What is the sthala katha — the legend — of Sonagiri Jain Temples?

Early medieval · Jain · India

Sonagiri Jain Temples

सोनागिरि

Sonagiri, Datia, Madhya Pradesh · 25.7222°, 78.3803°

Chandraprabhu, the eighth TirthankaraUndeterminedWhite hilltop temples with tall spires and a 43-foot manastambha

Sacred since

450 CE

first attestation / structure

Standing structure

9th c. onwards; rock-cut image 5th–6th c.

Undetermined

History & significance

A Digambar Jain tirtha of 103 temples across a 132-acre hill site near Datia, centred on an 11-foot image of Chandraprabhu known as Bade Baba; the temples date from the 9th century onwards over a much older rock-cut image.

Sthala katha — the legend

Jain tradition holds that since the time of Chandraprabhu five and a half crore ascetics have attained moksha here, among them king Nanganang and half a million followers.

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