History – At present, there are two Digambar Jain temples at Bijapur. One ancient temple is dedicated to Bhagwan Parsvanath at Darga. Darga village is about 3 Kms from the town. The Idol of Sahasraphani (Thousand Hooded) Parshwanatha is very attractive and a unique of its kind. The milk poured on the idol gets distributed to all the hoods. A 3 feet high Choubisi of marble along with Bhagwan Parshwanath is also seen. In the first floor, the black colored stone idol of Bhagwan parshwanath and a 5 feet high black-colored idol of Bhagwan Mahavira in Padamasan posture can be found. These idols are said to belong to the period in between 10 to 15 CAD.
The other temple dedicated to Bhagwan Adinath is situated inside the town of Bijapur.This temple is situated in the Mahavir Road of Bijapur. The idols of 11 CAD to 20 CAD are installed in this temple.We can find the idol of Saptaphani Parshwanatha (1.5 feet high) of 11 century AD and the idol of Bahubali (9 inches high) of 13 century AD at this temple.
A Shweethamabar Jain temple in the SS road of Bijapur. We can find many idols of Jain Tirthankars at the Bijapur museum. The Bijapur is the also the birth place of the great Kannada poet Pampa, the author of “Mallinathapurana” and Pampa-Ramayan. The Bijapur is well known for its 40 meters Gumbaj that is second largest in the world.
How to Reach – Bijapur is on national highway 13 connecting Sholapur and Banglore. Bijapur is 101 Kms from Sholapur and 579 Kms from Banglore. The Bus service is available from Banglore and Belgaum.
Main Deity – Nearly 5 feet high black-colored idol of Sahasrapani Parshwanatha.