A report on Tirthankara, Jainism and Śrāvaka (Jainism)

In Jainism, a Tirthankara (Sanskrit: ; English: literally a 'ford-maker') is a saviour and spiritual teacher of the dharma (righteous path).

In Jainism, the word Śrāvaka or Sāvaga (from Jain Prakrit) is used to refer the Jain laity (householder).

Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four Tirthankaras (supreme preachers of Dharma), with the first in the current time cycle being Rishabhadeva, whom the tradition holds to have lived millions of years ago; the twenty-third tirthankara Parshvanatha, whom historians date to 9th century BCE; and the twenty-fourth tirthankara, Mahavira around 600 BCE.

The tirthankara restores or organises the sangha, a fourfold order of muni (male monastics), aryika (female monastics), śrāvakas (male followers) and śrāvikās (female followers).

A tirthankara organises the sangha, a fourfold order of male and female monastics, srāvakas (male followers) and śrāvikās (female followers).

Monastic organization, sangh, has a four-fold order consisting of sadhu (male ascetics, muni), sadhvi (female ascetics, aryika), śrāvaka (laymen), and śrāvikā (laywomen).