Sri Digambar Jain Lal Mandir

The Sri Digambar Jain Lal Mandir is an ancient temple dedicated to the 23rd Tirthankara or Lord Parashvanath and is known as the oldest Jain temple in Delhi that lies opposite the famous Red Fort at the junction of Chandni Chowk and Netaji Subhash Marg which is approachable via local transport and the metro link.The temple was originally built in the year of 1658 and it was later enlarged and renovated in the early nineteenth century. It is said that a temporary structure to house a Jain temple was being permitted to be built during the Mughal period. A manastambha column stands in front of the temple. The main devotional area of the temple is on the first floor. It is reached by ascending to the terrace after crossing the small courtyard of the temple, surrounded by a colonnade. There are a number of shrines in this area but the main shrine is of Lord Mahavira, the 24th and last Tirthankara of the present Avasarpani era (half time cycle of decreasing happiness as per Jain cosmology). Born in 599 BC in the ancient republic of Vaishali (Bihar) as a prince, he renounced all worldly pleasures and comforts and went in search of 'Moksha' (salvation).