Like Buddha, Mahavir was the prince who founded the Jain religion. In fact the two were almost contemporaries. Mahavir was born in 626 BC at Kundalapura, close to Vaishali in Bihar, a city frequently visited by Buddha.He was the 24th and the last of the Jain prophets known as the Tirtankaras or 'finders of the path'. The Jains now number only about 3½ million. There are many similarities between the two doctrines. Like Buddha, Mahavir too rejected the authority of the Brahmin priest and their rituals and advocated the equality of men.

Both doctrines advocate non-violence and respect for all forms of life, both religions have an established order of monks and nuns. To the Jains, the concept of non-violence is very sacred. Those who are orthodox among them, can be seen wearing a white cotton mask covering the nose and the mouth across the face, even sweeping the ground before them as they walk for they fear harming even the smallest insect.

' The Jains are divided into two sects, the 'Shwetambaras'and the 'Digambaras'. The latter are more austere of the two and the name literally means 'sky clad'. As a sign of their contempt for material possessions, they do not even wear clothes. They are chiefly monks and prefer to stay within the confines of their monasteries.

Jain temples are different as they have a large number of similar buildings that are often erected at one place. These temples too have many columns, of which no two are identical.