Mathura Chaurasi Digamber Jain Temple: Timings, History, Entry and How to Reach

Key takeaways

• The Chaurasi Digambar Jain Temple stands in the Krishna Nagar area of Mathura.

• It marks Mathura as one of the great ancient Jain centres of India.

• It is generally open from early morning to evening; see the timings table.

• There is no entry fee.

• It belongs to the Digambar tradition of Jainism.

• It sits close to the main Mathura temple circuit on the Bhuteshwar road.

I am Gurudutt, born in Gokul in the Mathura district, guiding pilgrims through Braj since 2018: more than 50,000 of them. Most visitors know Mathura only as the birthplace of Krishna, and are surprised to learn it was, for many centuries, one of the most important cities of Jainism in the whole of India. The Chaurasi Digambar Jain Temple is where that long heritage is still honoured, and Jain pilgrims come to Mathura for it specifically. It is a calm and dignified place, a little apart from the crowds of the Krishna temples, and worth an hour for anyone curious about the older layers of this ancient city. Here are the timings, the history and how to reach it. To visit, add it to your Mathura day with our Mathura Vrindavan Tour Package us message on WhatsApp at +91 7302265809, any day from 8 AM to 9 PM.

Mathura as an ancient Jain city

Mathura is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in India, and long before, and alongside, its fame as the birthplace of Krishna, it was a great seat of Jainism. Archaeologists have recovered a remarkable wealth of ancient Jain sculpture and inscriptions from the city, above all from the mound known as Kankali Tila, whose finds, now largely in the Mathura Museum, date the Jain presence here back around two thousand years to the Kushan period and earlier. For Jains, Mathura is therefore not a side trip but a place of deep historical importance, a city where their tradition flourished for many centuries. The Chaurasi temple is the living continuation of that heritage.

What Chaurasi means

The name Chaurasi means eighty four, a number that recurs across the sacred geography of this whole region, as in the Braj Chaurasi Kos pilgrimage and the Chaurasi Khamba hall at Mahavan. In the Jain context the number carries its own weight of meaning within the tradition. The temple belongs to the Digambar branch of Jainism, one of its two great streams, whose monks renounce all possessions including clothing, and whose idols of the Tirthankaras are shown plain and unadorned, in keeping with that ideal of complete detachment. The presiding focus of a Digambar temple is the Tirthankara, the ford maker or enlightened teacher, worshipped in serene meditative form.

A note on detail: the specific dedication and the founding date of the temple are best confirmed at the site itself or with the managing trust, and I would rather tell you that plainly than state a date I cannot vouch for. What is certain and important is the temple’s standing as a Digambar Jain place of worship in a city of ancient Jain heritage.

Mathura Chaurasi Jain Temple timings

The temple keeps general access throughout the day, from early morning to mid evening. Specific worship and aarti times within that window are set by the temple and can vary, so if you wish to attend a particular ceremony, confirm it at the temple on the day.

Mathura Chaurasi Digambar Jain Temple timings. Hours can shift on festival days, so verify on the day.

Entry fee and address

There is no entry fee; the temple is free to visit, as places of worship in Mathura are. The full address is Chaurasi Digambar Jain Temple, NH2 Bhuteshwar Road, Dwarka Enclave, Krishna Nagar, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh 281001. It stands on the Bhuteshwar road on the western side of the city, close to the Bhuteshwar Mahadev temple and within easy reach of the main Mathura circuit. You can find it on the map here: Chaurasi Digambar Jain Temple location.

Jain temple etiquette

A Jain temple asks for a little more care than the Krishna temples nearby, and it is worth knowing before you enter, because the customs are genuinely observed and quietly noticed.

• Remove all leather. This is the important one. Leather belts, wallets, purses, watch straps and bags must be left outside a Jain temple, not only shoes; leather is avoided entirely on account of ahimsa, non violence to living beings. This is stricter than at the general Braj temples.

• Dress modestly and cleanly, with shoulders and knees covered, as at any temple.

• Keep silence and calm; the Jain temple is a place of meditation and quiet reverence rather than the bells and crowds of the Krishna temples.

• Do not carry food inside, and follow any instruction about photography, which may be restricted in the sanctum.

• Menstruating women are, by custom, asked not to enter the inner shrine at many Jain temples; respect the practice as observed here.

Where it fits in a Mathura visit

Because it sits on the Bhuteshwar road on the western side of Mathura, the Chaurasi Jain temple groups easily with the main city circuit. A natural shape is the Krishna Janmabhoomi at the morning opening, the Bhuteshwar Mahadev guardian shrine close by, the Chaurasi Jain temple for a quiet contrast, and Vishram Ghat at dusk for the Yamuna aarti. For Jain pilgrims, the Mathura Museum, with its extraordinary collection of ancient Jain sculpture from Kankali Tila, makes a natural companion to the temple. Our top places to visit in Mathura guide have the wider circuit, and our Mathura trip plan sets out the day.

When to visit

October to March is the comfortable season for Mathura, as for all of Braj. Within the day, early morning or late afternoon gives the calmest visit, in keeping with the meditative character of the place. The great Jain festivals, above all Mahavir Jayanti in spring, marking the birth of the last Tirthankara, and Paryushan, the most important period of the Jain year, bring the community together and are the most vivid times to visit, though also the busiest. Our best time to visit Mathura Vrindavan guide is the seasons.

How to reach

The temple is on the NH2 Bhuteshwar road in the Krishna Nagar area, on the western side of Mathura, easy to reach from anywhere in the city. From Delhi, Mathura is about 150 kilometres by the Yamuna Expressway; our distance from Delhi to Vrindavan guide covers the routes, most of which pass through Mathura. Within the city an e-rickshaw reaches the temple easily, or a private car that then continues around the Mathura circuit. Our Mathura Vrindavan taxi service covers the day, and a Same Day Mathura Vrindavan Tour can build it in.

The honest bit

Honest words on this temple. Entry is free, as at every place of worship in Mathura, and no official VIP pass exists anywhere in Braj. This is a Jain temple, not a Krishna temple, and its customs differ: the removal of all leather in particular is genuinely observed, so leave belts, wallets and watch straps outside, not only your shoes. It is a place of quiet meditation rather than the bells and bustle of the Krishna shrines, so come in that spirit. On the finer points of the temple’s specific dedication and history, I have told you what is well established and flagged what is best confirmed at the site rather than invent a detail, because a Jain pilgrim will know at once if a guide is guessing.

Why Experience My India is the right choice

I was born in Gokul Mahaban Bangar, in this district, and I have guided pilgrims of every tradition through Mathura since 2018: more than 50,000 of them, 4.5 stars across 204 Google reviews, WhatsApp first, 8 AM to 9 PM daily. For a Jain visitor, or anyone wishing to see the older Jain heart of Mathura, a local adds the practical things: fitting the temple into the city circuit on the Bhuteshwar side, pairing it with the Mathura Museum for the Kankali Tila sculptures, respecting the etiquette without fuss, and being honest about what is known and what is not. One clear fare, and never a charge for free darshan.

Tip from Gurudutt: pair the temple with the Mathura Museum in the same morning. The living temple and the two thousand year old Jain sculptures from Kankali Tila, only a short way apart, tell one long story together, and seeing them in turn gives you the depth of Mathura’s Jain heritage in a way neither does alone.

Related guides

●        Top places to visit in Mathura

●        Mathura trip plan: a step by step itinerary

●        Krishna Janmabhoomi in Mathura

●        Famous temples of Mathura and Vrindavan

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Tell me your dates and your group, and I will build the Chaurasi Jain temple and the Mathura circuit into your trip in the right order and at the right hours, with a car that waits, for one clear price. WhatsApp +91 7302265809, any day 8 AM to 9 PM. Packages from Rs 5,999 per person, 4.5 stars from 204 Google reviews. Born in Gokul, Mathura.