Danta Attractions - Tourist Places To Visit In Danta

Kumbharia Jain temples, built by Vimal Shah during the 12th century, are five different temples dedicated to the Jain tirthankaras - Mahavir, Neminath, Sambhavnath, Shantinath and Parshwanath. Artistically built with white marbles, these five temples are the only ones left out of the 360 Jain temples that were built by Vimal Shah, the minister of Bhimdev I – the Chalukya king. These temples are located at a distance of 40 km from the Taranga hills and portray extensive artistic carvings of gods, goddesses, angels, horsemen and musicians. The temples are open between 6.30 am and 7.30 pm daily.

Present about 20 km from Vadnagar is the tranquil three-peaked Taranga hill that takes its visitors into a total different world. A place with intense connections with Buddhism, one begins to come across traces of importance of the religion at the spot, even as he takes the route rising towards these beautiful mounds. While many shoeless Jain monks can be found walking up and down the thoroughfares, present atop is a little shrine devoted to Devi Taranamata – a Buddhist goddess.

And perched atop is the glorious Taranga Jain Temple, a 12th-century shrine that is popular among Jains and Buddhists yet quite unfamiliar among the tourist fraternity and thus, remaining extremely calm unlike various other popular temples. Present within the magnificent structure is a five-meter-tall sculpture of Sri Ajitnath – the second Jain tirthankara.

Vadnagar in Mehsana district is yet another interesting place that tourists can visit while in Gujarat. Present here is a Buddhist monastery and Buddhist antique objects belonging to the 2nd-7th century AD, discovered through recently conducted excavations in the Vadnagar area. The discovered monastery included two stupa antiquities and an open courtyard constructed with nine cells around. And the arrangement of these cells is such that they form a swastik pattern.

Vadnagar is presently perched on a hillock that has artificially formed due to an array of layers of buildings constructed and destroyed during the ancient times. Some of the important places that one can visit during a stopover at Vadnagar include Hatkeshwar Mahadev Temple, Sharmista Lake, Jain temples, Tana Riri Garden and Deri, Gauri Kund, Khokha Ganapati, Nagdharo and Nag Temple and Narsinh Mehta Choro, to name a few.

Built in the year 1978, Dharoi Dam is a major dam on Sabarmati river in Dharoi village of Mehsana district. The area covering the upper sub-basin and the catchment area of river Sabarmati upto this dam is called the Dharoi sub-basin.

Poshina is a village about 29 km away from Ambaji in Sabarkantha district. This village is an ideal place to experience and witness tribal culture. Darbargarh Poshina, which was once a palace, is now a heritage home that is known for the blend of antique as well as modern amenities. It also provides with traditional cuisine and guests are allowed to enter their kitchen and try their hand at cooking.

Chitra-Vichitra Fair is also a specialty of this village. The fair is held a fortnight after the festival of Holi, around the months of March-April.

Mehsana is a small city that can be found in the Mehsana district. Various industries, such as those of oil, natural gas and dairy, are located in and around Mehsana, which happens to be one of the largest cities in northern Gujarat.

What's more, present here is also the first-ever water park of Eurasia and the largest steel and iron market of India. Some of the interesting temples and attractions that a tourist can choose to visit include the 161-feet-long Mulnayak Temple, Modhera Sun Temple, Hinglaj Mata Temple, Swaminarayan Temple, Thol Wildlife Sanctuary that’s home to a variety birds like flamingos, gray pelicans, wetland birds and black ibis. The wide-angle theater is also present here which is the first multiplex of Mehsana.

This is a beautiful ancient temple that portrays the beauty of the Indian temple architecture. The Sun Temple boasts of a 900-year-old history and is situated about 25-30 km away from Mehsana.