Chandigarh - The 2552nd Nirvana Mahotsav of Lord Mahavir Swami was celebrated with great reverence, devotion, and joy today at Shri Digambar Jain Temple, Sector 27. The program began with the Abhishekam of Lord Mahavir Swami in the morning.
The first Abhishekam and Shantidhara of the main deity, Lord Mahavir Swami, were performed by the Mangi Lal Jain family, and the second Abhishekam and Shantidhara were performed by Dr. Sanyog Jain. The first Abhishekam and Shantidhara of the smaller idol of Lord Mahavir Swami were performed by the Dharam Bahadur Jain family, and the second Abhishekam and Shantidhara were performed by the Atul Jain family.
Following the Shantidhara, Nirvana Laddus were offered. A large Nirvana Laddus weighing 24 kg was offered by Nitin Jain, and 51 Laddus (each weighing 1 kg) were dedicated to Lord Mahavir Swami by other devotees. In addition, hundreds of devotees offered smaller Laddus. On behalf of the Shri Parshvanath Digambar Jain Temple, Kishorilal Jain, Pradeep Jain, Pandit Sandeep Jain, and other devotees, along with temple committee president Dharam Bahadur Jain, offered laddus to the deity.
Dharam Bahadur Jain explained that Nirvana Laddus are considered a very sacred and auspicious symbol in Jainism. They are associated with Lord Mahavira's Nirvana Day (Diwali). When Lord Mahavira attained salvation, all the gods offered Nirvana Laddus to express their joy and happiness. Since then, the tradition of offering Nirvana Laddus on Nirvana Day or any auspicious religious occasion has been prevalent in all Jain temples.
According to him, it also has some symbolic meanings, such as the round shape of the laddu signifies the perfection and eternity of the soul. The sweetness symbolizes the purity and joy of the soul. Furthermore, the spirit of offering conveys the message of self-sacrifice and the path to salvation.
An atmosphere of devotion, peace, and purity prevailed throughout the temple complex. A large number of devotees participated in this auspicious occasion of Nirvan Kalyanak of Bhagwan Mahavir Swami. The program was conducted under the leadership of the office bearers of Shri Digambar Jain Society, Chandigarh. On this occasion, Vice President of the organization Advocate Adarsh ??Jain, General Secretary Santkumar Jain, Treasurer Raja Bahadur Singh Jain and members Karun Jain, Sharad Jain, Ramesh Jain, Vijay Jain, Damodar Jain etc. were also present.
The program concluded in the evening with lighting of lamps, devotional songs and Aarti. Hundreds of devotees participated on this occasion and imbibed the message of forgiveness, compassion and truth of Bhagwan Mahavir Swami.