jainism have retained a substantial presence ever since Jaipur was founded in 1727 AD. Even before the city was founded, Jains were also present in sizeable numbers in Amer. There are many Jain temples in Jaipur. A few of these are historic ones like Sanganer Digamber Jain Temple and Amer Digamber Jain Nasian. Jains in Jaipur region were sizeably Digamber Jains. A considerable number of Shwetamber Jains emigrated to Jaipur over the years and flourished in trade and commerce. There are a few large Digamber Jain temples in Jaipur like Chulgiri Atishaya and Sanganer Jain Mandir but the same cannot be said of the Shwetamber Jains.

Shwetamber Jain Temple Arihant Vatika Jaipur

The Khattargach Shwetamber Jains is one of the prominent Jain sects in Jaipur and decided to construct a monumental white marble Jain temple at Mohanbari in Jaipur. The Bhoomi Poojan took place on December 2010. The initial idea was to construct a temple with 108 feet high Shikhar. For this, a foundation of 40 feet in height was established. The foundation for the temple took place in April 2016 and covers an area of 100*150 feet.

It is slated that over 200,000 cubic feet of marble will be used for the temple. The temple is designed to be bigger than Birla Mandir in Jaipur and one of a kind.

The Rang Mandap possesses a seating capacity of 300 people. The Pratishtha of the temple took place on 10 December 2022 and was marked with massive celebrations that spanned over ten days.

The chief idol in the temple is of Rishabh Dev, the first Tirthankar of Jainism. It is 57 inches high and weighs around eight quintals.

Other than this, the visitors can have Darshan of other Tirthankars too. Among these are Mahavir Swami, Parshvnath Bhagwan, Shantinath Bhagwan, and Neminath Bhagwan. All these idols are 31 inches high. Other than these, there are two more idols of Gandhar Pundrik Swami and Gandhar Gautam Swami having a height of 29 inches. In enclosures attached to the main temples are two idols on each side, Simandhar Swami and Munivrat Swami. Both these are 41 inches high.

Near the entrance of the temple, idols of three gods and goddesses, totaling six can be seen on either side.

Jain Dadabadi | Information

Even before the new temple was envisioned, this place had a Dadabadi Jain Mandir. Dadabadi is frequently a part of the temple in the Shwetamber Khattargach Jain sect of Jainism. It is a religious place dedicated to one of the four Jain Gurudevs of the Shwetamber Jain sect. The Dadabadi has the “Charan” or footprints of one of the Dada Gurudevs. Here is a picture from one of the Jain Dadabadi.

Three Dadabadi in India is most revered. Ajmer Dadabadi, Malpura Dadabadi, and Mehrauli Dadbadi are the three most important Dadabadi in India. Bilara Dadabadi, near Jodhpur, is the fourth most important Dadbadi being the “samadhi” place of Jain guru Jinchandrasuriji.

Dada Gurudev In Shwetamber Jains

The four Dada Gurudevs in Shwetamber Khattargach Jain are as follows:

• Jinadatta Sūri Ji (1075-1154 AD)
• Jinachandra Sūri Maṇidhārī Ji (1140-1166 AD)
• Jinakuśala Sūri Ji (1280-1332 AD)
• Jinachandra Sūri Ji (1538-1555AD)

Magical Powers of Jain Gurudev

The “Chamatkaric”/ Siddhi or magical powers of Guru Dev are enormously popular. Among all the Guru Devs, the stories of Jinchandra Suri Ji are incredibly popular. He is known as Akbar Pratibodhak. When Mughal ruler Akbar heard of the extraordinary qualities of Gurudev Jinchandra Suri Ji, he invited him to his court in Lahore in 1591. He was extremely impressed by his faith and teachings. The two most popular legends related to the Siddhi or miraculous power of Jinachandra Sūri are as underneath.

When JinChandra Suri Ji was entering Akbar’s court, he suddenly stopped. The Emporer inquired as to why Muni Ji stopped. Jinchandra Suri Ji said there are living beings in an underground drain. Being Jain he cannot walk over them. An envious Qazi hid a goat with mal intentions. The Qazi asked, “how many living beings?” Jinchandra Suri Ji replied, “three.” The Qazi said, “no, there is only one”. When the drain was opened there were three goats instead of one. The goat was pregnant and gave birth to two kids. Akbar was tremendously inspired by Jinchandra Suri Ji.

In another instance, a Maulvi inquired what the date was. Jin Chandra Suri’s disciples mistakingly said “Poonam”, the full moon day. In reality, it was”Aamavas”, the new moon day. With an intention to malign, he spread the news that a Jain monk claims a full moon would appear in the sky on the new moon date. The news reached Akbar. Jin Chandra Suri Ji obtained a gold platter from someone’s house. He then flung it into the air where it shone like the moon. The “moon” remained full for a distance of twenty-four miles.

Facilities At Arihant Vatika

Mohanbari also has a Dharamshala/lodge to provide lodging for Jain devotees especially those on Jain Teerth Yatra. A Bhojanshala provides basic food to Jain travelers at affordable rates.

How to visit?

Arihant Vatika is still under construction and the work is slated to continue for a couple of more years since it is a large project. Do remember Arihant Vatika is not a tourist place. It is a sacred worship space of the Jain community.

While it is open for all Jain to visit as a religious site and sometimes non-Jains also visit. However, I always recommend seeking permission from the person in charge of the office of the temple premises. It is best to ask for the specific requirements to visit because Jain temples often have their own rules. Unlike Hindu temples, one is required to wear special robes to enter the sanctum after taking a bath. Each Jain sect or community has its own rules and we must respect the same.

Arihant Vatika is on the Jaipur-Delhi bypass near Galta Gate opposite Sun Temple.