
The Sultan Who Built a Jain Temple: Muhammad bin Tughluq in Jinaprabhsūri’s Vividh-Tīrth-Kalpa and Afterwards
Sun, 02 Feb
|Virtual Event
Join us for an enlightening talk on Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq and his unique bond with Jainism, exploring the rich narratives of Jinaprabhsūri’s Vividh-Tīrth-Kalpa and a remarkable era of cultural exchange in medieval India.


Time & Location
02 Feb 2025, 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm IST
Virtual Event
About the event
The Sultan Who Built a Jain Temple: Muhammad bin Tughluq in Jinaprabhsūri’s Vividh-Tīrth-Kalpa and Afterwards
A talk by Dr. Steven M. Vose (Assistant Professor Bhagwan Suparshvanatha Endowed Chair in Jain Studies Department of History University of Colorado, Denver, USA)
02.02.2025 | SUNDAY
TIME - 8:00 PM IST
As the Delhi Sultanate empire grew in the early fourteenth century, local communities had to reconfigure their political, economic, social, and religious networks. The Kharatar Gacch monk Jinaprabhsūri (1261–1333 CE) narrated his meetings with Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq (r. 1325–1351) in his Vividh-Tīrth-Kalpa, depicting a mutually beneficial relationship that ushered in a new era of prosperity for Jains. The sultan protected Jain merchants, pilgrims, and tīrths—and even built a temple in Delhi. Jain monks became part of the intellectual life of the Tughluq court. The story of their meetings would be retold many times over the following 250 years, shaping Shvetambar interactions with…