Jains in Goa mark Mahavir Jayanti

Keri: Jain community members across Konkan and Goa celebrated the birth anniversary of Vardhaman Mahavir on Tuesday.

The anniversary is observed every year on the 13th day of the first fortnight of Chaitra, the first month of the Hindu lunar calendar. Mahavir is believed to have been born in 599BC. Members of the Digambara and Shvetambara sects in Ponda, Margao, and other parts of Goa marked the occasion with a range of activities. An idol of the infant Mahavir was placed in a decorated cradle as devotees sang devotional songs.

The Jain community has had a presence in Goa since ancient times. Jain traders and merchants have long maintained flourishing businesses at Kudne, Narvem and Kotambi in Bicholim, Korgao in Pernem, Bhandora in Ponda, and Chandor in Salcete.

In the Konkan region, the Jains were connected through both waterways and inland routes.

Although Mahavir was the 24th and last Tirthankara, he made an immense contribution to the philosophy and teachings of Jainism.

Deepak Tupkar, a follower of Jainism, told TOI that Mahavir transformed the lives of Jains through his many teachings on ‘ahimsa’ (non-violence), ‘satya’ (truth), and ‘aparigraha’ (non-attachment).