Palitana, Gujarat

Brief History: The Palitana temples on Shatrunjaya Hill were built over a period of 900 years starting from the 11th century. It was Kumarpal Solanki, a great Jain patron, who built the first temples on this site. The temples were destroyed by Turkish Muslim invaders in 1311 AD, when the saint Jinaprabhasuri, who was then 50 years old, presided over the temples, but later restored them to their glory.

The hustling, dusty town of Palitana, 51 km southwest of Bhavnagar, has grown rapidly to serve the pilgrim trade around the Shatrunjaya Hill. The sacred site contains hundreds of shrines that were sanctified when Rishabha, the first Tirthankara of Jainism, gave his first sermon in the temple on the hilltop. Even though the climb to the temples is a rigorous one, it awards a dazzling sight of the intricately carved temples. During the Kartik Purnima festival, accommodation around town floods with pilgrims and is best booked in advance.


Best time to visit: November–February is the best period to visit the temple town

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