Located on the Maharashtra-Karntaka border in a remote village, Shri Shantigiri Tirth holds an important place in Jain history with hundreds of thousands of people from across the country visiting the pilgrim site every year.Established in the year 1979 in village Kothali, the temple has a 21-feet high marble idol of Lord Shantinath along with 19-feet idols of Lord Chandraprabhu and Lord Mahavir on both sides as the main attraction. The place is located on a small hill and has pleasant weather around the year, calling for a spiritual outing.How to reach thereThe pilgrim site is located in Chikkodi tehsil of Belagavi district and is a one-hour drive from the city. Travelling towards Karnataka on Pune-Bangalore National Highway, one has to take a left at Nipani City and after travelling 15-km on Nipani-Mudhol road towards Kothali village one reaches here.Legend has itThe place is highly visited Jains belonging to the Digambar sect and is full of people all around the year. Manohar Doddanawar, manager of the temple, said, “Ascharyaratna Deshbhushanji Maharaj decided to develop the place as Tirth Kshetra and a huge temple was established here in 1979. He also took a Samadhi at this same place and its stays a place of devotion for his followers and Jain saints. Along with the huge idols of Lord Shantinath, Chandraprabhu and Mahavir, other noteworthy things here are Samvasaran temple, Nandishwar temple, Lotus temple and Adinath temple.”Flora and faunaThe area has a pleasant weather all around the year. The temple has a green surrounding that offers fresh air for the visitors. Peacocks are a natural sighting here when one tries to explore the surroundings of the temple. One can also see plenty of windmills placed on the hill adjacent to Shantigiri.

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