The Dilwara Temple of Chennai

Have you been to the Dilwara Temples of Chennai? No? Do you get my question? Well, I am referring to Chandraprabha Swami Temple of Sowcarpet. This temple is inspired by the architecture of the famous Dilwara temples near Mt. Abu in Rajasthan. Hence, I can call this Jain temple Dilwara Temple of Chennai.

Sowcarpet is the locality where a lot of North Indian Jains reside. Hence, two main Jain temples are located on the Mint Street of Sowcarpet. The older temple is called Juna Mandir. Chandraprabha Temple is a new one; hence, it is called Naya Jain Mandir.

The temple is located at an elevation from the ground level. In the congested narrow Mint street, the temple made of white marble shines like silver, and it attracts passers-by to turn their faces towards it.

Chandraprabha Swami is the eighth Tirthankara. The sanctum enshrines the image of this Tirthankara, along with his two disciples.

Parshvanatha, the 23rd Tirthankara, and Adinatha, the very first Tirthankara, are also found in two separate shrines in this temple.

There are other sub-shrines, too, such as Vijaya, Vasupoojya Swami, Muniswartha Swami, Mallinatha, Seemandhar Swami, Jwala Devi, Padmavati, and Mani Bhadra. The meditation hall is located in the basement. In addition, a few images of Yakshas are found in the niches on the temple's outer wall.

Happy travelling.

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