Tirumalai (Jain complex)

Tirumalai (lit. "the holy mountain"; also later Arhasugiri, lit. "the excellent mountain of the Arha[t]"; Tamil Engunavirai-Tirumalai, lit. "the holy mountain of the Arhar")^[1] is a Jain temple and cave complex dating from at least the 9th century that is located northwest of Polur in Tamil Nadu, southeast India. The complex includes 3 Jain caves, 2 Jain temples and a 16 meter high sculpture of Neminatha thought to date from the 12th century that is the tallest Jain image in Tamil Nadu.

Early site

The large cavern at the base of the site is thought to have been built around the 9th century. In the 10th century it was converted into 30 separate chambers, possibly to accommodate figures of Tirthankaras and a yakshi.

An inscription found on a buried rock in front of the gopura at the base of the hill from the late 10th century refers to the site as Vaigai-malai or “the mountain of Vaigai.” Two other inscriptions found on a piece of rock at the top of the hill and buried on a piece of rock underneath the steps between the gopura and the painted cave refer to it as Vaigai-Tirumalai or “the holy mountain of Vaigai.” The name Vaigai is thus thought to be connected with Vaigavur, the historic name of the village at the base of the rock.^[1]

Jain temples

Kuntahavai Jain Temple

The Kunthavai Jinalaya temple is a 10th-century Jain temple, said to have been commissioned by queen Kundavai. It is one of two such sites commissioned by her, though the other site, Dadapuram, has not survived.^[2]

Mahavir Temple

In the 16th century, a second temple for Mahavir was built to the west of the Kunthavai Jinalaya.

Paintings

Paintings are thought to have been added to the site between the 15th-17th centuries. Some of these still survive.

Photo gallery

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  The peak of Tirumalai at dawn.

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  The 16 meter statue of Neminath, the tallest Jain sculpture in Tamil Nadu.

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  Monkeys on Tirumalai at dawn.

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  The ancient tree that grows from the peak of Tirumalai.

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  One of the few surviving figures in the painted cave.

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  The 16th-century temple to Mahaveera.

See also

• Arahanthgiri Jain Math is a Jain Matha that established near the site in August, 1998.^[3]
• Tamil Jain
• List of Jain temples
• Laxmisena
• Mel Sithamur Jain Math

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tirumalai (Jain complex).

• Photographs of Tirumalai taken 2011-06-01.

References