Śāntinātha or Śānti is the sixteenth Tīrthaṅkara of Jainism in the present age. According to traditional accounts, he was born to King Vishvasena and Queen Aćira of the Ikshvaku dynasty in the north Indian city of Hastinapur. His birth date is the thirteenth day of the Jyest Krishna month of the Indian calendar. He was also a Chakravarti and a Kamadeva. He ascended to the throne when he was 25 years old. After over 25,000 years on the throne, he became a Jain monk and started his penance.
The 12th century Shwetambar idol of Tirthankara Shantinatha at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya
Raja Dharma Mitra offering first meal to Shantinatha, 19th century
King Megharath, one of the Shantinatha previous incarnation, saving pigeons life by sacrificing his own limbs
Miniature painting of Shantinatha surrounded by ascetics, devotees and animals, 18th century
In Jainism, a Tirthankara is a saviour and supreme spiritual teacher of the dharma. The word tirthankara signifies the founder of a tirtha, a fordable passage across saṃsāra, the sea of interminable birth and death. According to Jains, tirthankaras are the supreme preachers of dharma, who have conquered saṃsāra on their own and made a path for others to follow. After understanding the true nature of the self or soul, the Tīrthaṅkara attains kevala jnana (omniscience). A Tirthankara provides a bridge for others to follow them from saṃsāra to moksha (liberation).
Jain miniature painting of 24 Jain Tirthankaras, Jaipur, c. 1850
The 24 Tirthankaras forming the tantric meditative syllable Hrim, painting on cloth, Gujarat, c. 1800
Tirthankara images at Siddhachal Caves inside Gwalior Fort.
Auspicious dreams seen by a tirthankara's mother during pregnancy