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इतिहास
The history, origin and significance of Mahavir Jayanti — where it comes from, what it means, and how it changed over time.
Mahavir Jayanti 2026: 31 March 20261 dayमहावीर जयंती
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Mahavir Jayanti marks the birth of Mahavira, the twenty-fourth and last tirthankara of Jainism, in 599 BCE at Kundagrama near Vaishali in Bihar. In 2026 it falls in late March. It is the most important festival of the Jain calendar, and a public holiday in several states.
Mahavira's core teaching is ahimsa — non-violence — extended to all living beings, alongside truthfulness, non-stealing, celibacy and non-attachment. The five vows he systematised are the foundation of Jain practice, and they make Mahavir Jayanti a day of restraint rather than celebration: no meat, no alcohol, and often a strict fast.
The observance is centred on the temple and on the community's welfare work. Idols of Mahavira are bathed in a ritual abhishek, temples are decorated and illuminated, processions (rath yatra) are held — most notably at Palitana in Gujarat, which has over nine hundred temples on the Shatrunjaya hill — and charity is given heavily, particularly the donation of food, medicine, books and animal welfare support.
Because Jains are a small community (about 4.5 million in India, under 0.5% of the population) but a very visible one in trade and commerce, Mahavir Jayanti is widely known beyond the community, and it is a gazetted or restricted holiday in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi and several other states.
Almost every large Indian festival means something different in different states. That is not a contradiction — it is the history.
Palitana, on the Shatrunjaya hill, has over nine hundred temples and holds the largest Mahavir Jayanti gathering in the world. Ahmedabad also holds a major rath yatra, and Gujarat observes a public holiday.
Significant Jain populations in Mumbai, Pune and Kolhapur, with temple observances, processions and animal welfare activity. A public holiday in the state.
Major Jain temple centres at Mount Abu (Dilwara temples), Ranakpur, Jaisalmer and Shikharji in Jharkhand. Public or restricted holidays across several states.
Shravanabelagola and the Bahubali statue sites hold observances, and Karnataka's Jain community, which is significant in trade, observes the day. A public holiday in Karnataka.
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