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Tirthankaras are special Siddhas (liberated souls) who has attained omniscience and guides the other souls to save them from the cycles of repeated earth existences (rebirth). Tirthankaras are just ordinary man, born as human, but through their intense practice of kindness, equanimity and meditation, he attains the state of a Tirthankara.
Tirthankar is an individual who destroys attachment with all the earthly things and relations, he frees himself absolutely from ignorance, he repays all his previous and this birth's dues of karmas, he detaches himself from all the good and bad, he attains absolute knowledge about present, past, and future, and becomes an omniscient in the process. He becomes a Sidha and frees himself from the cycle of birth and re-birth.
Tirthankars are also called Arihantas. Arihanta means destroyer of enemies. Here the enemy means the enemies of the soul. These are internal enemies and are defined as the passion of anger, ego, greed, and deceit (krodh, maan, maya, lobh) etc. a soul can only reach the state of arihanta by overcoming all its inner enemies. A person when destroys all the four ghati karmas, namely Jnanavarniya Karma, Darshanavarniya Karma, Mohniya Karma, and Antaraya Karma, which means they are totally detached from all worldly aspects and then he becomes an arihant and attains the perfect knowledge, vision, power, and bliss. They are Kevaljnani meaning that they know everything everywhere that happened in the past, that is happening now, and that will happen in the future at the same time. They are also Kevaldarshani, meaning that they can see all that happened in the past, that is happening now, and that will happen in the future all at the same time. They reinstate the fourfold order of sadhus (monks), sadhvis (nuns), shravaks (male householders), and shravikas (female householders).
After achieving enlightenment, a Tirthankara shows others the path to enlightenment. The Tirthankara's religious teachings form the Jain canons. The inner knowledge of all Tirthankaras is perfect and identical in every respect, for the teachings of one Tirthankara do not contradict those of another. However, the degree of elaboration varies according to the spiritual advancement and purity of humans during that period. The higher the spiritual advancement and purity of mind, the lower the elaboration required.
When a Tirthankar’s soul is conceived, his/her mother has fourteen dreams (some texts mention sixteen dreams). A Tirthankar’s soul, while even in mother’s womb, has three types of knowledge, namely Matijnan, Shrutjnan, and Avadhijnan. One year before the time of renunciation, a group of celestial angels come to pay homage to the future Tirthankar. They remind him/her that the time to renounce the world is arriving. When a Tirthankar renounces the worldly life, he attains Manahparyavjnan, the fourth type of the knowledge, which enables him/her to know people’s thoughts. At the end of his human life-span, a Tirthankara achieves liberation ('moksha' or 'nirvana'), ending the cycle of infinite births and deaths.
In the current descending cycle there have been twenty-four Tirthankars from Bhagawan Rishabhdev to Bhagawan Mahavir. The 24 Tirthankaras are considered to be the creator of Jain religion. They are divine elements of Jainism. They have attained all the achievement of ultimate nature including the ultimate knowledge after making vigorous efforts. Their principles are for betterment and welfare of others. Their path is to provide total fearless life and that of non-violence and to distribute love and friendship. Their vision of life is very wide and they have no insistence for anything. Their way of life is for giving up possessive passion and being free from the karmas.
Their names are as follows: