Shauripur (Sauripur) Jain Tirth

Shauripur — spelled variously Sauripur, Shouripur or Śaurīpura, and known in older sources as Suryapur or Sotiyapur — is one of the most sacred Jain tirthas of the Braj-adjacent Yamuna belt, revered as the janma-kalyanak bhoomi (auspicious birthplace) of Bhagwan Neminath, the 22nd of the 24 Tirthankaras of the present cosmic era.

• It lies in Shauripur village in Bah tehsil of Agra district — some 70 to 75 km southeast of Agra city and about 2 km along a low ridge road from the riverside town of Bateshwar, on the west bank of the Yamuna.
• Jain tradition holds that Neminath's garbha and janma kalyanaks (the auspicious conception and birth events in a Tirthankara's life) unfolded here, making Shauripur, alongside Girnar in Gujarat where he attained moksha, a defining node in the sacred geography of Neminath devotion.
• The tirth is honoured by both major Jain sampradayas, and pilgrims encounter distinct Digambar and Shwetambar temple complexes at the site.
• The presiding shyam-varniya (dark-hued) idol of Neminath in the Janma Kalyanak Mandir is the spiritual heart of the kshetra; the Digambar temple nearby enshrines a large blue-stone (krishna-varn) moolnayak idol of Ajitnath, whose consecration devotional histories date to roughly Vikram Samvat 1640.
• Around it stand several jinalayas with white shikhar (spire) profiles rising above the fields and the river, including shrines associated with Parshvanath and other Tirthankaras, along with older matha structures and memorials to munis.
• Local tradition recalls that a larger cluster of temples once stood here and was lost to time and the shifting river, lending the surviving shrines the quiet gravity of a place continuously venerated across many centuries.
• The setting is rural and contemplative rather than monumental — low riverbank horizons, the Yamuna sliding past, and the measured rhythm of pilgrim worship rather than tourist crowds.
• Bateshwar's famous ghats and its annual cattle-and-pilgrimage fair lie a short distance on, so many visitors pair the two.
• For vegetarian and Jain-diet travellers, Shauripur is exceptionally reassuring: as an active Jain pilgrimage centre it is strictly vegetarian in ethos, and the managing trusts typically run a dharamshala with a bhojanshala serving simple satvik Jain meals to pilgrims (confirm timings and availability with the temple office on arrival).
• Onion-and-garlic-free Jain cooking is the norm at such tirth kitchens.
• Beyond the temple precinct the surrounding villages offer little in the way of formal restaurants, so pilgrims generally rely on the tirth bhojanshala or carry provisions, and stock up on Agra's celebrated pure-vegetarian petha and mithai before setting out.