Navagraha Jain Temple- Karnataka

Address

Navagraha Jain Temple- Varur, Hubli, Karnataka 581207

Diety

Parshvanatha

Introduction

Navagraha Jain Temple or Navagraha Teertha or Navagraha Tirtha is situated at Varur near Hubli, Karnataka. Navagraha Teertha is one of the major pilgrim spots for the Jain community in India. The temple features a 61-foot (19 m) tall monolithic idol of the Shri 1008 Bhagavan Parshvanatha and the smaller statues of the other eight Jain teerthankaras. The statue is the tallest statue of the Jain deity Parshvanatha in India and weighs 185 tons. The statue stands on a 48-foot (15 m) high pedestal(109-foot (33 m) total). Navagraha Teertha, which is located at Varur, a village just 29 km (18 mi) from Hubli-Dharwad city

Puranic Significance

The construction of Navagraha Teertha began in January 2005 and the carving of the monolithic statues was completed in one year. The work was supervised by Sri Gunadhar Nandi Maharaj and supported by Sri Dharmasena Bhattaraka Swamiji. The graha doshas of nine planets are considered to be reconcilable through worshiping after nine tirthankars. Lord Parshwanth’s monolithic statue is not only very beautiful but also larger than in Shravanabelagola the statue of Gomateshwara or Lord Bahubali. The tirthankaras statues in Navagraha Teertha can be seen on the national highway up to 4 km (2.5 miles) north, when exiting the tapovan flyover exit near Varur.

Special Features

Navagraha Jain Temple features an 18.6 meter tall statue of Jain spiritual leader Shri Bhagavan Parshvanatha. This statue is made from a single piece of stone and is accompanied by smaller statues of 8 other Jain Tirthankaras. Each statue is given the name of a planet. The statue of Parshvanatha weighs a massive 185 tons and is built on a raised platform with petal shaped edges. Combined height of the pedestal and statue is 33.2 meters.