Palitana Yatra

The Palitana Yatra — the pilgrimage up the sacred Shatrunjaya hill at Palitana — is among the holiest of all Jain pilgrimages, a place Jains aspire to visit at least once in a lifetime. Shatrunjaya is one of the most revered Jain tirths (pilgrimage sites): its summit is crowned by an astonishing city of temples — more than 860 marble shrines, built and rebuilt over many centuries, clustered in fortified enclosures (tuks). The yatra is the ascent of roughly 3,800 stone steps from the town of Palitana to the top, traditionally undertaken on foot, barefoot, beginning before dawn so as to reach the summit in the cool of the morning. The hill is so sacred that no one — not even monks — may stay overnight at the top; all descend by evening. The sight of the white temple-city against the sky, the devotion of the climbing pilgrims, and the sheer scale of this sacred mountain make Palitana an extraordinary experience. It is most thronged around Jain festival days such as Kartik Purnima, when the hill draws vast numbers. For the visitor, the Palitana Yatra offers one of India’s great spiritual and architectural spectacles — best climbed at dawn in the cool season, with respect for its profound sanctity. (A major Jain pilgrimage up Shatrunjaya hill at Palitana; ~3,800 steps; climb at dawn; busiest on Jain festival days.)