pears to have been well fixed by the beginning of the com-
mon era, there have been some developments through the
course of time. After the fifth century, S ́veta ̄mbara icons are
characterized by a dhoti (a wrapped garment of draping lay-
ers of cloth) and various ornaments; Digambara icons remain
naked. Moreover, a series of characteristic marks (cihnas) are
added to the pedestals in order to distinguish the individual
T ̄ırtham:karas: R:s:abha’s symbol is the bull; Nemi’s, the
conch shell; Pa ̄r ́sva’s, the snake; Maha ̄v ̄ıra’s, the lion. Repre-
sentations of R:s:abha, Pa ̄r ́sva, and Maha ̄v ̄ıra are particularly
numerous; Pa ̄r ́sva is easily recognized by the snake hoods
over his head.
The comparative monotony of the T ̄ırtham:kara images
is somewhat striking. These icons, however, are not meant
to be picturesque but to suggest omniscient awareness and
absolute detachment, serenity.
MYTHIC IMPORTANCE. Despite such uniformity, several
T ̄ırtham:karas emerge as prominent figures. On the whole,
the general trend of the present avasarpin: ̄ı implies a notable
decline from a golden age and is marked by the considerable
shortening of life span, prosperity, and happiness. Thus the
legends concerning R:s:abha, the “first lord” of this cycle, are
of special significance because in them he is shown in a pio-
neering role.
R:s:abha is said to have set the groundwork for civiliza-
tion: first as a sovereign, when he organized kingdoms and
societies, instituted legislation, taught agriculture, fire, cook-
ing, arts and crafts, writing, and arithmetic, and later, when
he renounced the world and became the first mendicant,
thus shaping the religious life of the present avasarpin: ̄ı.
These two spheres of influence were further served by two
of R:s:abha’s sons: Bha ̄rata is renowned in Indian tradition as
the first cakravartin of Bha ̄rata. Ba ̄hubali became a forebear-
ing ascetic and as such has long been revered by the Digam-
baras, especially in the South, where several impressive mo-
noliths representing this hero were erected. One of the best
known is a colossal fifty-seven-foot image towering at the top
of one of the hills overlooking S ́ravan:a Bel:gol:a, about one
hundred miles northwest of Bangalore.
The twenty-second T ̄ırtham:kara (Aris:t:a)nemi, is alleg-
edly related to Kr:s:n:a and the Ya ̄davas. He is extremely popu-
lar, especially in Gujarat, where on the sacred Girnar Hills
he practiced austerities and eventually understood the ulti-
mate truth, thus achieving enlightenment; after many years
he reached final emancipation, nirva ̄n:a, on the same moun-
tain. His revulsion at the sight of the animals awaiting
slaughter for his wedding ceremonies as well as his subse-
quent refusal to marry his betrothed, Ra ̄j ̄ımat ̄ı, are highly
significant and are the subject of many narratives, songs, and
paintings that illustrate the greatness of the doctrine of
ahim:sa ̄, or noninjury.
Pa ̄r ́sva, the twenty-third T ̄ırtham:kara, has been regard-
ed by most scholars as possibly being a historical figure. He
is said to have lived for a hundred years, some two hundred
and fifty years before Maha ̄v ̄ıra, and to have been born in
Banaras and ended his life in Bihar on Mount Sameta, which
is now also known as Pa ̄rasna ̄th in his honor. He is alleged
to have established the “law of four restraints”
(caturya ̄ma-dharma), which is generally, though not unani-
mously, considered to be the forerunner of the five “great
vows” (maha ̄vratas) followed by Maha ̄v ̄ıra’s disciples. Pa ̄r ́sva
is associated with serpents and consequently the object of
much veneration.
CULTIC LIFE. Immediately after death, the T ̄ırtham:karas be-
come siddhas (“perfected” souls), and thus became complete-
ly inaccessible. But the example they set should be meditated
upon, and it is extolled daily when the Jains recite the
Caturvim: ́satistava (Praise of the twenty-four [T ̄ırtham:-
karas]); the images of the T ̄ırtham:karas should serve only as
meditative supports. Archaeological evidence indicates that
this method of worshiping the T ̄ırtham:karas, known as
deva-pu ̄ja ̄, goes back to the first few centuries BCE.
Many lay believers, however, cannot refrain from ap-
pealing to superhuman benevolence. They direct their wor-
ship and supplications for assistance to the pairs of guardian
deities who serve the T ̄ırtham:karas. Among the most popular
are the snake god Dharan:endra and his consort Padma ̄vat ̄ı,
both of whom flank Pa ̄r ́sva. The Jain teachers, however, have
always insisted on the inferior position of these deities and
have succeeded in preventing them from usurping the su-
premacy of the T ̄ırtham:karas.
T ̄IRTHAM:KARAS AND INDIAN RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE. In
Jainism it is clear that the recurrent presence of
T ̄ırtham:karas, who periodically appear in the human realms
in order to preach and show the true law, have a function
similar to that of the seven (later twenty-five) Buddhas in
Buddhism, and also to that of the Hindu avata ̄ras of Vis:n:u.
On the other hand, by promoting civilization, the first
T ̄ırtham:kara, R:s:abha, recalls the role played by Pr:thu in the
epics, by Maha ̄sammata in Buddhism, and by Prometheus
in the Greek and Roman traditions. Thus from many per-
spectives Jainism offers a coherent system that links the evo-
lutions of time, cosmos, humankind, and the Jain church.SEE ALSO Ahim:sa ̄; Cosmology, articles on Hindu Cosmolo-
gy, Jain Cosmology; Jainism; Maha ̄v ̄ıra.BIBLIOGRAPHY
The standard books on Jainism provide general information on
the T ̄ırtham:karas. A comparatively detailed treatment will be
found in Helmuth von Glasenapp’s Der Jainusmus: Eine in-
dische Erlösungsreligion (Berlin, 1925; reprint, Hildesheim,
1964; English translation by S.B. Shrotri: Jainism. An Indian
Religion of Salvation, Delhi 1998). Padmanabh S. Jaini, The
Jaina Path of Purification. (Berkeley, Los Angeles London
1979). A substantial although short account is provided by
Josef Deleu’s “Die Mythologie des Jinismus,” in H. W.
Haussig’s Wörterbuch der Mythologie (Stuttgart, 1976),
pp. 207–284, esp. pp. 270–273. Various aspects of the
T ̄ırtham:karas—concept, worship, representation—are con-
sidered in several papers of Approaches to Jaina Studies: Philos-9208 T ̄IRTHAM:KARAS