Identify the meaning of the term “tirthankaras”?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Those who guide men and women across the river of existence
According to Jaina tradition, Mahavira was preceded by 23 other teachers or tirthankaras. The word literally means those who guide men and women across the river of existence. The basic philosophy of the Jainas was already present in north India before Mahavira was born in the sixth century BCE; the tirthankaras are its teachers, not the philosophy itself.
NCERT (2025-26): “3. Beyond Worldly Pleasures The Message of Mahavira … The basic philosophy of the Jainas was already in existence in north India before the birth of Vardhamana, who came to be known as Mahavira, in the sixth century BCE. According to Jaina tradition, Mahavira was preceded by 23 other teachers or tirthankaras – literally, those who guide men and women across the river of existence. The most important idea in Jainism is that the entire world is animated: even stones, rocks and water have life. Non-injury to living beings, especially to humans, animals, plants and insects, is central to Jaina philosophy. In fact the principle of ahimsa, emphasised within Jainism, has left its mark on Indian thinking as a whole.…” |