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Shantinatha
Also Known As Shantinath (Hindi) Hindi form of the Sanskrit name.
Tirthankaras
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Shantinatha is the sixteenth Tirthankara of Jainism, his name meaning "lord of peace"; his emblem is the deer. He is one of three Tirthankaras whom Jain tradition also counts among the chakravartins, the universal emperors, holding that he renounced sovereignty over the whole world to seek liberation. Jains venerate him as an omniscient ford-maker especially associated with peace and healing.
Facts
Identity
PositionSixteenth of the twenty-four Tirthankaras of the present half-cycle 1Tradition: Jainism The sequence of twenty-four is fixed and identical in the Digambara and Svetambara canons. SymbolThe lanchana, the emblem carved beneath the figure on images and shrines. Digambara and Svetambara give the same emblem here. Canonical ReferenceJain temple building convention typically renders Tirthankara images in one of two postures, seated in meditation or standing in the kayotsarga posture of released, motionless renunciation, and images of Shantinatha appear in both traditional forms across different shrines. 1 Attestation
HistoricityLegendary: known from narrative tradition, not the historical record 1 Earlier Tirthankaras belong to the cosmological scheme, not to history. Critical scholarship accepts only Parshvanatha and Mahavira as historical. Jainism holds all 24 Tirthankaras of this half-cycle to be historical teachers Traditions Revering This Figure Position Profile
Key TextThe Kalpa Sutra's Jina-caritra section is the traditional Svetambara account of his life and lineage as the sixteenth Tirthankara of the present age. 3 Practice
LineageJain tradition names his father as King Vishvasena and his mother as Queen Achira of Hastinapura. 1 Origins
Place of OriginHastinapura, as Jain tradition places him 2 Life
Office HeldJain tradition counts him among the rare figures who held the position of chakravartin, universal emperor ruling the whole known world, before renouncing that sovereignty to pursue liberation, one of only three Tirthankaras of the present age honored with both titles. 1 Manner of DeathAttained liberation (moksha) 2Tradition: Jainism Veneration
Shrine or Burial PlaceAttained final liberation, moksha, atop Sammeta Shikharji (Parasnath Hill) in present day Jharkhand, the site honored as the liberation place of most tirthankaras and one of Jainism's most important pilgrimage destinations. 1 Learn More
The Sixteenth Ford-Maker, and a Universal Emperor
Shantinatha is the sixteenth Tirthankara of the present age, his name meaning "lord of peace" (shanti). His emblem is the deer. He is one of only three figures whom Jain tradition counts as both a Tirthankara and a chakravartin, a universal emperor holding sway over the whole of the known world, and his story turns on his renouncing that world-sovereignty to seek liberation, the highest worldly power set aside for the higher freedom.
He is among the more widely venerated ford-makers, especially invoked in connection with peace and healing, and Jain narrative associates his birth with the ending of an epidemic. Tradition places him in the sacred antiquity of the avasarpini, before documented history, and holds that he attained final liberation at Sammeta Shikhar (Shikharji). His combination of imperial and ascetic renown makes him a favourite subject of Jain art and temple dedication.
Also Remembered as a Universal Emperor
Jain tradition gives Shantinatha, the sixteenth Tirthankara, a distinctive additional dimension not shared by all the figures around him in the sequence: he is also counted among the tradition's Chakravartin, or universal emperor figures, a separate category of exalted being in Jain cosmology understood to rule the entire known world before, in Shantinatha's case, later renouncing that worldly sovereignty to pursue and attain liberation as a Tirthankara. This double status, having held supreme temporal rule before spiritual renunciation, is treated in Jain literature as a particularly powerful demonstration of renunciation's value, since giving up the highest possible worldly position carries more didactic weight than renunciation by an ordinary person would.
Shantinatha's name, generally understood to relate to peace, is often connected in tradition to his role in restoring calm after conflict during his time as emperor, though as with the other Tirthankaras earlier than Parshvanatha and Mahavira, this narrative material belongs to the tradition's own vast cosmological chronology rather than to any period historians can independently corroborate. His combined status as both Chakravartin and Tirthankara nonetheless makes him one of the more narratively elaborated figures among the earlier Tirthankaras, since the tradition had two distinct roles to develop rather than one.
Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
This source names Shantinatha directly: "and consecrated murtis of Parsvanath, Shantinath and Mahaveerswami there, the first Jain images consecrated anywhere outside India."
This source names Shantinatha directly: "consecrated outside India, Parsvanath, Shantinath and Mahaveerswami; and that those murtis were relocated to Nairobi in 1964 during the Zanzibar Revolution."
Belongs to Tradition
Instance Of
Number 16 of the twenty-four Tirthankaras of the present half-cycle.
Succeeded By
Kunthunatha follows Shantinatha in the sequence of twenty-four, at position 17.
Successor Of
Shantinatha follows Dharmanatha in the sequence of twenty-four, at position 16.
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