Mahavira

Mahavira, also known as Vardhamana, is a principal figure in Jainism. He is regarded as the 24th Tirthankara of the present cosmic cycle and is traditionally dated to the 6th century BCE, though scholarly estimates vary. According to tradition, he was born into a royal Kshatriya family in the Vaishali region (present-day Bihar), the son of King Siddhartha and Queen Trishala.

At age 30 he renounced his palace life, becoming a monk and abandoning possessions. After about 12 years of rigorous ascetic discipline, he attained kevala jnana, or omniscience, and began teaching his insights. He is believed to have preached for around three decades, attracting both monks and lay followers and helping establish the organized Jain community.

His teachings emphasize non-violence (ahimsa), truth (satya), non-stealing (asteya), chastity (brahmacharya), and non-possessiveness (aparigraha) as essential vows for all Jain adherents. He also articulated anekantavada, the doctrine of many-sided reality, and syadvada, the conditional approach to truth. Jain canonical texts (the Agamas) were compiled by later followers; in practice, Digambara and Svetambara traditions differ on certain biographical details and on whether Mahavira wore clothes.

Mahavira is traditionally said to have attained moksha, or liberation, at Pawapuri in present-day Bihar. His life and teachings influenced Jain ethics, monastic discipline, and ritual practice. He is commemorated with Mahavira Jayanti, the festival of his birth, and is revered as a jina, or conqueror, who guided followers toward liberation.