Who is Mahavira? Guide to the Founder of Jainism

Mahavira (“the Great Hero”) is the twenty-fourth and final Tirthankara of Jainism, and the historical founder-figure of the current Jain religious era. He was born a prince, renounced his royal life at the age of thirty, spent twelve years in intense ascetic practice, achieved kevala jnana (omniscience) at the age of forty-two, and taught for thirty years until his death at seventy-two. His personal name was Vardhamana; “Mahavira” is his title, given for the extraordinary endurance and steadfastness he showed on the ascetic path. Jainism, the religion he taught, is one of the world’s oldest continuously practiced traditions - with roots much older than Mahavira himself but organised in its present form by him. Today it has approximately five million adherents, most in India and in the global Indian diaspora. This guide describes Mahavira as he is preserved in Jain tradition and continues to be honoured today.

A note on sensitivity. Mahavira is a central figure of living Jain religion, honoured by millions today. This guide describes him respectfully within Jain tradition and does not offer specific mantras or ritual practices that belong to initiated Jain practice.

Key Takeaways

• Mahavira (“the Great Hero”) is the twenty-fourth and final Tirthankara of the current cosmic cycle in Jain tradition.
• His personal name was Vardhamana. “Mahavira” is a title meaning “the great hero,” given for his extraordinary endurance on the ascetic path.
• He was born around 599 BCE (in the traditional Jain chronology) to King Siddhartha and Queen Trishala of the Jnatrika clan, in what is now Bihar, India.
• His mother had fourteen (or sixteen, in some traditions) auspicious dreams before his birth, signs that he would become either a great emperor or a Tirthankara.
• At the age of thirty he renounced his royal life, plucked out his own hair by hand, and began twelve years of severe ascetic practice.
• He achieved kevala jnana (omniscience or complete knowledge) at the age of forty-two, becoming a Tirthankara.
• He taught for thirty years, establishing the fourfold Jain community (monks, nuns, laymen, laywomen).
• He died - or, in Jain terminology, achieved nirvana - at the age of seventy-two at Pawapuri, in what is now Bihar.
• His teachings centre on ahimsa (non-violence), aparigraha (non-attachment), anekantavada (many-sidedness of truth), and the path of ascetic self-discipline that leads to liberation.

Who is Mahavira?

Mahavira is the twenty-fourth Tirthankara of Jainism and the historical founder-figure of the current Jain religious era.

Definition - Mahavira

The twenty-fourth and final Tirthankara of the current cosmic cycle in Jain tradition, and the historical founder-figure of the current Jain religious era. His personal name was Vardhamana. “Mahavira” is his title, meaning “the great hero.” He lived from approximately 599 to 527 BCE (in the traditional Jain chronology), primarily in what is now the state of Bihar in India.

His personal name is Vardhamana, meaning “increasing” or “prospering.” The name reflects the tradition that during his mother’s pregnancy, the family’s wealth and prosperity increased dramatically. His title Mahavira (Sanskrit Maha + vira, “great hero”) was given later, in recognition of his exceptional endurance on the ascetic path. He is also called Vardhamana Mahavira, combining the two.

A note on Jainism’s larger framework. Jain tradition holds that the current cosmic cycle has produced twenty-four Tirthankaras (“ford-makers” - those who make a spiritual passage across the cycle of birth and death). Mahavira is the most recent and final Tirthankara of this cycle. The first was Rishabhanatha (also called Adinatha), who lived at a much earlier cosmological point. The Tirthankaras between Rishabhanatha and Mahavira include figures such as Parshvanatha, the twenty-third Tirthankara, whose teachings are believed to have directly preceded and influenced Mahavira’s.

The birth and childhood of Mahavira

Mahavira was born, according to Jain tradition, in 599 BCE (some scholars propose slightly later dates) to King Siddhartha and Queen Trishala of the Jnatrika clan (a Kshatriya, or warrior-caste, family). Their kingdom was in what is now the state of Bihar in northeastern India.

The Jain tradition preserves that Queen Trishala had a series of auspicious dreams before Mahavira’s birth - fourteen dreams in the Svetambara Jain tradition, sixteen in the Digambara tradition. These dreams (of a white elephant, a white bull, a lion, the goddess Lakshmi, a garland of flowers, the moon, the sun, and other auspicious symbols) were interpreted by dream-interpreters as signs that the child would become either a great world-emperor or a Tirthankara. Read the birth of Vardhamana, conception of Mahavira, and Queen Trishala’s dreams.

He grew up in his father’s palace. The tradition preserves his early life as one of extraordinary physical courage and moral clarity even as a child. Read childhood courage.

Renunciation

At the age of thirty, Mahavira renounced his royal life. In the Digambara tradition he did so before marrying; in the Svetambara tradition he had already married a princess Yashoda and had a daughter. In either case, at thirty he formally renounced. In one of the most striking gestures of Jain renunciation, he plucked out his own hair by hand (a symbol of separating himself from all attachments including the body). He removed all clothing (in Digambara tradition) or wore a single simple cloth (in Svetambara tradition). He set out as a wandering ascetic. Read renunciation and pulling out his hair.

He spent twelve years in severe ascetic practice. He fasted for long periods. He endured insults, physical attacks, and hardships without response. He meditated for extended periods, sometimes in dangerous or difficult places. He crossed the countryside on foot. The tradition preserves specific accounts of his ascetic ordeals: his encounter with the venomous serpent Chandkaushik, whom he transformed through his non-violence; the girl Chandanbala, who offered him his first meal after four hundred days of fasting; the many months he endured without food or water in specific vows. Read years of silence, long wandering without food, enduring insults, enduring physical pain, chandkaushik serpent transformed, chandanbala offering food, and first alms after 400 days.

Enlightenment and teaching

At the age of forty-two, after twelve years of ascetic practice, Mahavira achieved kevala jnana - omniscience, complete knowledge, the perception of all things across time and space simultaneously. He became a Tirthankara. Read attaining kevala jnana.

He then began to teach. He delivered his first sermon shortly after his enlightenment. He established the fourfold Jain community (chaturvidha sangha): monks (sadhus), nuns (sadhvis), laymen (shravakas), and laywomen (shravikas). He taught for thirty years. Read first sermon and building the fourfold Jain community.

His teachings centre on several core principles:

Ahimsa (non-violence) is the most famous of his teachings and the foundational principle of Jain ethics. Jainism takes non-violence to a rigorous extreme, forbidding harm not only to humans and animals but even to microscopic beings and, in some interpretations, to plants beyond what is necessary for survival. Read teachings on ahimsa.

Aparigraha (non-attachment) is the principle of minimising possessions and attachments. Jain monastics own extremely little - traditionally just a robe, an alms bowl, and a broom for gently sweeping insects out of one’s path. Read teachings on aparigraha.

Anekantavada (many-sidedness) is the Jain philosophical principle that truth has many facets and any single perspective is inevitably partial. This principle has made Jain philosophy distinctively pluralistic.

Death and legacy

Mahavira died - or, in Jain terminology, achieved nirvana, complete liberation - at the age of seventy-two at Pawapuri (in modern Bihar). Jain tradition holds this event happened in 527 BCE (traditional date). The site is one of the most sacred in Jainism. Read liberation at Pawapuri.

His teachings were preserved orally by his disciples and eventually written down in the Jain Agamas (scriptures). The Svetambara and Digambara branches of Jainism (which separated a few centuries after Mahavira’s death) preserve different textual canons.

Jainism today has approximately five million adherents, mostly in India (particularly in Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra) and in the global Indian diaspora. Jain communities have been disproportionately influential in Indian business, philanthropy, and education. Mahavira’s principle of ahimsa has had global influence far beyond Jainism itself, most famously through Mahatma Gandhi, who explicitly acknowledged the Jain tradition’s influence on his commitment to non-violent resistance.

Read the stories

Mahavira appears throughout Jain tradition. Some entry points:

• The Birth of Vardhamana
• Queen Trishala’s Dreams
• Renunciation
• Chandkaushik Serpent Transformed
• Chandanbala Offering Food
• Attaining Kevala Jnana
• Liberation at Pawapuri

Mahavira is what Jain tradition kept as its historical founder-figure and the model of what a Tirthankara does - renounces everything, endures the ascetic path to its end, achieves omniscience, and shows others the way to liberation. His life is honoured today by millions of Jains worldwide. His teachings on non-violence have influenced far more than his own tradition. His death at Pawapuri is commemorated annually at Diwali - the day the Jain tradition observes his liberation, in the same festival that Hindus celebrate as the return of Rama.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Mahavira?

Mahavira (“the Great Hero”) is the twenty-fourth and final Tirthankara of the current cosmic cycle in Jain tradition, and the historical founder-figure of the current Jain religious era. His personal name was Vardhamana. He lived from approximately 599 to 527 BCE (in the traditional Jain chronology) in what is now the state of Bihar, India.

What is a Tirthankara?

A Tirthankara (“ford-maker”) in Jain tradition is a spiritual teacher who has achieved liberation and shown others how to cross the cycle of birth and death. Jain tradition holds that twenty-four Tirthankaras arise in each cosmic cycle. Mahavira is the twenty-fourth and most recent Tirthankara of the current cycle. The first was Rishabhanatha (also called Adinatha).

Is Mahavira the founder of Jainism?

He is the historical founder of Jainism in its current form, but he is not the founder of the tradition in a strict sense. Jain tradition holds that Jainism has always existed - each cosmic cycle produces its own series of Tirthankaras who teach the eternal Jain dharma. Mahavira is the most recent teacher of that eternal tradition. The Tirthankara before him, Parshvanatha, taught approximately 250 years earlier and is also considered historically real by most scholars.

What is ahimsa?

Ahimsa (non-violence) is the foundational principle of Jain ethics. It forbids harm to any living being - not only humans and animals but, in the fullest Jain interpretation, microscopic beings, plants beyond what is necessary for survival, and even in some traditions the elements themselves. Jain monastics take ahimsa to rigorous extremes (sweeping paths before walking, filtering water, wearing mouth-cloths to avoid inhaling insects). Ahimsa has had global influence far beyond Jainism, most famously through Mahatma Gandhi.

What are the main Jain traditions?

Jainism has two main branches, which separated a few centuries after Mahavira’s death. The Svetambara (“white-clad”) tradition dresses monastics in simple white robes and permits both monks and nuns. The Digambara (“sky-clad”) tradition holds that fully advanced monks should own nothing at all, including clothing, and permits only male monastics to reach the highest ascetic states. The two traditions preserve different textual canons but share the core Jain teachings.

How is Mahavira honoured today?

Jainism today has approximately five million adherents, mostly in India (particularly in Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra) and in the global Indian diaspora. Mahavira Jayanti (the celebration of his birth) is a major annual Jain festival. Pilgrimage sites associated with him - particularly Pawapuri (site of his liberation), Kundagrama (his birthplace), and various other locations in Bihar and Jharkhand - continue to receive pilgrims. His teachings continue to structure Jain practice: strict vegetarianism, ahimsa, meditation, and other spiritual disciplines.