Most of us relate Jainism with its founder Mahavir the prince of Kundagrama in present day Bihar, who renounced his material wealth to set up the foundation of the formal Jain faith in the 6th century BCE, 32 years before the Buddha set out on his path. But according the Jain philosophy which Mahavir formalised, he was only the last of the 24 Tirthankaras or Jinas - the enlightened souls who laid the foundations of the philosophy .

Kalpasutra is the Jain religious text containing the life histories of all the 24 Tirthankaras and it is said to have been complied 150 years after the Nirvana of Mahavir (527 BCE) by saint Bhadrabahu. According to the Kalpasutra, it was Adinatha, also known as Rishabha, who was first Tirthankara of the Jains. He is supposed to have been born 8,400,000 years ago . The scriptures also suggest that he was the first one to bring agriculture and start the institution of marriage. He had several sons, of whom the eldest was Bharata who became the first Emperor of Ancient India and his youngest son was Bahubali. Some Hindu Puranas mention the name of Rishabhanath. According to the Bhagavata Purana for instance, Rishabha was an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.