Thirupanamur Jain Temple

Thirupanamur Jain Temple
Religion
Affiliation	Jainism
Sect	Digambara
Deity	Pushpadanta
Location
Location	Thirupanamur, Tiruvannamalai

Thirupanamur Jain Temple is a Digambara Jain temple at Thirupanamur (Tiruppaṇamūr) in Tiruvannamalai district, Tamil Nadu, India. Thirupanamur is an old Jain settlement situated near Karanthai and is associated in Tamil Jain tradition with the Jain philosopher Akalanka.

History

Thirupanamur and neighbouring Karanthai are historic centres of Jainism in northern Tamil Nadu. Archaeologist T. N. Ramachandran, in his study of Jain monuments in southern India, recorded the survival of traditions concerning the Jain philosopher and logician Akalanka at Thirupanamur. Ramachandran noted that traditions concerning Akalanka remained particularly strong among the Jain community of Thirupanamur. He recorded a large stone mortar preserved at the temple which was traditionally associated with Akalanka.

A sculpture on the compound wall opposite the mortar depicts a Jain ascetic in a preaching posture. The figure was locally identified with Akalanka and was associated with traditions concerning his propagation of Jain teachings. The traditions of Thirupanamur are closely connected with those of neighbouring Karanthai. Modern scholarship refers to Tiruppaṇamūr and Karandai as twin Jain villages and records the continued preservation of traditions concerning Akalanka among the Tamil Jain community of the area.

Akalanka tradition

The association with Akalanka is one of the notable historical traditions connected with Thirupanamur. Akalanka was an influential Jain philosopher and logician whose works made important contributions to Jain epistemology and logic. T. N. Ramachandran recorded that the memory of Akalanka was preserved at Thirupanamur through local traditions and material objects associated with him.

According to the tradition recorded by Ramachandran, the large stone mortar preserved within the temple complex was connected with Akalanka. A nearby sculpture representing a Jain ascetic preaching was similarly identified locally as a representation of the philosopher. Traditions concerning Akalanka at Thirupanamur are also connected with the Jain community at neighbouring Karanthai. Scholarship on contemporary Tamil Jain traditions records narratives concerning Akalanka and a religious disputation with Buddhists in the Tiruppaṇamūr–Karandai area.

Jain heritage of Thirupanamur

Thirupanamur forms part of a group of historic Jain settlements in northern Tamil Nadu. Jain communities and monuments are concentrated in the region around Kanchipuram, Vandavasi and the present-day districts of Tiruvannamalai and Villupuram.

Ramachandran's survey of Jain monuments identified Thirupanamur as a Jain village situated near Karanthai and recorded the continuing religious traditions associated with its Jain temple. The close historical and religious relationship between Thirupanamur and Karanthai has continued into the modern period, with the two settlements discussed together in studies of Tamil Jain religious traditions.

See also

• Akalanka
• Karanthai Jain Temple
• Trilokyanatha Temple
• Vijayamangalam Jain temple

References

Sources

• Ramachandran, T. N. (1934). Jaina Monuments and Places of First Class Importance (PDF). Calcutta: Archaeological Survey of India. p. 28.
• Flügel, Peter (2011). "Jaina Studies" (PDF). SOAS University of London. Centre of Jaina Studies, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.