Girnar
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Overview
Girnar, near Junagadh in Gujarat, is a Jain and Hindu pilgrimage hill. The Shaka ruler Rudradaman I's inscription here (c. 150 CE) is the first long inscription in chaste Sanskrit and records repairs to the Sudarshana lake.
The Girnar hills near Junagadh have Jain temples to Neminatha, the 22nd tirthankara, who is believed to have attained moksha here.
A rock at the foot of the hill has Ashoka's fourteen major edicts, a Sanskrit inscription of Rudradaman I and a later record of Skandagupta.
Those inscriptions mention the Sudarshana lake, built under the Mauryas and repaired later.
The hill is the highest in Gujarat.
A ropeway to the temples opened in 2020.
It is also sacred to Hindus.
It is near Junagadh city.
Geography and key facts
- Junagadh, Gujarat
- Rudradaman's inscription
- Sudarshana lake
- Neminatha temples
- Ashoka's edicts; Rudradaman's inscription
Why it matters for UPSC
Asked on inscriptions.
Note for UPSC
Gujarat; Jain and Hindu pilgrimage hill.
Questions link Jain sites with Tirthankaras and their states.
Asked in PYQs
No question in our Prelims bank names Girnar yet.
Key facts
- Type
- Jain site
- State / UT
- Gujarat
- Coordinates
- 21.495°N, 70.506°E
From the Map Explorer data; positions are for orientation.