Jain History

Published on 14th October, 2016, on www.livemint.com . I had heard that the nose-ring of Meenakshi, a local manifestation of Parvati, goddess-queen of Madurai, is removed each night as she awaits her consort, Sundareswarar, Shiva, in her jasmine-filled bedchamber. “That ceremony starts only after 9pm,” my friend, an amateur historian, told me. He suggested we use our time to visit the Samanar Malai. Samanar means Jain in Tamil. It is derived from the Sanskrit shramana, which refers to all hermits, not just Jains, or more specifically those who prefer meditation and austerities to Vedic rituals in all matters spiritual. Malai is Tamil for hill. The ..