Memorial shrine of Vijayanandsuri, late 19th-early 20th c.
Located in central Gujranwala, this samadhi memorializes Acharya Vijayanandsuri (1837- 1896) and the architecture models that of Sikh memorial monuments, especially the central octagonal chamber and dome. The building is now in use as a police station.
Vijayanandsuri, commonly known as Atmaramji, was initially an ascetic and scholar belonging to the Sthanakvasi sect (those who rejected image worship and lived in lodging houses or sthanaks), but attained eminence as a Tapa Gaccha acharya. After studying Jain scriptures he became one of the most important reinvogarators of image worship and also provided assistance to early western investigators of Jainism, in particular the German indologist A. F. Rudolf Hoernle. Atmaramjiās representative Virchand Raghavji Gandhi also introduced Jainism at the World Parliament of Religions in Chicago in 1893. Atmaramji also instigated the construction of a number of temples and libraries. He traveled across Gujarat and Punjab and passed away in Gujranwala, Punjab where his samadhi now exists.
- Created: late 19th-early 20th c.
- Attribution: Credit: The Chicago Prashnottar, or questions and answers on Jainism for the Parliament of Religions held at Chicago, U.S.A. in 1893 (1918), p. 14