In the Jain Āgams, the charitra (life-story) of Bhagwān Mahāvīr is not given as one single long katha, but is spread in different canonical and later-Āgam texts. I’ll give you a simple, traditional outline based only on Jain sources, and mention where Śvetāmbara / Digambar views differ.

---

1. Previous births (Pūrva‑janma)

Jain Āgamic tradition describes many earlier births of Mahāvīr, showing how he gradually purified his karmas and developed tyāg, daya, kṣamā, aparigraha over countless lives.

• Śvetāmbara texts like Mahāvīr‑charitra sections and commentarial works briefly describe these.
• Digambar tradition preserves them mainly through texts based on lost Āgams (like Mahāpurāṇa, etc.), not as the present canonical Āgams.

Common essence: He was repeatedly born as deva, manushya and sometimes tiryanch, each time strengthening samyak dṛṣṭi, tapas, and vratas, until finally becoming Tīrthankar‑nāma‑karma‑bandhi and destined to be the 24th Tirthankar.

---

2. Birth and childhood (Janma–charitra)

• Place – Kuṇḍagrām / Kuṇḍalpur near Vaiśālī (Bihar).
• Parents – King Siddhārtha and Queen Triśalā (Jñātṛ/Nāy clan).
• Birth tithi – Chaitra Shukla 13 (Trayodashi).
• Śvetāmbara date: 599 BCE; Digambar date differs slightly, but both agree on the tithi and place.

Important Agamic points:

• In Śvetāmbara Kalpa‑sūtra (Jina‑charitra part), Queen Triśalā’s auspicious dreams, birth of Vardhamān, and the celebration by devas and humans are described in detail.
• Mahāvīr’s childhood is shown as fearless (abhaya), compassionate, and already inclined toward vairāgya.

---

3. Household life (Gṛhastha‑charitra)

Here, the two traditions differ more clearly:

• Śvetāmbara Āgam / Kalpa‑sūtra tradition:

- Says he married Yaśodā. - Mentions a daughter, name given as Anojjā / Anojjā, later commonly called Priyadarśanā. - Shows that although he lived as a householder, inwardly he was detached and always compassionate to all beings.

• Digambar tradition:

- Holds that Mahāvīr was a lifelong brahmachārī. - Therefore, they do not accept marriage or daughter in their standard charitra.

Spiritual essence in both: Even in royal surroundings, Mahāvīr’s inner state was without rāg‑dveṣa and prepared for mahā‑dikṣā.

---

4. Great renunciation (Dikṣā‑charitra)

At the age of about 30 years:

• He renounced all possessions, ornaments, and royal comforts.
• Removed his hair (kesh‑loch), took śramaṇa‑dikṣā, and adopted the life of a nidāna‑rahit, aparigrahi, ahimsak muni.
• From this point, the Āgams focus heavily on his conduct and teachings.

Śvetāmbara vs Digambar:

• Śvetāmbara usually say 12½ years of intense sādhanā before keval‑jñān.
• Digambar generally say 12 years; the difference is minor and does not affect the essence.

---

5. Period of austerity (Tapa‑charitra)

For 12/12½ years, as preserved in Agamic tradition:

• He bore heat, cold, hunger, thirst, insult, injury with complete sāmāyik bhāva (equanimity).
• Performed supra‑severe tapas but always within ahiṁsā.
• Remained mostly in maun or very measured speech; no rāg‑dveṣa even toward those who troubled him.

Āgamic literature (like Ācārāṅga‑sūtra in Śvetāmbara canon, and early Digambar texts based on lost Āgams) highlight:

• His total fearlessness,
• Non‑reaction to abuse,
• Deep anukampā (compassion) even for those attacking him.

---

6. Keval‑jñān and Samavasaraṇa (Kevali‑charitra)

At about 42 years of age:

• On the bank of river Rijukūlā, under a Śāla tree near Jṛimbhikagrām, Mahāvīr attained Keval‑jñān (omniscience).
• A Samavasaraṇa (divine preaching assembly) manifested.
• Devas, humans, animals, and even subtle beings listened together without harming one another – a symbol of total ahiṁsā and anekānt‑darshan.

From then for roughly 30 years he:

• Travelled barefoot,
• Delivered deshānā (sermons),
• Established the fourfold Saṅgh – sādhu, sādvī, śrāvaka, śrāvikā.

The Āgams (Śvetāmbara) preserve many of these discourses:

• Anga‑āgams, Upāngas, Cheda‑sūtras, Mūla‑sūtras, etc., all trace back to Gaṇadhars who memorised Mahāvīr’s Kevali‑vachan.
• Digambar tradition holds that the original oral Āgams were later lost, and now relies on texts like Ṣaṭkhaṇḍāgama, Kaṣāya‑pāhuḍa, etc., which faithfully present Mahāvīr’s doctrine.

Main teachings in this charitra:

• Five Mahā‑vratas for monks:

Ahimsa, Satya, Achaurya, Brahmacharya, Aparigraha.

• Corresponding aṇu‑vratas and other vows for laypeople.
• Ratnatraya – Samyak‑darshan, Samyak‑jñān, Samyak‑chāritra.
• Anekāntavād, Syādvād, complete non‑violence of thought, word, and action.

---

7. Nirvāṇa (Mokṣa‑charitra)

At the age of 72, at Pāvāpurī (Bihar), on Kārtik Krishna Amāvasyā (Diwali):

• Mahāvīr attained nirvāṇa and became a Siddha – a liberated soul, forever free from birth and death.
• Devs performed nirvāṇa‑kalyāṇak celebration.
• Jains light lamps on Diwali in remembrance of the light of his Keval‑jñān, not for worldly enjoyment.

Dates:

• Śvetāmbara: 599–527 BCE.
• Digambar: slightly different range, but the tithi and place are the same.

---

Where in Āgams / Jain scriptures?

For Śvetāmbara tradition, important sources of Mahāvīr’s charitra include:

• Kalpa‑sūtra (Jina‑charitra section) – birth and early life.
• Ācārāṅga‑sūtra – his conduct, tapas, non‑violence.
• Sūtrakṛtāṅga, Bhagavatī‑sūtra, and other Angas – doctrinal discourses linked with his preaching period.

For Digambar tradition:

• They accept that Mahāvīr’s own Āgams were lost in later centuries.
• His charitra and teachings are preserved through authoritative śāstras like:

- Ādi‑Purāṇa, Mahā‑Purāṇa, - Ṣaṭkhaṇḍāgama, Kaṣāyapāhuḍa, and later commentaries, which rest firmly on the same Jain principles – ahiṁsā, aparigraha, anekānt, ratnatraya.

---

Simple spiritual essence of Mahāvīr’s charitra

From Āgamic point of view, his life teaches:

1. No soul is small – every jīva can become Siddha through right effort.
2. Violence of any kind (physical, vocal, mental) blocks our progress; ahiṁsā is the highest dharma.
3. Attachment and aversion are the real enemies, not other beings.
4. Without right faith, mere rituals do not lead to mokṣa.
5. True respect to Mahāvīr is to live his teachings in daily life – control anger, greed, pride, deceit, and adopt forgiveness and restraint.

---

If you want a very simple narrative katha-style life sketch of Bhagwān Mahāvīr (birth, childhood, dikṣā, keval‑jñān, nirvāṇa) in easy language, you can read more here