Shri Digamber Jain Samosharan Mandir,Pawapuri (Pavapuri),Nalanda,Bihar

Pawapuri or Pawa is a holy site for jains located in the Nalanda district in the Bihar state of eastern India. It is located about 19 kilometers from Rajgriha or Rajgir,14 km from Biharsharif and 101 kilometers from Patna, the capital of Bihar.

During the reign of Ajatshatru, Hastipal was the King of Pawapuri. When Lord Mahavira came to Pawapuri he stayed in King Hastipal’s “Rajikshala”.

Around 5th century BCE, Mahavir, the last of the twenty-four Tirthankara attained Nirvana moksha (liberation). Jains celebrate Diwali to commemorate this event. He was cremated at Pawapuri,also known as Apapuri (the sinless town). There was a great rush to collect his ashes, with the result that so much soil was removed from the place of his cremation that a pond was created.

Now, an exquisite marble temple in the middle of a lotus pond, the Jal Mandir, stands magnificently on a rectangular island. Another Jain temple, called samosaharan is located here, where the Lord Mahavira delivered his last teaching.