Mount Kailash is highly revered among the religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Bon, the native religion of Tibet. The Bons have since forever understood the mountain to be a sacred one, the Hindu devotees worship the mountain and believe it to be the place where Shiva resides, whereas Buddhists believe it to house the Demchok form of Buddha, and for the Jains, Mount Kailash is where the first Tirthankara (or religious leader) found freedom from the cycle of rebirth. The mountain is also believed to be the center of the universe according to Hindu Puranas and Buddhist texts whereas the Bons view the mountain as a 9 storeyed Swastika mountain, since the south side of the Kailash does resemble a huge Swastika and consider it to be a good omen.