Pārśvanātha

Pārśvanātha (Sanskrit: पार्श्वनाथः), or Pārśva and Pārasanātha, was the 23rd of 24 tīrthaṅkaras ("Ford-Maker" or supreme preacher of Dharma) of Jainism. Pārśvanātha is the earliest Jain tīrthaṅkara who is acknowledged as a historical figure, with some teachings attributed to him that are accurately recorded, and a historical nucleus within the legendary accounts of his life from traditional hagiographies. According to Jain tradition, he lived between the 9th to 8th century BCE, whereas historians consider him to have lived between c. the 8th to 7th century BCE, founding a proto-Jain ascetic community that subsequently got revived and reformed by Mahāvīra (6th to 5th century BCE).

According to traditional Jain narratives, he was born to King Aśvasena and Queen Vāmādevī of the Ikshvaku dynasty in the Indian city of Varanasi, 273 years before Mahāvīra, placing him between the 9th and 8th century BCE. Renouncing worldly life, he founded an ascetic community. He was the spiritual successor of the 22nd tīrthaṅkaraNeminatha, and is popularly seen as a supreme propagator and reviver of Jainism. Pārśvanātha is said to have attained moksha on Mount Sammeda (Madhuban, Jharkhand), now popular as Parasnath Hill in the Ganges basin, an important Jain pilgrimage site. His iconography is notable for the serpent hood over his head, and his worship often includes Dharaṇendra and Padmāvatī (Jainism's serpent Devtā and Devī).

Texts of the two major Jain sects differ on the teachings of Pārśvanātha and Mahāvīra. The Digambaras believe that there was no difference between the teachings of Pārśvanātha and Mahāvīra. According to the Śvētāmbaras, Mahāvīra expanded Pārśvanātha's first four restraints with his ideas on ahimsa (lit.'non-violence') and added the fifth monastic vow (celibacy). Pārśvanātha did not require celibacy and allowed monks to wear simple outer garments.