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

44 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
Upanayana ritual began to fall into disuse in the case
of the Kshatriyas and the Vaishyas and this naturally gave
a great set back to their Vedic education.¹ Gradually they
were reduced to the position of the Shudras and completely
debarred from the Vedic education by about 1000 A. D.
(Alberuni, II. p. 136)
Vedic Education and the Shudras: Sacred texts
have laid down in very emphatic terms that the Shudra
should be rigorously excluded from the Vedic education
and rituals. This injunction has been always carried out
in practice.² The carpenter no doubt is declared to be
eligible for Upanayana and Vedic studies in some early-
texts. He however was at that early period a member of
the Aryan and not the Shudra community. The exclusion
of the Shudras from the Vedic studies undoubtedly ap-
pears as unjustifiable to us at present, but there were
peculiar circumstances that necessitated this step in early
times. The art of writing was not utilised for the purpose
of preserving the Vedic texts for a long time. The Aryan
theologians believed that if there was the slightest mistake
in the accent or the pronunciation of the Vedic Mantras,
a disaster would inevitably issue.³ As the Vedic Sanskrit
1 Hence the observation of Dalhana, a medieval writer at,
Suśruta, Śārīra, X, 52, यथावर्णमिति ब्राह्मणात्त्रयीं राजन्यो दण्डनीतिं वैश्यो
वार्तामिति ।
2 यथेमां वाचं कल्याणीमावदानि जनेभ्यः । ब्रह्मराजन्याभ्यां शूद्राय चार्याय
च स्वाय चारणाय च ॥ Vaj. Sam. XXVI, 2 is taken by some as referring
to the admission of the Shudras to the Vedic education. This, how-
ever, is very questionable interpretation; कल्याणी वाक् refers to the
preceding stanza, which it is prayed here, may be applicable to the
whole of humanity.
3 Cf मंत्रो हीनः स्वरतो वर्णतो वा मिथ्याप्रयुक्तो न तमर्थमाह ।
स वाग्वज्रो यजमानं हिनस्ति यथेन्द्रशत्रुः स्वरतोऽपराधात् ॥
Pāṇinisikshā, v. 52.