Shankheshwar Parshvanath Jain Temple Explained

Religious Affiliation:	Jainism
Temple Quantity:	1
Deity:	Parshvanatha
Festivals:	Mahavir Jayanti, Paryushana
Location:	Wilrijk, Belgium
Coordinates:	51.1736°N 4.3964°W
Website:	https://jccaantwerp.com/
Established:	1990

The Shankheshwar Parshvanath Jain Temple is a Jain temple located in the municipality Wilrijk of Antwerp Province, Belgium. It is currently the only Jain temple in continental Europe.^[1]

History

The building has a surface area of 1,000 m² and has been in use since 2010. Construction started in 1990 in India. After it was completed in 2000, the building was dismantled piece by piece, shipped to Belgium and rebuild on its current location. The white marble design is inspired by traditional Jain Temples.

About temple

It is the biggest Jain temple outside of India. The temple houses an information centre about Jainism.

See also

• Jainism in Belgium

References

Sources

• News: Kampen. Anouk van. 20 August 2021. Villa Gandhi en Villa Shanti: duurste huizen zijn in handen van Indiërs. .
• Chris De Lauwer, "Een Indiase tempel in België", in: Idesbald Goddeeris (red.), Het wiel van Ashoka. Belgisch-Indiase contacten in historisch perspectief, 2013, p. 233-240

Notes and References

1. Book: Brill's encyclopedia of Jainism . 2020 . Brill . 978-90-04-29746-3 . Handbook of oriental studies . Leiden Boston (Mass.).