________________
154
RELIGION & CULTURE OF THE JAINS
Purima-tāla: (Prayag or Allahabad in U.P.), where under a banyan tree, called the Akşaya-vata, Lord Rşabha, the first Tirthankara, got enlightenment. Kuluhā Pahār: (near Gaya in Bihar), the place of enlightenment of the tenth Tīrtharkara. Ahicchatrā: (near Ramnagar in district Bareilly of U.P.), the place of enlightenment of the Tirthankara Pārsva. Here, Dharanendra, king of the Nāgas, and Padmāvatī, the Yakṣī, who were husband and wife and devotees of the Jina, tried to protect him from the terrible affliction caused by an Asura. On a mound in the jungle stand the ruins of ancient temples, and close by in the village a modern temple and dharmaśālā. Mt. Kailāsa: (now in Chinese occupied Tibet), also known as Aștāpada, is the place of nirvāņa of the first Tirthankara, Lord Rşabhadeva. Sammeda-śikhara: (in Hazaribagh district of Bihar), also known as Mt. Pārasnāth is the place of nirvāņa of as many as twenty Tirthankaras including Pārsva but excluding Rşabha, Vāsupūjya, Aristanemi and Mahāvīra. Many other saints practised penance on this holy mountain and attained liberation. It takes the pilgrim about four hours to reach the top where two temples and twentyfour shrines perch on different peaks, and it takes from four to five hours in making a round of these shrines, which is quite a precarious exercise. There are three big temple complexes with commodious dharmaśālās attached to them, and several other monuments. There is no permanent population except that connected with the temple establishments. Giranāra: (Girinagara or Mt. Ürjayanta in Junagarh district of Saurashtra, Gujarat), the place of penance and nirvāņa of Ariştanemi, the 22nd Tirthankara, and many other saints. The princess Rājīmatī, his betrothed, also practised penance in a natural cave on this mountain. There are several temples and
