Siddhachalam is the first
Jain Tirtha (
pilgrimage site) located outside of India. Founded in 1983 by
Sushil Kumar
Sushil Kumar Solanki (born 26 May 1983) is a former Indian wrestler. He carried the Indian flag at the opening ceremony of 2012 London Olympics. His 2008 Olympic medal was second for India in wrestling, and the first since Khashaba Dadasaheb Ja ...
, it is located on a 108-acre (44ha) site in rural
New Jersey, United States. Siddhachalam (Hindi: ''siddha'', liberated souls; ''achal'', a permanent place, as a mountain) literally means the abode of liberated souls.
History
In 1980, Sushil Kumar encouraged his disciples to acquire a long-abandoned children's summer camp and founded an ''
ashram
An ashram ( sa, आश्रम, ) is a spiritual hermitage or a monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or a ...
'' there to teach ''
ahimsa
Ahimsa (, IAST: ''ahiṃsā'', ) is the ancient Indian principle of nonviolence which applies to all living beings. It is a key virtue in most Indian religions: Jainism, Buddhism, and Hinduism.Bajpai, Shiva (2011). The History of India � ...
''. Kumar reportedly engaged there in extended samadhi meditation. Twelve years later, he encouraged the community to establish temples in homage to ''
Jinas''. The ashram maintains the only Jain monastery outside India. Siddhachalam has become an important center of Jain conferences and an important Jain pilgrimage. The center houses idols from all Jain sects, given that American Jains have sought to not bring in sectarian differences from India.
In 2012, Siddhachalam became the site for the world's first full-scale, complete replication of
Shikharji, the most important place of pilgrimage for the Jains. Shikharji at Siddhachalam is the first Jain place of pilgrimage outside India.
The main temple has marble idols of the
tirthankaras Rishabha,
Pārśva
''Parshvanatha'' (), also known as ''Parshva'' () and ''Parasnath'', was the 23rd of 24 ''Tirthankaras'' (supreme preacher of dharma) of Jainism. He is the only Tirthankara who gained the title of ''Kalīkālkalpataru (Kalpavriksha in this "Kal ...
,
Mahāvīra,
Chandraprabha and
Shantinatha. There is also a small temple where the main idol is Pārśva.
The ashram is also a nature preserve and wildlife sanctuary.
See also
*
Brampton Jain Temple
*
Jainism in the United States
References
Citations
Sources
*
External links
Siddhachalam Jain Tirth
{{Authority control
20th-century Jain temples
Indian-American culture in New Jersey
Jain temples in the United States
Temples in New Jersey
Religious organizations established in 1983