Ranakpur Jain Temples (Udaipur)

Ranakpur, in a quiet valley of the Aravalli hills in Pali district, between Udaipur and Jodhpur, has one of the largest and most beautiful Jain temples in India. It is counted among the five great pilgrimage places of the Jains.

History

The temple was built in the 15th century by Dharna Shah, a Jain merchant, with the support of Rana Kumbha, the ruler of Mewar, who gave the land. The place is named Ranakpur after the Rana. The work is said to have taken about fifty years.

The Chaumukha temple

The main temple is dedicated to Bhagwan Adinath, the first Tirthankar. It is called Chaumukha, the four-faced temple, because four images of Adinath face the four directions. Built of light coloured marble, it has 29 halls and 1,444 carved pillars. It is said that no two pillars are the same, and the marble seems to change colour as the light moves through the day.

Other temples

Close by are the temples of Parshvanath and Neminath and an old Sun temple, all with fine carving.

Visiting

Ranakpur is about 90 km from Udaipur by road. Visitors who are not Jain are usually admitted from noon. Dress modestly, and note that leather articles are not allowed inside.