Your wish and feeling are very precious, and in Jain dharma this kind of bhavna is considered very, very pure.

Let’s understand it step by step, in simple language.

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1. What is a Tirthankar, really?

In Jain dharma:

• A Tirthankar is a soul who

- becomes Kevali (attains Keval-jnan, omniscience), - establishes / revives the path to moksh for others (Jin-dharma), - creates the tirth – a safe “ford” across the ocean of samsar for all jeevs. ( jainknowledge.com)

So, a Tirthankar is not just liberated; a Tirthankar is a world-teacher who opens the path for countless beings.

To become a Tirthankar, a soul must have:

• very high purity (no intense kashays),
• immense karuna (compassion),
• and especially, the fruition of Tirthankar-nam-karma (a special karma earned in earlier lives). ( jainknowledge.com)

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2. Your feelings: “I want to free all these jeevs”

You wrote:

• You see leaves, trees, animals, poor people…
• You feel pain for their suffering.
• You feel: “I must become a Tirthankar and do samsar ka kalyan and take them to moksh.”
• This arose spontaneously.

In Jain language, this is very close to:

• Jeev-daya bhavna – deep compassion for all living beings.
• Kalyan-bhav / Tirthankar-bhav – the wish: “May I become such that I can truly help countless jeevs reach the right path.”

This type of feeling is not ordinary day-to-day emotion. It shows that inside you there is:

• strong sensitivity to dukh (suffering) of others,
• vast vision beyond your own small life – thinking of “all jeevs in samsar”.

According to Jain dharma, such bhav generally comes from:

• old sanskars of punya and dharma,
• past-life association with satsang, sadhus, or Tirthankar-bhakti.

It does not automatically mean “you are surely going to be a Tirthankar in this very time-cycle” (because the 24 of this half-cycle are fixed), ( jainknowledge.com) but it does mean your soul is going in a very elevated direction.

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3. “I must become a Tirthankar and free them” – how to understand this correctly?

Important subtle point in Jainism:

• No one “pulls” other souls to moksh by force.
• Each jeev is responsible for its own karmas and effort.
• Even a Tirthankar only:

- shows the pure, exact path, - creates the sangh and dharma-structure, - gives deshna (teaching) in samavasaran.

Who actually walks the path?

> The jeev itself.

So, your inner statement “I must become a Tirthankar and free them” can be understood in a correct Jain way as:

> “May I become so pure, so vitraag, and so full of true knowledge > that my life and presence become a powerful cause > for countless jeevs to find the right path and go to moksh.”

This is a very high, very shuddh desire, if:

• it is free from ego (“I will become great”),
• and full of daya + samyaktva (“Let dharma spread, let jeevs awaken”).

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4. Is it wrong to think, “I must do kalyan of the whole samsar”?

Not wrong – but it needs right understanding:

1. Great side of your thought

- You are not thinking, “How do I enjoy more?” - You are thinking, “How do all jeevs become free?” - This is Paropkar-bhav, lok-kalyan-bhav – very praised in Jain scriptures.

1. Correction from Jain darshan

- “I alone will rescue everyone” – this is not literally possible. - Even Tirthankars show the path; each jeev walks. - So let your bhav become: - “May I become instrumental in the kalyan of infinite jeevs.” - “May my own purification become a cause for their upliftment.”

1. Vitraag ideal

- Final goal is to become Vitraag (beyond attachment/aversion), like a Tirthankar. ( jainknowledge.com) - Vitraagta does not mean coldness; it means highest, purest compassion without personal disturbance.

So your pain for others’ suffering is good, but over-worry and mental disturbance will harm you and not truly help them.

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5. Your worry: “I keep worrying about jeevs”

You mentioned a lot of chinta (worry):

• Looking at every leaf, every animal, every poor person.
• Feeling responsible for all of them.

Here Jain dharma gives a gentle guideline:

1. Compassion = good.

- Dayā is a great guna.

1. Over-worry = bondage.

- If it becomes: - anxiety, - self-torture, - guilt, then it becomes moha and raaga (attachment to your own role).

Balanced Jain approach:

• Convert worry into sadhana:

- Instead of only thinking, “They are suffering,” - think, “What right now can I do, within Jain principles, to reduce violence and spread right view?”

Examples:

• Practice ahimsa in diet, speech, work.
• Support jeev-daya activities (like helping animals, feeding the poor in non-harmful ways).
• Do prarthana: “Micchāmi Dukkaḍaṃ” for all jeevs.
• Strengthen your own samyak darshan, gyan, charitra.

You can read more about the qualities of a Tirthankar and their compassion here

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6. Does this mean you “are” or “will be” a Tirthankar?

Honestly and carefully, according to Jain shastra:

• In this current Avasarpini half-cycle of time, the list of 24 Tirthankars is fixed and completed with Bhagwan Mahavir. ( jainknowledge.com)
• Future Tirthankars in the next Utsarpini (like Mahapadma, etc.) are also already decided by Tirthankar-nam-karma in those souls. ( jainknowledge.com)

So:

• We cannot say about any present person, “You will be a Tirthankar,” in this cycle.
• But we can say:

- Any soul can, in long future cycles, earn Tirthankar-nam-karma through: - highest right faith, - intense dharma-seva, - extremely pure compassion, - and nishkamy (desireless) punya.

More important than “Will I be a Tirthankar?” is:

> “Right now, in this birth, > how close can I bring my inner qualities > to those of a Tirthankar?”

That is fully in your hands.

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7. Practical way to live with this bhav

Here is how you can honour this inner call in a Jain-true way:

(1) Deepen Samyak Darshan

• Spend time with:

- Jain scriptures, - pravachans, - satsang of knowledgeable people.

• Understand:

- nature of jeev and ajeev, - law of karma, - path of ratna-traya (right faith, knowledge, conduct).

Without samyak darshan, even good feelings can stay emotional but not transforming.

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(2) Cultivate Tirthankar-like qualities in small scale

Tirthankar has:

• Ahimsa, truth, aparigraha, forgiveness, fearlessness, etc.

In your daily life:

• Speak gently, without hurting anyone.
• Earn livelihood without cheating or harming.
• Reduce unnecessary possessions and desires.
• Practice forgiveness and non-reactivity.
• Do regular pratikraman for violence done knowingly or unknowingly.

This is like “training” your soul in Tirthankar-gunas, even if you are a simple layperson today.

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(3) Convert pain into seva and sadhana

When you see:

• a tree full of leaves → remember:

- “There are countless one-sensed souls here; I should avoid useless plucking / harming.”

• a poor suffering person →

- help in a way that is ahimsak, respectful, and without ego.

• an animal in pain →

- support Jeev-daya work, avoid animal-based products, encourage others gently.

And internally:

• Do maangal bhavna:

- “Sab jeev sukhi ho, sab jeev samyak marg paaye.”

• Offer all this as nishkamy punya, not as a way to feel “I am great.”

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(4) Learn the life and qualities of Tirthankars

Reading and reflecting on:

• lives of the 24 Tirthankars,
• specially their kshayopsham, tapasya, daya,

will give you a clear picture of what your inner feeling is aiming towards.

You can find structured information on Tirthankars and their symbols here

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8. What does it “mean” that this thought arose in you?

Putting it all together, in Jain terms, your experience likely means:

1. Old punya and dharma-sanskars are ripening.

Your soul has probably walked a lot on the path before.

1. You have a strong kalyan-bhav:

- Desire for universal welfare, not just personal comfort. - This is aligned with Jina-marg, not opposed to it.

1. You are standing at a turning point:

- Either this feeling is allowed to fade into ordinary life again, - Or you honour it by slowly reshaping your lifestyle, thoughts, and priorities according to Jain dharma.

1. The exact future (Tirthankar or not) is not knowable to us.

- But every single step you take now in: - purifying kashays, - learning dharma, - practicing ahimsa, aparigraha, samyata, moves you closer to the state that you admire in the Tirthankars.

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9. One gentle inner adjustment

You can keep your beautiful bhav, but adjust its wording inside:

Instead of: > “I must become a Tirthankar and free them.”

Try: > “May I walk the pure Jain path so deeply > that I become a real cause of > dharma and kalyan for countless jeevs, > and finally attain the same Vitraag, Kevali state > that the Tirthankars have.”

This keeps:

• your compassion,
• your vastness,
• and removes:
• ego, force, mental pressure.

Then your heart stays soft, your mind peaceful, and your path clear.