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Preaching of cult by Mahavira
Tradition ascribes to Lord Mahavira having visited the Province of "Safa" when he was on tour for the spread of his cult. It is said that the aboriginals who were in an ovewhelming majority in the "Safa" province were not very keen to listen to or follow Mahavira and he was even molested by them. But undaunted, Lord Mahavira went about preachnig his cult and ultimately his sense of sobriety and saintliness touched the heart of the tribal population and many were verted to Jainaism.
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Balrampur commonly known as Palma Balrampur, a village about four miles from Purulia is on the bank of river Kasai. There is a temple at Balrampur in which there are a number of Jaina images some of which are clearly of the Jaina Tirthankaras. Some of the images have the Jaina Chinhas and are apparently quite old. An inscription on a stone fixed to a pillar was found at this village. The inscription was removed several years back by an agency commonly ascribed to be a Settelment Officer and now could be seen fixed by the road side within the Court compound.
At Boram, a big village situated four miles south from Jaipur railway station, there are three temples in ruin which are said to be constructed by the Srawakas or the lay Jainas. These three temples are identical in design. These temples have Jaina images and were originally Jaina shrines. To the south about a mile away from Boram there is a shrine where there are images in nudity. This by itself is a clear proof that the images are Jaina in origin. The shrine is now taken to be a Hindu temple.
Collection in Patna Museum
Chandankiari, another village a few miles away from Purulia, the headquarters of Manbhum district, is the place where a large number of Jaina antiquities
