Hutheesing Jain Temple is a very famed Jain Temple in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad. The temple got its name from a wealthy Jain merchant, Seth Hathee Singh who is the temple’s founder. This temple was set up in dedication of the revered Shri Dharmanatha, the 15th Tirthankaras of Jainism. This temple has been considered an extremely holy one by the Jain community down the ages and is still believed to be so.
Temple Location
The temple is located in Ahmadabad city of Gujarat and within the Ahmadabad district. The temple stands on Ahmadabad’s Shahibaug Road, just outside the famed Delhi gate.
History
This temple was constructed around 19th century. The exact year of construction is 1848 AD. Though the construction of this temple was initiated by Seth Hatheesingh, it was completed by the wife of Hathee Singh; Sethani Harkunvar after his premature death at the age of 49. At the time of the temple’s construction, Gujarat was struck by severe famine. The temple’s construction offered employment to a huge number of adroit artisans nearly for two years at a stretch and that was indeed a help in those difficult times. Artisan Premchand Salat of the Salat community enjoys all the credit for setting up such an architectural master piece. According to an estimate 10 lakhs approximately were utilized in constructing the temple.
Architecture
Hutheesing Jain temple is built out of white marble and is a supreme example of ornate architecture. The main temple building is a double storied one and enshrines lord Dharmanath’s marble statue. There are also 11 other deities enshrined in the main temple building. Out of these 11 deities, 6 are housed in the basement while five more in three of the bay sanctuaries. The temple sports a huge dome propped up by as many as 12 richly carved pillars. Also, there are as many as 52 shrines and each of these shrines is beautifully embellished with a Tirthankara image. The Temple’s entrance has highly ornate carvings. The temple has secondary shrines too, forming a unique gallery at the three sides. A cemented and spacious courtyard falls within the temple periphery
How to Reach
You can reach Hathee Singh Jain temple by means of air way, rail way and road way. If you wish to avail the air way, you must know that the nearest airport to this temple is Ahmadabad’s Sardar Vallabhai Patel air port well connected to the rest of the country and globe by means of frequent, regular flight. If you avail the road route, you must know that you’ll have plenty of private and public buses plying on the exceptionally well developed road network of Ahmadabad. These buses connect the city to almost all other major cities of Gujarat. Those availing the rail route must travel to Kalupur railway station by train and then complete the rest of the journey by means of road transport.
Best Time to Visit
The ideal time to visit Hutheesing Jain Temple is between months October and March the weather during that time remains most traveler-friendly. Those months mark the winter season in Ahmedabad and the weather during that time remains most cool and pleasant. Try to avoid the summer months; i.e. April-June as heat during that time is pretty unbearable. Also, during the rainy months of June-July-August, traveling isn’t suitable as the weather is uncomfortably humid.
