प्राचीन भारत में शिक्षा (डॉ. ए.एस. अल्तेकर - गुरुकुल एवं बौद्ध विहार शिक्षण इतिहास)

280 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [App.
sufficient if it has no capacity to receive proper
stimulation. The prayer is offered to the sun because
he was regarded as the one and universal source of
stimulation for both the animate and the inanimate
world.
Investiture with Staff; Its Significance :—With
the learning of the Gāyatrī Mantra, the student begins
his journey on the road to knowledge; he was there-
fore invested with a staff, which was a traveller’s
symbol in olden days. While accepting it, the student
prayed that with divine grace he may reach the goal
of his arduous journey¹. The staff exhorted the
student to become a careful watchman, charged with
the duty of guarding the Vedas.² It served the
purpose of making the student self-confident and
self-reliant, when he was out in the forest to collect
the sacred fuel, or travelling in darkness or entering
an unknown river or tank.³ It was also useful in
controlling the cattle of the teacher, if it was necessary
for the student to look after them.
Ceremonial Begging :—The student was expected to
maintain himself by begging cooked food everyday; so
the practice commenced on the day of the Upanayana.
The begging on the first day however was a ceremonial
affair, for the boy was to approach only such persons
as would not refuse his request. He would therefore
first go to his mother and then her sister and
then other relatives. In the modern Upanayana ritual
this ceremonial begging has assumed the proportions of
an imposing and stately procession, wending its way
through the main thoroughfares of the town or village.

1. Ma. Gr., S., 1. 22. 11.
2. Vā. Gr. S., 6.
3. Aparārka on I. 29.