Ranakpur, set close to the impressive backdrop of the Aravalli Mountains, contains one of the most beautiful religious buildings in Northern India. In the 15th century, around a hundred kilometres north of the ancient royal city of Udaipur, the followers of the Jain religion built an architectural gem: the most important sanctuary in Ranakpur, the four thousand square metre ChaumukhTemple.

The beautiful domed ceiling that depicts the sixteen goddesses of wisdom, the Vidjadevi, forms the centre of the temple’s main hall.

The lively portrayal of both the dancing figures and general ornamentation of the marble columns is in stark contrast to the enraptured Jain sculptures. The crouching figures within the niches stare out with ghostly eyes and thus create a mysterious atmosphere inside the temple.

Even today the temple site of Ranakpur that contains some of the most important examples of Jain architecture, has lost nothing of its original splendour.