Ashti is a Village in Paratur Taluk of Jalna District in Maharashtra.
Main Deity – An ancient black coloured stone idol of Tirthankar Shanthinath in Kayotsarga.
History – Ashti was one of the villages with a considerable Jain population and was a Jain centre. There were about five Digambar Jain temples. Of these, we can find only two Digambar Jain temples now. The Shanthinath Digambar Jain temple made of wood was very ancient. This temple was in a dilapidated condition. This temple was rebuilt and 3 days vedhi Pratishta was held on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd June 2013 under the guidance of Muni 108 Sri PavitraSagarJi Maharaj a disciple of Acharya 108 Sri Vidyasagarji Maharaj. This temple has many ancient Jain idols and they have been preserved well. Attractive ancient carvings related to various aspects of Jainism on Teak wood were found in the wooden Jain temple. They have been preserved in the newly built temple.
Only the upper portion of the ancient Manastambha was intact. This has been mounted on a newly installed Manastambha.
Around 2011 some Jain idols were found in the middle of a field near Ashti. Some of these idols are preserved at Sri Shanthinath Jain temple and some idols were handed over to Muktagiri Jain Tirth. The Samadhis of about 15 Digambar Jain Munis/Monks are seen at Ashti. Feet impressions of the Munis are engraved within the Samadhi.
About 30 Digambar Jain families reside at Ashti and all are dependent on agriculture.
Daily poojas and rituals at the temple as performed as per the Digmabar Jain tradition.
Location – Ashti is at a distance of 12 km from the taluk centre Partur and 80 km from the district centre Jalna.
Address: Sri 1008 Shanthinath Digambar Jain Mandir, Sakala Digambar Jain Samaj, Ashti, Partur Taluk, Jalna District, Maharashtra, India.