The people of Vaitāḍhya
Vidyādharas
विद्याधर
Humans who live on the flanks of Vaitāḍhya and hold the vidyās — sciences that grant flight and other powers.
They live in 110 cities cut into the two faces of Vaitāḍhya, sixty on the south and fifty on the north. They are human, not divine: subject to karma, capable of liberation, capable of falling.
The tradition traces them to Nami and Vinami, who served Ṛṣabhanātha and were granted the vidyās by the Nāga king Dharaṇendra. Rāvaṇa is a vidyādhara in the Jain Rāmāyaṇa, and so is Hanumān.
Because they can fly they are not stopped by the mountain, which is precisely why a cakravartī on foot needs the tunnels.
Measurements and counts
| Cities | 110 |
|---|---|
| South face | 60 |
| North face | 50 |
| Height on the mountain | 10 yojana |
| Human? | yes |
| Liberation possible? | yes |