Answer

In traditional Jain Dharma, Bhagwan Rishabhdev’s age is understood as 84 lakh pūrva years, not ordinary human years.

So it is not usually treated as merely symbolic in Jain tradition. It is presented as a real numerical lifespan within Jain cosmology, but the unit of time is extremely vast and different from modern calendar years.

Explanation

Bhagwan Rishabhdev, the first Tirthankar of the present avasarpiṇī, is traditionally described as having lived for 84 lakh pūrvas.

A pūrva is an enormous Jain time-unit. Therefore, “84 lakh pūrvas” does not mean 84 lakh ordinary years in the common sense.

Jain cosmology describes time on a very large scale. In earlier periods of the time-cycle, human lifespans, body heights, strength, and spiritual capacity were said to be far greater than in the present age.

Was It Symbolic?

From the traditional Jain viewpoint:

• It is accepted as a cosmological numerical statement.
• It reflects the vast scale of earlier eras in Jain time-cycles.
• It is not explained merely as poetry or metaphor in standard Jain tradition.

However, a modern reader may find such numbers difficult to compare with present-day human experience. Jain tradition places them within its own cosmological framework, not within ordinary modern historical measurement.

Spiritual Understanding

The main purpose is not only to focus on the large number, but to understand Bhagwan Rishabhdev’s spiritual role:

• He was the first Tirthankar of this time-cycle.
• He taught human society basic arts, livelihood, discipline, and dharma.
• He renounced worldly life and attained kevaljñān.
• He showed the path of liberation through right faith, right knowledge, and right conduct.

Takeaway

In Jain tradition, Bhagwan Rishabhdev’s lifespan is treated as numerical within Jain cosmology, not merely symbolic. But it belongs to a vast cosmic time-scale, very different from ordinary present-day years.