Website about Jainism in Tamilnadu and Tamil Jains.
Posted in Uncategorized on Sep 25th, 2011
Acharyas played a pivotal role in the spread and growth of Jainism and hence the tribute to them in Jains’ daily prayers – the Navkar mantra(பஞ்ச மந்திரம்) as in the title of the post. Originally all the teachings and the knowledge gleaned from the Thirthankars (including the latest and the 24th – Baghavan Mahavir) were [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Nov 14th, 2010
Shikharji or Sri Sammeta Sikharji also known as the Parasnath Hills, located near Giridih, in Jharkhand state, India, is a major Jain pilgrimage destination and one of the most sacred places for Jains in the world. According to Jain belief, twenty of the twenty-four Tirthankaras (teachers of the Jains) attained Moksha (Nirvana) from this place. [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Sep 21st, 2010
Sithamoor or Mel Sithamoor is a village near Thindivanam where Jain monks lived. It is an important and historic place for tamil Jains. Sithamoor boasts of two Jain temples and a Jain Mutt which has traditionally hosted the religious heads of the community and has served as the center of Jain religious activites. The History [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Apr 25th, 2010
A large number of stone inscriptions which are 1000s of years old paint a picture of the prevalence of Jainism (Samanam) in Tamilnadu. These are scattered throughout Tamilnadu. This post will talk about such stone inscriptions, sites they are found and related content. Madurai: Name of the Village No. of Stone Inscriptions Script Type How [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Mar 14th, 2010
Jain caves and Brahmi inscriptions in Madurai and surrounding areas Tamil Virtual University an autonomous institution established by the government of Tamilnadu has a wealth of information about Jain cave temples in Tamilnadu. Here is a list of these pages each of which has a short video about each of these sites: Azhagarmalai (அழகர்மலை) Aritapatti [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Mar 13th, 2010
Thirumalai (in Thiruvanamalai District of Tamil Nadu, India) is an ancient Jain heritage site that has cave temples, cave paintings , sculptures and ancient Tamil inscriptions all related to Jainism. Jain monks had inhabited the caves thousands of years ago. Read a good summary of the history of Thirumalai in tamil. Here are some pictures [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Feb 28th, 2010
ஐம்பெருங்காப்பியம் (Among 5 Great Epic Poems): சிந்தாமணி(Sinthaamani) சிலப்பதிகாரம் (Silappathikaaram) பாகம் 1 /புகார்க்காண்டம்(Part 1 – Puranakaandam) பாகம் 2 /மதுரைக்காண்டம்(Part 2 – Madhuraikaandam) பாகம் 3 /வஞ்சிக்காண்டம்(Part 3 – Vachikaandam) வளையாபதி(Valaiyaapathi) ஐஞ்சிறுகாப்பியம் (Among the 5 small Epic Poems): சூளாமணி(Soolaamani) யசோதர காவியம்(Yasothara Kaaviyam) உதயண காவியம்(Udhayana Kaaviyam) நாககுமார காவியம்(Naakumaara Kaaviyam) நீலகேசி (Neelakesi) இலக்கணம் (Grammatical works): யாப்பெருங்கலக் காரிகை [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Feb 15th, 2010
The honorable chief minister of Tamilnadu Dr. M. Karunanidhi is known for his mastery over the Tamil language and his deep knowledge of Tamil literature. In his foreward to the book “தமிழகத்தில் ஜைனம்” (Jainism in Tamilnadu) he talks about the contribution of Jainism to the Tamil language: English Translation of the Foreward: Chief Minister 23-12-1974 [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Jan 23rd, 2010
Jains believe that every living being has a soul and every soul is potentially divine. They also believe in reincarnation after death. A soul can be reincarnated in any form of life. (A human being can become a worm in the next life for example). Karma is that every being determines its own fate through [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Jan 21st, 2010
Not many people (even within Tamilnadu), India know that Jains are indigenous Tamil population. Although there are a number of Jain families who have migrated from the north that live in Tamilnadu (especially in and around Chennai), the indigenous Tamil Jains have lived here for thousands of years. Jainism is called samanam (சமணம்) in tamil [...]