Question

Who was the first Tirthankara in Jainism?
A. Parswanatha
B. Mahavira
C. Jina Sena
D. Rishabhdev

Answer 1

Hint:
 In the present half-cycle of time in Jain cosmology, he was the first of twenty-four teachers and called a "ford creator" because his teachings helped through the sea of interminable rebirths and deaths.

Complete answer:
 A Tirthankara is a saviour and divine teacher of the dharma (righteous path) in Jainism. The term “Tirthankara” means the founder of a tirtha, a fordable passage, the “sansara”, through the sea of endless births and deaths. A Tirthankara, according to Jains, is a person who on his own has overcome the “sansara”, the cycle of death and rebirth, and made a path for others to follow. The Tirthankara obtains “Kevala Jnana” after knowing the true existence of self or spirit.

The first Tirthankara (“ford-maker”) of Jainism and the founder of the Ikshvaku dynasty is Rishabhanatha. Rishabhanatha is also known as “Abhadeva”, “Rishabhadeva”, or “Abha”. Jain legends describe him millions of years ago as having existed. Rishabhanatha, along with Mahavira, Parshvanatha, and Neminatha, is one of the four Tirthankaras among the Jains who attract the most devotional worship.

Additional information:
Jain texts indicate that a specific form of karma, the Tirthankara nama-karma, elevates a soul to a Tirthankara's supreme status. ‘Tattvartha Sutra’, a major Jain text, lists sixteen observances that relate to this karma's bandha (bondage):

- The purity of right faith
- Reverence
- Observance of vows without transgressions and supplementary vows
- The ceaseless search for skills
- Perpetual fear of the existential cycle
- Giving (charity) presents
- Practicing austerity according to one's capacity
- Removal of barriers that jeopardise ascetic equanimity
- Serving the righteous by avoiding evil or misery
- Devotion to lords of omniscience, chief preceptors, preceptors, and scriptures
- The practice of the six basic daily responsibilities
- Propagation of the teachings of the All-Knowing
- Fervent love for one's siblings on the same path.

Jain legends speak of a dance of celestial dancers conducted by Indra, the heavenly-king of the first heaven, in the royal assembly hall of Rishabhanatha. In the midst of a sequence of energetic dance moves, Nilanjana, one of the dancers, is said to have died. Nilanjana's sudden death is said to have reminded Rishabhanatha of the transitory existence of the world, causing him to renounce his kingdom, family, and material wealth

Hence, the correct answer is option D.

Note:
 He is also known as Adinatha which translates into "First (Adi) Lord (natha)", as well as Adishvara (first ishvara), Yugadideva (deva of yuga), Prathamaraja (first king), and Nabheya (son of Nabhi)