BANGALORE: Ten years of love, labour and 400 trucks each carrying 12 to 15 tonnes of Makarana marble later, the Sri Adinath Shwetambara Temple in Chickpet is finally ready. The Jain community in Bangalore is celebrating the achievement with a nine-day long temple festival at Freedom Park.On Wednesday, the Park saw over 8,000 devotees gathering to pray in their newly-renovated temple in Chickpet on day one, said Uttamji Bhandari, president of the Chickpet Jain Temple Trust. The temple, built in the early 1900’s, required renovation due to wear and tear. “We have not used any iron while reconstructing the temple, which is 91 feet high and covers a built-up area of 18,000 square feet,” he said. Also, the marble for the construction was brought to the city over time from Rajasthan. The temple trust also created a life-size replica of Ayodhya Nagari along with two mandaps spread over two acres. Ayodhya, the birth place of Lord Adinath, is an important pilgrimage centre for Jains. Over the nine-day festivities, a play depicting the various stages of Lord Adinath’s life is being performed. A Mahotsav is held everyday between 5 am and 7 pm and the community is coming together to dance, talk and eat. All three meals of the day will be provided to the visitors. According to the visitors there, this festival will provide an opportunity for members of the Jain community to come together. This is especially important as the community members are now spread across the city. The festivities are set to culminate on November 30 with the installation of the 2,300-year-old idols of Lords Adinath, Parswanth, Shantinath and Mahaveer.While Sri Balagangadhara Swamy from Sri Aadi Chunchanagiri Mutt was present on the inaugural day, the Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda visited Freedom Park on Friday.
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