Jains set to begin a 101-day foot march to Girnar Hill, marking Lord Neminath’s Salvation Day amidst ongoing disputes over the site’s significance | File Photo
Mumbai: Jains from across the world will participate in a 101 days foot march to the community’s holy site Girnar Hill to commemorate the salvation day of 22nd Jain Tirthankara Neminath. ‘Shri Nemi Girnar Dharma Padyatra’ aims to attract a large number the community members to worship the holy site, which has been in dispute since years.
Girnar Hill, one of the most ancient and holiest sites for the Jain community, is the centre for deep meditation of the 22nd Jain Tirthankara Neminath and other saints as they attained salvation on this spot.
This site has been the centre of dispute between the Jains and Hindus as the former claim that the foot imprints at the holy site belong to Lord Neminath and the latter claim that they belong to Dattatreya, an avatar of Lord Vishnu.
Vishwa Jain Sangathan, a religious organisation working for the betterment of the Jain community, has announced to hold ‘Shri Nemi Girnar Dharma Padyatra’ starting from Delhi on March 23 and reaching Girnar in 101 days on July 2, which marks the salvation day of Lord Neminath.
The organisation has requested the Gujarat government for an open darshan and prayer of the ancient Jain idol and the foot imprints of Lord Neminath on July 2.
In a letter written to Gujarat’s Chief Minister and the Chief Secretary, Vishwa Jain Sangathan has demanded for necessary directions to the concerned departments to facilitate the pilgrims at the holy site. It has alleged that Jains were previously misbehaved for visiting the site and reciting the Namokar Maha Mantra.
The Jain organisation has also alleged that Gujarat government has violated the interim order of Gujarat High Court passed in February 2005 to establish a police checkpost between the fourth and fifth peaks. The organisation has urged Gujarat government to establish the police checkpost and install CCTV cameras on the hill to prevent any untoward incident.
Sanjay Kumar Jain, national president of Vishwa Jain Sangathan, said, “The aim of our padyatra is totally religious. We don’t have a conflict with anyone and do not intent to demean anybody. We just want that the authorities to support our initiative and provide necessary facilities for the prayer offerings on the salvation day.”
Jain sub-communities from across the world are extending support and asking people to participate in the foot march. On December 24, Jains living in Canada gathered to discuss the participation in the tirthyatra. Vikas Jain, president of Toronto’s Shri Jain Mandir requested the Indian government and state governments to provide safety to all Jain pilgrims.
The foot march will promote non-violence, cooperation, brotherhood, and environment conservation. Simultaneously parallel marchs will be commenced from different places including Mumbai, Nashik and Kopargaon in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan and more.
