what is osian?

Question

one town in india that is the netive place of Oswals community

Answer 1

Osian (Osiyan) is an ancient town located in the Jodhpur District of Rajasthan state in western India. It is an oasis in the Thar Desert, 65 km north of the district headquarters at Jodhpur, on a diversion off the main Jodhpur – Bikaner Highway.

Osian is famous as home to the cluster of ruined jain & Brahmanical temples dating from the 8th to 11th centuries.
The town was a major religious centre of the kingdom of Marwar during the Pratihara dynasty.
Of the 18 shrines in the group, the Surya or Sun Temple and the later Kali temple, Sachiya Mata Temple and the main Jain temple dedicated to Lord Mahavira stands out in their grace and architecture.

The nearest airport is at Jodhpur. National Highway 11 passes through Osian. Osian Railway Station is situated on the Jodhpur – Phalodi line of North Western Railway.

History of Osian
Osia is a small village sixty-five kilometers north-east of Jodhpur. It is an important Jain pilgrimage center for Oswal Jain community. The (Mahavira, महावीर) Temple built here in A. D. 783 is an important tirtha for Jain built by Pratihara King Vatsa raja. The Jain Harivamsa Purana refers to Vatsa raja's rule in Shaka year 705 (A. D. 783). He must have held sway over Upakesapura, i.e., Osian as an inscriptions of v. s. 1013 (A. D. 956) found from there refers to this place. In Nabhinandanajirnodhara Prabandha (henceforth NJP), Upakesapura has been described as the 'Svastika' (a mystical mark denoting good luck) of the earth, an ornament of the desert endowed with natural beauty where the groves are full of trees and the noble ascetics are wifeless (adara), but amongst the citizens none are like that; where the beautiful damsels and the peacocks educate each other without formal instructions merely by observing each other's graceful gait; where the tanks are replete with fully blossomed lotuses and the nocturnal darkness is dispelled by the light emanating from the luminous gems and where the rays of moon entering during the night through latticed windows in the houses of fair ladies, separated from their spouses, appear like the silver-arrows hurled by Cupid. Shorn of its usual literary exaggerations, the description does indicate that Osian was an important flourishing town then. The derivation of the cast name Oswal from Osia - the place name also sounds acceptable as it is a common practice in India to derive the family names from place names. It is conjectured from several evidences that the people of Osian were converted to Jainism by jain Acharya Ratnaprabhasuriji, who had impressed the populace of the region by his supernatural powers. A niche in Mahavira Temple contains sculpture of interwined snakes which also is worshipped by Oswal Jain, as adhisthatr - devetas. This leads us to believe that a sizeable part of the populace in that period may have belonged to naga extraction. Nagabhatta was a Pratihara ruler of Mandor. It is said that the Nagabhatta must have defeated the nagas and so he must have been given the name Nagabhatta which means 'master of nagas'. Nagabhatta the son of Narbhatta of Mandor line established his capital at Merta near Nagur, whose old name was Nagapura. The Pratiharas may have conquered these areas from the nagas. Nagapriyagachha of Jain also indicates in the same direction. The Nagas of Osian and surrounding region, thus seem to have continued serpant worship even after their conversion to Jainism and for this reason their parallel worship of Sachiya Mata by Oswal community seems relevant. The Sachiya Mata Temple also equally old and important situated on a hill north-east of Mahavira Temple, enable us some clues to understand the social history of that period. This Temple was built by Upaldev and has many decorative features of a Jaina Temple, however, it is dedicated to Sachiya mata, though Jain also worship here, which also is a matter of interest to understand the emergence of Jain community in this city.

Answer 2

OSIAN

The ancient town of Thar Desert was a great trading center between 8th to 12th centuries. Today it is desert oasis with 16 Brahamanical and Jain temples, beautifully sculpted and designed, most of which have stood ravages of time. The place is highlighted by its camel ride at the time of the sunset. The tourist's have the liberty to watch the architectural forms during that camel ride and return back to the camps or the resorts followed by drinks and thematic evening of performing arts and a choice of oriental cuisines arranged in the ethnic style of that region. The stay at the camps enriches the feel of the holiday. The camp Thar being the best among the staying facilities.