Ranakpur Jain Temple: Timing, History and Information

Cover photo by by Ramakant Sharda

Places of worship hold a special place in everyone’s heart. From toddlers to the elderly, these are the places where you can be at peace and show your devotion. One of the best things about places of worship is that every person goes there for different reasons. Some go for praying, some to attain inner peace, some to be in the presence of their god, and some to appreciate architecture. There’s something for everyone there.

One such temple that’s recommended when you’re visiting Rajasthan is the Ranakpur Jain Temple. It’s a Jain temple in Ranakpur, Rajasthan, located near Sadri town in Pali district, between Udaipur and Jodhpur and it’s dedicated to Tirthankara Rishabhanatha. On your visit to Udaipur, you will visit Saheliyon ki Baari, the City Palace, and an assortment of lakes that your Rajasthan tour package also includes Ranakpur Jain Temple.

History of Ranakpur Jain Temple

Ranakpurpur Jain Temple was built to order by a local businessman named Darna Shah. He wanted a beautiful temple built after he had a dream of a celestial vehicle. Many sculptors and artists submitted their designs to Shah but none of them matched the image he had dreamt of. One plan that matched his dream was by an architect named Deepak from Mundara. Deepak was able to make a design because he was impressed by the dedication of Shah to build this temple. Afterwards, Shah sought the land to build the temple from King Rana Kumbha. Not only did he give a big piece of land to build the temple on, but he also asked Deepak to build a town around it. The town built was named Ranakpur, after the king, and the same town is now known as Ranakpur. The construction of the temple began in the 14^th century and went on till the 15^th century.

There are a total of 5 temples in India that are considered the most sacred for Jain. One of them is Ranakpur Jain Temple. The others in the list are Dilwara Temple in Mount Abu, Rajasthan; Khajuraho Temples in Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh; Palitana Temples in Shatrunjya Hills, Gujarat; and Gomateshwara Temple in Shravanabelagola, Karnataka.

When you’re visiting Rajasthan, Ranakpur temple is one of the places recommended to visit. It also goes by the name of Charturmukha Dharana Vihara and is dedicated to Tirthankara Rishabhanatha who was the first Tirthankara of Jainism, and he also founded the Ikshvaku dynasty.

The complex of Ranakpur ka Jain mandir includes 5 temples.

Chaturmukha/Chaumukha Temple

Built in the 15^th century using white marble, it is the most popular temple in the complex and it honours Adinath, also known as Rishabanatha. It gets its name from its 4-faced design. This temple is spread across 48,000 square feet and is known for its intricacy and beautifully carved 1444 pillars, 426 columns, 89 domes, and 29 halls. Interestingly, one of the pillars is incomplete. There’s a legend about the temple that one pillar is bound to be incomplete. Whenever it has been completed, it has broken the next day itself. 1444 pillars that support the temple have been carved with exquisite detail that is nearly impossible to do even today.

One of the most attractive features of the temple, besides the pillars, is the beautifully carved idol of Parshvanatha. It has been made out of a single slab of marble. Its beauty in the detail is due to the 1008 snake carefully crafted around the idol. The same idol also has two chauri bears and yaksha and yakshi, who are half-human and half-snake. There are also two elephants carved, one on either side, that seem to be purifying Parshavanath. And you can’t find the end of the tails of these elephants.

The Ranakpur Jain Mandir also has 84 bhonyras. Bhonyras are underground chambers that were built in the earlier times during disturbance to prevent the attacks on Jain idols. It is said that the design of Ranakpur Jain Temple was used as an inspiration to design Dilwara Temple. While Dilwara Jain Temple is not for its sculptures, Ranakpur Jain Temple is known for its intricacies in the design.

Suparshvanatha Temple

Supershvanatha is the seventh Tirthankara and this temple is dedicated. The intricate designs are present even in this temple. It is also popular for the erotic arts on the wall.

Surya Temple

The construction of this sun temple dates back to the 13^th century, full 2 centuries before the construction of Ranakpur Jain Temple. But it got desecrated during the time of disturbance due to repeated attacks and was later reconstructed with the remaining temple complex.

Seth ki Baadi Mandir

Jainism has two branches, Shwetambar and Digambar, named after the two gods. Shwetambar means “white-clad”. The ascetics from this branch of Jainism wear white clothes. The other branch is Digambara which means “sky-clad”. The ascetics from this branch practice nudity. Seth ki baadi mandir in the complex is dedicated to Shwetambar bhagwan and is popular for the exquisite murals on its walls.

Chougan ka Mandir

The current cycle of Jainism has 24 Tirthankaras. Tirthankars are the spiritual teachers of Jainism, the first of which was Rishabanath or Adinath and the last was Mahavira. The next Tirthanakar is said to be the first Tirthankar of the next cycle. It is said that Ravana will be the next Tirthanakar as he and 23 other Tirthankars were stuck in a cycle between life and death. Chougan ka mandir in the Ranakpur Jain Temple is dedicated to the first tirthanakar of the next cycle, which is Ravana.

So when you are looking for places to visit in Rajasthan, Ranakpur Jain Temple must be on your list.

Timings of Ranakpur Jain Temple

When you’re visiting Ranakpur or its nearing areas like Jodhpur and Udaipur, it is recommended that you visit in winters. The weather is pleasant at the time and you can take your time exploring the temple properly. The timing of Ranakpur temple is 12 pm to 5 pm. There is no entry fee but the priest who will be your guide in the temple will ask for a donation for the time spent. And because it’s a temple, be fully or semi-covered in your clothing.

Besides this, there are many other beautiful temples in the vicinity. You should also visit Parshuram Mahadev Temple located in Desuri Tehsil in Pali. 36 kilometres away from Ranakpur, Rajasthan is the Golden Temple in Falna. Another temple on the route to Falna to Sanderao is Nimbo ka Nath Mahadev Mandir. All of these are magnificent temples that you must visit.

And if you want a little getaway, there is, of course, Udaipur and Jodhpur that you can visit. Little ahead of Udaipur is Mount Abu where Dilwara Jain Temple is located. Now isn’t that a great itinerary!