The Parwars are practically all Jains of the Digambari sect. They
build costly and beautiful temples for their Tirthakars, especially for
their favourite Parasnath. They have also many Hindu practices. They
observe the Diwali, Rakshabandhan and Holi festivals; they say that
at the Diwali the last Tirthakar Mahavira attained beatitude and the
gods rained down jewels; the little lamps now lighted at Diwali are
held to be symbolic of these jewels. They tie the threads round the
wrist on Rakshabandhan to keep off evil spirits. They worship Sitala
Devi, the Hindu goddess of smallpox, and employ Brahmans to choose
names for their children and fix the dates of their wedding and other
ceremonies, though not at the ceremonies themselves.