West India · Gujarat
Palitana, Gujarat
Sources: wikimedia
Before you go
The holiest Shvetambara Jain tirtha: roughly 3,500 steps up Shatrunjaya, climbed before dawn; the complex closes during the monsoon (chaturmas). Strictly vegetarian town.
About Palitana
- Hills
Where it is
Palitana is a town in Bhavnagar district of Gujarat, in the Saurashtra peninsula about 50 km south-west of Bhavnagar, at the foot of Shatrunjaya hill near the Shetrunji river.
History
Jain tradition links Shatrunjaya hill with the first tirthankara, Rishabhanatha (Adinath), and temples have stood on it since at least the 11th century. After destruction in the early 14th century they were restored and enlarged, largely in the 16th century, and the Anandji Kalyanji Trust has cared for them since 1730; the town was also the seat of a princely state until 1948.
People
Palitana's residents speak Gujarati, and much of the town serves the Jain pilgrims who come from across India, running dharamshalas and dining halls and carrying pilgrims up the hill in dolis. The town follows Jain dietary custom, and in 2014 it banned the sale of meat, fish and eggs.
Known for
- The Shatrunjaya hill temples
- The Adinath temple at the summit
- A climb of more than 3,000 steps
- A strictly vegetarian pilgrim town
Did you know?
No one, not even the priests, may spend the night on Shatrunjaya hill; by tradition the temples are left to the gods after dusk.
Shrines and sites
- Shatrunjaya hill temple complex
- Adinath
- Hastagiri
Traditions
- Jain
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