01
In the temple
In Mūrtipūjaka Śvētāmbara and many Digambara communities, devotees visit temples for darshana and puja before images of the Tirthankaras. Offerings and ritual sequences differ, but their purpose is reverence, purification, and recollection of liberated qualities.
Temple etiquette varies. Visitors should follow local guidance on clothing, food, leather items, photography, and entry to sacred spaces.
02
Worship without images
Sthānakavāsī and Śvētāmbara Terāpanth communities reject image worship. Their devotional life emphasises recitation, study, meditation, discourse, and respect for ascetics. This is not an absence of worship, but a different understanding of its proper form.
03
Meditation and stillness
Samayika cultivates equanimity through a defined period of stillness and attention. Kayotsarga uses bodily stillness to loosen identification with the body. Modern systems, including Preksha Meditation associated with Śvētāmbara Terāpanth, organise practices for contemporary participants.
- Settle the body
- Reduce attachment and aversion
- Observe thought and action
- Return to ethical conduct