Answer

In Jain Dharma, both a Tirthankara and a Kevalya Jnani have attained Keval Jnan, meaning perfect and infinite knowledge.

The main difference is:

• A Kevalya Jnani is any soul who has attained omniscience.
• A Tirthankara is a special Kevalya Jnani who also establishes the Tirth — the fourfold Jain Sangh of monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen — and revives the path of liberation for others.

So, every Tirthankara is a Kevalya Jnani, but every Kevalya Jnani is not a Tirthankara.

Explanation

A Kevalya Jnani has destroyed the knowledge-obscuring karmas and attained perfect knowledge. Such a soul directly knows all substances and their modes.

However, a Tirthankara has a unique spiritual role. A Tirthankara:

• Attains Keval Jnan
• Preaches the true Dharma
• Establishes the fourfold Sangh
• Creates a “Tirth,” meaning a ford or crossing-place across the ocean of worldly existence
• Becomes a universal spiritual guide for that time cycle

A non-Tirthankara Kevalya Jnani may attain omniscience and later liberation, but does not establish the Tirth or become a Tirthankara.

Spiritual Understanding

The difference is not in the purity of Keval Jnan itself. Both have perfect knowledge. The difference is in the special karmic status and world-guiding role of a Tirthankara.

A Tirthankara has previously bound Tirthankara-nam-karma, a special karma that results in becoming a Tirthankara in the final birth. Because of this, the Tirthankara becomes the founder or reviver of the Jain path in that era.

Takeaway

A Kevalya Jnani is an omniscient being. A Tirthankara is an omniscient being who also becomes a supreme teacher and establishes the path for countless souls to cross saṁsāra.