Early and medieval Jain literature contains considerably fewer descriptions of relics of saints than Buddhist and Hindu texts. Therefore, there is no evidence of the veneration of relics till the Medieval Period.
On the other hand, in Jainism, belief in saints and sacred places was as active as in Buddhism and Hinduism. Considering other religions in India, such as stūpa worship, it seems peculiar that Jain belief in Tīrthaṃkaras is not linked to the veneration of relics.
There are also rituals in the contemporary Jain community that could be considered relic worship of saints.
Therefore, we have reviewed the descriptions in the scriptures which come from before the 5th Century, the biographical literature of the saints of the 9th-12th centuries, and the sacred place literature of the 12th century about relics or the dead body of saints. The results of this study indicate that it is difficult to claim a continuity of relic veneration traditions from ancient to modern. Nor can we assume that it was a practice that does not appear in the literature, since it is not reflected in the 12th century Old Gujarati sacred place literature, which has a strong local influence.
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