Ahichchhatra is believed to be the place where Parshvanatha, the 23rd Tirthankar of Jainism, attained Kevala gyana (omniscience).

Parshvanatha was immersed in water up to his neck but was protected by the serpent God Dharanendra, who held a canopy of a thousand hoods over his head, and the Goddess Padmavati who coiled herself around his body.

[9] Alois Anton Führer excavated a Jain temple constructed during the reign of Indo-Scythians dynasty, enhrining idols from 96—152 CE.

[12] Vividha Tirtha Kalpa, composed by Śvetāmbara Acharya Jinaprabha Suri in the 14th century CE, mentions Samkhyāvatǐ as the earlier name of Ahichchhatra and describes two Jain temples dedicated to Parshvanatha in the area.

[14] Kaivalyamala, written by Śvetāmbara Jain acharya Udyotansuri in c. 778 CE,[15][16] mentions that Harigupta of the Gupta Empire took diksha here.

The main idol of the temple dates back to the 10th century and is popularly known as Tikhal wale Baba.

The temple is made of buff sandstone and houses a thousand images of the Jain pantheon.