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

102 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
A Resume : By making Upanayana obligatory
and professions hereditary, by showing encouragement
to learning in a variety of ways, by securing ample
patronage from rulers and landlords, by penalising
any stipulation for fees and by laying down a very
high code of conduct for the teaching profession,
Hindu society tried to make fairly efficient arrange-
ment and provision for the education of the rising
generation. The results show that before the decay
set in, these measures for the spread of education
proved to be fairly successful. As will be shown in the
Chapter VII, literacy was spread fairly widely among
the higher classes ; its percentage among them was
probably as high as 75% at the beginning of the Christian
era. In contemporary times in no other country in the
world was there so wide a spread of literacy. Hindu
achievements in the realm of medicine, metallurgy,
astronomy, chemistry, and spinning and weaving
were also of a high order, if judged by contemporary
standards. There was, undoubtedly a set back after
about 800 A.D.; its causes will be discussed in the
course of the concluding chapter.

Chapter V.
SOME EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND
INSTITUTIONS.
Different types of educational centres-Taxila-Effects of political
vicissitudes on its educational system-Not a university of the
modern type, but a cluster of private colleges-Strength of private
colleges-Great fame of Taxila-Boarding and lodging arrangements-
Subjects of study-Its later history and destruction-Benares-Its
early educational activity-As a centre of Buddhist learning-As a
centre of Hindu learning-Literary and educational activity under the
Muslim rule-Nālandā University-Its rise in c. 400 A.D.-Lay-out
of its campus-Buildings-Boarding and lodging arrangements-
Number of scholars-High standard of scholarship and piety-Rush
for admission from India and abroad-Library facilities-Lecture
arrangements-Catholic and comprehensive curriculum-Adminis-
trative machinery-Work in Tibet-Destruction of the University-
Valabhi University-Vikramaśilā University-Other Buddhist centres
of learning-Hindu temple colleges-At Salotgi, Ennayiram, Tirumuk-
kudal, Tiruvorriyur and Malkapuram-Some other temple schools and
colleges-Agrahāra villages as centres of higher education-Tols.
Different Types of Educational Centres :—It has
been already shown in the last chapter how educational
institutions came into existence in ancient India
rather late in her history. Education was for a long
time imparted by private teachers on their own
responsibility. These were no doubt scattered all over
the country, but they used to congregate in large
numbers in certain places on account of the facilities
they received there in their work. Such places were
usually capitals of kingdoms or famous holy places
(tīrthas). Kings and feudal chiefs were as a rule
patrons of learning, and so learned Brahmanas were
naturally attracted to their courts. It was this
circumstance that made cities like Taxila,
Pātaliputra, Kanauj, Mithilā and Dharā in northern
India and Malkhed, Kalyāṇī and Tanjore in southern
India famous centres of education. Holy places have

104 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
been since times immemorial famous centres of
learning ; the pilgrim traffic supplied a subsidiary
source of income to the famous teachers residing there.
It is this circumstance that made Benares, Kāñchī,
Nasik, Karhāṭaka, etc. famous centres of learning.
Sometimes kings used to found colonies of learned
Brahmanas by inviting them to settle in a new village
and providing for their maintenance. Such villages
were known as agrahāra villages and they naturally
became centres of learning. Causes that led to the
development of centres of education in monasteries
and temples have been already explained in Chap. IV.
It is proposed to give a short and succinct account
of important centres and institutions of education
in this chapter. The places have been arranged from
the point of their importance and antiquity.
TAXILA¹
Prehistoric Times :— Taxila, situated about 20
miles west of Rawalpindi, was undoubtedly the most
important and ancient seat of learning in Ancient
India. It was the capital of the important province
of Gandhāra and its history goes back into hoary
antiquity. It was founded by Bharata and named
after his son Taksha, who was established there as
its ruler². Janamejaya’s serpent sacrifice was
perfomed at this very place.³ Not much is known
of its early educational activities; but by the 7th
century B. C., it was a famous seat of learning,
attracting scholars from distant cities like Rājagṛiha,
Benares, and Mithilā. It was famous for its
philosophers in the days of Alexander the Great.

1. The correct ancient spelling of the city's name is Takshaśilā.
   The popular present-day spelling is used in the book.
2. Rāmāyaṇa VII, 101, 10-16
3. Mbh., I, 3, 20

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 105
Unfortunately we know very little about its
educational activities from non-Jātaka sources.
**Political Vicissitudes :—**Taxila was conquered
and occupied by the Persians in the 6th century B. C.,
by the Indo-Baktrians in the 2nd century B. C. by
the Scythians in the 1st century B. C., by the Kushāṇas
in the 1st century A. D. and by the Hūṇas in the
5th century A. D. We do not know what effects
these political vicissitudes had over educational activity
of the place. The ruins give traces of three different
city sites occupied at the beginning of the Baktrian,
Scythian and Kushāṇa periods. It is quite possible
that these political vicissitudes may have told upon
the city's prosperity, which may in turn have affected
the cause of education. Every successive power,
however, continued to maintain its provincial head-
quarters at Taxila ; this circumstance must have soon
obliterated the ravages of war.
Their Effects on Education : The Persian and
Greek occupation must have affected the curricula of
schools and colleges ; we have, however, only circum-
stantial evidence on the point. Epigraphical testimony
shows conclusively that the Persian occupation resulted
in the replacement of the national Brāhmī script by
the foreign Kharoshṭrī alphabet. The Scythian and
Kushāṇa conquerors had no culture or civilisation of
their own, but the Indo-Baktrian rulers were the
inheritors of the rich Greek civilisation. Their rule in
Taxila extended over a century and a quarter, and
must have made some impression on the educational
system of the place. It is quite possible that a few of
the ‘world renowned’ teachers of Taxila may have learnt
and opened classes in Greek language and literature in
order to facilitate the appointment of their students in
government services under the Greek administration.

106 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
Among the 'sippas' taught at Taxila may have
been included a training in Greek processes of coinage
and sculpture. There was as yet no prejudice
against foreign culture. It is quite possible that Greek
dramas may have been performed in the courts of
some of the numerous Greek princes and princelings.
Some Indians also may have read and appreciated
Sophocles and Eurepedes. The working knowlege of
Greek language may have been possessed by several
classes of society, as it was the language of the
conqueror.1 Greek orientation in Taxila studies could
not however have been considerable. Indo-Greek rulers
themselves were cut off from their mother country, and
many of the conquerors soon succumbed to the culture
and religion of the conquered. It is, however, a
great pity that the historian of ancient Indian
education should still be unable to supply authentic
information about the precise extent of Greek influence
on the system of education at Taxila.
No organised Institutions:—It may be observed
at the outset that Taxila did not possess any college
or university in the modern sense of the term. It was
simply a centre of education. It had many famous
teachers to whom hundreds of students flocked for
higher education from all parts of northern India.
But these teachers were not members of any insti-

1. From the romantic history of Apollonius of Tyana by
   Philostratus we learn that in the 1st century A.D. Indians and
   Greeks at Taxila knew each other's philosophy and that the villagers
   around the Gandhāra capital could understand and speak Greek.
   There may be some exaggeration in this picture, but recent excavations
   at Taxila have confirmed some of the topographical details given by
   Philostratus (Guide to Taxila by Sir John Marshal, pp. 15 & 97).
   We may, therefore, conclude that his information about Indians'
   acquaintance with Greek language and literature may be at least
   partly true. Greek studies, therefore, must have figured in Taxila
   curriculum during the Greek rule.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS. 107
tutions like professors in a modern college, nor were
they teaching any courses prescribed by any central
body like a modern university. Every teacher,
assisted by his advanced students, formed an institution
by himself. He admitted as many students as he
liked. He taught what his students were anxious to
learn. Students terminated their courses according
to their individual convenience. There were no degree
examinations, and therefore no degrees or diplomas.
Strength of private Schools : Jātakas usually
state that the 'world renowned' teachers of
Taxila used to have five hundred students under
their charge. This figure seems to be more
conventional than real, as has been shown at pp. 82-3.
We get only one instance in the Sutasoma Jātaka¹
of what appears to be a real number of students
reading under one teacher. Under the 'world
renowned' teacher of this Jātaka, we are told that
103 princes from different parts of the country were
learning archery. This teacher may have had very
probably many assistants under him. Normally
speaking, however, the number of students working
under one teacher does not seem to have been more
than 20 (ante, p. 82). The excavations at Taxila have
not so far unearthed any extensive buildings, which
can be taken to be big hostels or lecture halls,
necessary for big colleges having 500 students on
their rolls.
The Fame of Taxila : As a centre of learning
the fame of the city was unrivalled in the 6th century
B. C. In those days communications were so difficult
and dangerous that when their sons used to return
home, parents used to congratulate themselves on

1. Vol. V, p. 457

108 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
having seen them returning during their own life
time.¹ And yet we find students flocking to Taxila
from far off cities like Benares,² Rājagriha,³
Mithilā⁴ and Ujjayinī.⁵ Kuru and Kośala countries
sent their own quota of students. One of the
archery schools at Taxilā had on its muster roll,
as we have seen already, 103 princes from different
parts of India. Heir-apparents of Benares are
usually seen being educated at the same place in the
Jātakas. King Prasenajit of Kośala, a contemporary
of the Buddha, was educated in the Gandhara
capital.⁶ Prince Jīvaka, an illegitimate son of
Bimbisāra, spent seven years at Taxila in learning
medicine and surgery.⁷ As Pāṇini hailed from
Śālātura near Attok, he also must have been an
alumni of Taxila university. The same was the case
with Kauṭilya, the author of the Arthaśāstra.
Boarding and Lodging Arrangements :—Students
used to go to Taxila only for higher education. They
were usually 16 when they came to seek admission
there. As a general rule, they stayed in the
houses of their teachers. The well-to-do students
used to pay their lodging and boarding expenses along
with their fees, sometimes even at the beginning
of their course. Some of them, who were very rich
like prince Juṇha from Benares, used to engage special
houses for their residence (Jā. No. 456). Poor students,
who could not pay any fees, used to work in their

1. Jātaka No 456.
2. Tilamuṭṭhi Jātaka, No. 252.
3. Jātaka, No. 378.
4. Ibid, No. 489.
5. Ibid, No. 336.
6. M.V. chap. VIII.
7. Jātaka, No. 498.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 109·
teacher's house by day ; special classes were held for
them at night.
**Subjects of Study :—**As stated above, Taxila
provided only higher education and students went
there for specialisation only. Jīvaka had gone to the
city for studying medicine and surgery and two youths
from Benares had repaired there for studying
archery and elephant lore. The three Vedas, grammar,
philosophy and eighteen sippas were the principal
subjects selected for specialisation at Taxila. Among
the latter were included medicine, surgery, archery
and allied military arts, astronomy, astrology,
divination, accountancy, commerce, agriculture,
conveyancing, magic, snake charming, the art of
finding treasures, music, dancing, and painting. There
were no caste restrictions on the choice of subjects ;
Kshatriyas used to study the Vedas along with
Brahmanas and the latter used to specialise in archery
along with the Kshatriyas. A Brahmana royal priest of
Benares had once sent his son to Taxila not to
learn the Vedas but to specialise in archery (Jā. N. 522)
Later History and Destruction : We know very
little about the educational activities of Taxila
subsequent to the beginning of the Christian era.
But it is very probable that it continued to flourish
down to the end of the Kushāṇa rule (c. 250 A. D.)
The Little Yueh-chis, who succeeded the Kushāṇas
in the government of Taxila, were barbarous
chiefs, as their coins indicate, and the cause of
education must have suffered under their unenlightened
administration. At the beginning of the 5th century
A. D. when Fa Hsien visited the place, there was
nothing there of any educational importance.¹
Worse days, however, were in store for this Queen

1. Legge, Fa Hsien, p. 32

110 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
of Learning. The Hūṇa avalanche came at the middle
of the 5th century A. D. and ruined whatever was
left after the Little Yueh-chi depradations. At the
time when Yuan Chwang visited the city in the 7th
century A. D., it had lost all its glory and importance.
The famous monastery of Kumāralabdha, where that
celebrated Sautrāntika scholar had composed his
expository works, was in ruins and the condition of
the vast majority of the remaining Buddhist
establishments was no better.¹ When it is
remembered that the inhabitants of Taxila at this
time were plucky and devoted adherents of Buddhism,
the sad plight of their monasteries will at once
convince us that the city was completely wrecked
by the Hūṇa invasions. Gone were the days of its
former educational glory, never to return.
BENARES²
Early History. In early Vedic literature
Benares does not figure either as a centre of
pilgrimage or as a centre of learning. This is but
natural, for it took centuries for the Vedic religion to
penetrate to eastern United Provinces, Bihar and
Bengal. The people of Benares accepted the new
religion rather reluctantly and for a long time³ their
loyalty to it was by no means unswerving. In the
Upanishadic period however Benares became a centre
of Aryan religion and culture. One of its kings,
Ajātaśatru, figures as a philosopher in the Upanishads,

1. Watters, I, p. 240, p. 245
2. See Altekar, Benares : Past and present, for original sources of this section.
3. King Dhṛitarāshṭra of Benares is known to have given up
   sacrificial fires because his horse of the Aśvamedha sacrifice was
   carried away by the Bharata king Śatānīka Satrājīt. Ś. Br.,
   XIII. 5. 4. 19.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 111
anxious to emulate the example of king Janaka of
Mithilā as a patron of learning. For a long time,
however, Taxila was a more famous centre of learning
than Benares. Kings of Benares itself used to send
their sons to far-off Taxila, and many of the teachers of
this city that figure in the Jātakas are seen to be past
students of the Taxila University.¹ In the course of
time, however, they began to attract scholars from far
and wide (Jā. Nos. 480 and 438).
Benares as a Centre of Buddhist Learning : In
the 7th century B. C., Benares was probably the
most famous centre of education in eastern India;
that seems to have been one of the reasons for its
being selected by the Buddha as the place for the
first promulgation of his gospel. With the imperial
patronage under Aśoka, the Sarnath monastery on the
outskirts of Benares must have become a famous
centre of learning. It went on continuously prospering;
in the 7th century A.D., it possessed resplendant and
beautiful buildings with tiers of balconies and rows of
halls.² Unfortunately Yuan Chwang does not state
anything about the educational activity of the Sarnath
monastery, but there can be no doubt that it must
have emulated the glorious example of neighbouring
Nālandā. It had 1500 monk-students. There is
ample evidence to show that it continued to be a
flourishing centre of Buddhist learning and pilgrimage
down to the 12th century A. D.³

1. Cf. तक्कसिलं गत्वा सब्बसिप्पाणि उग्गहित्वा वाराणसिय
   दिसापामोक्खो आचारियो हुत्वा पंचमाणवकसतानि सिप्पं वाचेति ।
   No. 150. See also No. 80.
2. Watters, II, p. 48.
3. Kumāradevī, the Buddhist wife of the Hindu king Govinda-
   chandra, had given an endowment to the establishment in the latter
   half of the 12th century A. D. Excavations also show that the
   establishment continued to flourish down to c. 1200 A. D.

112 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
Benares as a Centre of Hindu Learning : We do
not possess much detailed information about Benares as
a centre of Hindu learning during the first millennium
of the Christian era. Only one Purāṇa casually
observes that Benares will be a famons centre of
scholarship;¹ the rest are content merely with
describing its sanctity as a holy place. Nor have
we so far found any inscriptions recording grants
given to any educational institute at Benares. In
spite of the example of neighbouring Nālandā, Hindu
Benares does not seem to have organised any public
educational institution. Its learned Brahmanas
continued to promote individually the cause of educa-
tion in the traditional manner. Their fame, however,
was gradually reaching all the corners of India.
Scholars and philosophers like Śaṅkarāchārya found
it necessary to repair to the city to get their new
theories recognised and published. In the 11th
century A.D. Benares and Kashmir were the most
famous centres of learning in India.² We may well
presume that most of the learned donees of the
Gahadwal grants were conducting efficient Sanskrit
schools and colleges in the 12th century A.D.
Benares Under Muslim Rule : When Benares
passed under the Muslim rule in c. 1200 A. D.,
hundreds of its temples were razed to the ground
by Kutb-ud-din Aibak. The iconoclastic and prosely-
ting zeal of the new rulers drove away a number
of learned Brāhmaṇa families to south India. We
hear very little of any literary or educational activity
of Benares during the period 1200 to 1500 A. D.

1. Bhavishya Pu., Brahmakhaṇḍa, Chap. 51. 2-3.
2. The exodus of learned families from the Punjab was
   responsible for an increase in the scholarly population of both
   Kashmir and Kāśī towards the beginning of the 11th century.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 113
When however the Deccan also gradually passed
under the Muslim rule, scholars in India seem to have
made up their mind once more to repair to holy
Benares and make it a centre of Hindu learning and
scholarship by their united effort in spite of the
Muslim rule prevailing there. A number of scholarly
families from Maharashtra and Karnatak repaired
to Benares in the 16th century and their descendants
continued to dominate Benares scholarship for about
three centuries. It is important to note that some
Muslim rulers also like Akbar, Shah Jahan and Dara
Shikoh extended their patronage to some of the
famous scholars of Benares. The same was done by
a few of their Hindu feudatories in the United
Provinces and Central India. Royal patronage during
this period however was on the whole more an
exception than a rule; if the lamp of learning was
kept burning at Benares in medieval times, the credit
must on the whole be given to the great love of
religion and scholarship of Benares Brahmanas.
Education however continued to be imparted not in
public institutions but through private teachers.
While describing Benares as a centre of learning-
during the 17th century A.D, Bernier says, 'Benares
is a kind of University, but it has no college or
regular classes as in our Universities; but it resembles
rather the school of the ancients, the masters being
spread over the different parts of the town in private
houses.......Some teachers have four and some six
disciples; the most eminent may have twelve or
fifteen, but this is the largest number.¹
Literary Activity :— The literary activity of
Benares was very remarkable during this period. A

1. Travels in India p. 341.
   8

114 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
number of works on sacred law (Dharmaśāstra),
grammar, poetics, logic and philosophy were composed
by Benares scholars in medieval times. If put
together, they would be equal to the work done by
any other five centres of learning in India. This would
give some idea of the literary and educational pre-
eminence of Benares during the medieval period.
NĀLANDĀ.
Early History : Nālandā, about 40 miles south of
Patna, was a famous Buddhist place since early times,
as it was the place of the birth and death of Sāriputta,
the right hand disciple of the Buddha. Asoka is said to
have built a temple there. But its rise as a centre of
learning has to be placed by about 450 A.D. ; for
Fa Hsien, who visited the place in c. 410 A.D. does
not refer to its educational importance.¹ Very soon
thereafter Nālandā rapidly rose into importance owing
to the patronage of a number of Gupta emperors.
That the Gupta rulers, who were themselves orthodox
Hindus, should have contributed a lion's share to the
development, equipment and endowment of the
greatest Buddhist University speaks volumes for the
catholicity of the age. Śakrāditya, who was probably
Kumāragupta I (414-454 A.D.), laid the foundation
of the greatness of Nālandā by founding and endowing
a monastery there. The splendid Buddha temple
in this monastery was for centuries the central
place of worship for the congregation. Tathāgatagupta,
(who cannot yet be definitely identified), Narasiṁha-
gupta Bālāditya, (468-472 A. D.) and Budhagupta

1. According to Tārānāth, Āryadeva, a disciple of Nāgārjuna,
   was a Nālandā scholar. This, if true, would take back the antiquity
   of Nālandā by about a couple of centuries. The identity of both
   Nāgārjuna and Āryadeva and their precise time are not yet definitely
   determined. Bose, Indian Teachers, pp. 108-9.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 115
(c. 475-500 A.D.) added one monastery each to the
establishment.¹ Vajra, an unidentified successor of
Bālāditya, and another unnamed king of central India
added two further monasteries to the establishment.
New buildings continued to be erected by Hindu and
Buddhist donors down to the 11th century.
The Lay-out and Buildings: Excavations have
shown that Nālandā University covered an area at
least one mile long and half a mile broad. Monastic
buildings and stūpas attached to them were built
according to a preconcieved plan; they were all
arranged in a row and not huddled together in any
haphazard fashion. The central college had seven
halls attached to it; besides there were 300 smaller
rooms for the lecturing work. The buildings were
superb, several storeys in height. Hwui Li's statement
that the upper rooms towered above the clouds and
enabled a spectator to see how they changed their
shape is of course an exaggeration, but it has now
received an unexpected corroboration from a con-
temporary record which also avers that the tops of the
buildings at Nālandā touched the clouds.² We may
therefore take it that the towers and turrets of the
colleges, temples and monasteries at Nālandā must
have been of impressive height. There were also deep
and translucent ponds covered with blue lotuses,
which added to the beauty of the place and supplied
water and flowers to the establishment. The whole

1. The sequence of these rulers and their time, given both by
   Yuan Chwang and his biographer, seem to be wrong. See Watters, II
   p. 164; Life, pp. 110-111.
2. यस्यामम्बुधरावलेहिशिखरश्रेणी विहारावली।
   मालेवोर्ध्वविराजिनी विरचिता धात्रा मनोज्ञा भुवः ॥ E.I., XX, p. 48

116 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
colony was surrounded by an encircling wall with a
door in the southern side.¹
Boarding and Lodging Arrangement: Monk-
students were lodged in monasteries specially built
for the purpose. Recent excavations have so far
revealed the existence of thirteen such monasteries,
and a glance at the topography shows that some
more must have existed. Monasteries were at least
two storeys in height and had both single-seated
and double-seated rooms in them. Each room had
one stone cot for each occupant and was also provided
with nitches for lamp, books, etc. In one corner of the
court-yard of each monastery, a well has been
unearthed, showing that the problem of water supply
was not overlooked. Rooms were assigned to the
monk-students according to their seniority and
redistribution took place every year. Hearths of
huge dimensions have been discovered in each
monastery, showing that the messing arrangements
were common. The University had received 200 rich
villages as endowment² and so could offer free boarding
and clothing to its students. The usual practice in
Buddhist monasteries was to offer these facilities to
lay students, only if they agreed to perform some
menial service.³ It is however possible that Nālandā
may have offered free lodging and boarding to its

1. Beal, The Life of Hiuen Tsang (by Shaman Hwui) pp. 109-
   114; Watters, II, pp. 164-171 and Itsing, pp. 30, 65, 86, and 154 are
   the main sources of information about Nālandā.
2. This is the number given by I-tsing, who had stayed at
   Nālandā for 10 years. Yuan-Chwang's biographer mentions only 100
   villages in this connection. More villages may have been received in
   the interval between the two writers.
3. I-tsing, p. 106. In medieval Christian monasteries, the
   practice was to offer free tuition to all those who intended to join the
   Order; the laity was expected to pay small voluntary fee for the
   education of its children. Graves, A History, p. 81.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 117
lay students also,—who were usually Hindus,—in view
of its having received so many endowments from
Hindu patrons.
The Number of Scholars : When I-tsing was
living at Nālandā (c. 675 A.D.), there were more than
3,000 monks residing in the establishment (p. 154).
The biographer of Yuan Chwang states that in the
second quarter of the seventh century the number of
the residents of Nālandā would always reach 10,000
(p. 112). The biographer had never been to India
and his information therefore was second hand. His
figure seems to be a little exaggerated since it is given
in round numbers, and since Yuan Chwang himself
simply observes that there were some thousand brethren
residing at the place (II p. 165). It would, however,
seem certain that the actual number of the monks
staying at Nālandā must have been at least about 5,000
towards the middle of the 7th century A. D.
Both a Monastery and a University : Nālandā,
however, was not a mere monastery ; it had obtained
so wide a fame primarily because it was a very
famous centre of learning. Yuan Chwang says, 'In
the establishment were some thousand brethren, all
men of great learning and ability, several hundreds
being highly esteemed and famous ; the brethren were
very strict in observing the precepts and regulations
of their order ; learning and discussing they found
the day too short, day and night they admonished
each other, juniors and seniors mutually helping to
perfection. Hence foreign students came to the
establishment to put an end to their doubts and then
became celebrated, and those who stole the name (of
Nālandā) were all treated with respect wherever they
went' (II, p. 165). The names of deep scholars and
skilful debators, who had distinguished themselves at

118 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
the University, used to be written in white on the
lofty gate of the University for being known to every
fresher and visitor (Itsing, p, 176).
High Standard of Piety and Scholarship: The
head abbots of Nālandā used to be as much
celebrated for piety as for scholarship. Amongst
them were ‘Dharmapāla and Chandrapāla, who gave
a fragrance to the Buddha’s teachings, Guṇamati
and Sthiramati of excellent reputation among
contemporaries, Prabhāmitra of clear argument,
Jinamitra of elevated conversation, Jinamitra of model
character and perspicacious intellect and Śīlabhadra
whose perfect excellence was buried in obscurity’¹
These scholars were not, however, content merely to
teach and expound ; they were authors of several
treatises, widely studied and highly valued by their
contemporaries. The above seven scholars flourished
in the first half of the 7th century ; the total number
of high class scholars produced at Nālandā during its
history of about 700 years must have been very
great. At the time of Yuan Chwang’s visit the
average scholarship of the establishment also was
very high. Out of its 5,000 (or 10,000) monks, there
were a thousand who could explain thirty collections
of Sūtras, and perhaps ten who could explain fifty.²
Rush for Admission from India and Abroad:
There was a great rush for admission to the Nālandā
University. Students from all parts of India and
also from distant foreign countries were anxious to
get the benefit of its instructions. Fa Hsien, Yuan
Chwang and I-tsing were not the only Chinese
scholars that were attracted to Nālandā by its fame

1. Watters, II p. 165,
2. Life, p. 112.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 119
as a centre of learning. During the short interval
of thirty years between the visits of Yuan Chwang
and I-tsing, Thon-mi, Hiuen Chiu, Taou-hi, Hwui-nieh,
Āryavarman, Buddhadharma, Taou-sing, Tang and
Hwui Lu, hailing from distant countries like China,
Korea, Tibet and Tokhara had visited Nālandā and
spent considerable time there in studying and copying
manuscripts.¹ The standard of admission was naturally
high; 'of those from abroad, who wished to enter
the schools of discussion, the majority, beaten by
the difficulties of the problems, withdrew; and those
who were deeply versed in old and modern learning
were admitted, only two or three out of ten
succeeding²'.
Library Facilities: The Nālandā authorities had
realised that a monastery without a library was like
a castle without an armoury. The University was
maintaining a splendid library to meet the needs of
the hundreds of teachers and thousands of students
that were engaged in the study of different sciences.
One of the reasons why Chinese scholars used to
spend months together at Nālandā was to get true
copies of the sacred texts and other works of
Buddhism. I-tsing got copied at Nālandā 400
Sanskrit works amounting to 5,00,000 verses.
Significantly enough the library quarter was known
as Dharma-gañja 'Mart of Religion.' It was located
in three splendid buildings appropriately called
Ratna-sāgara, Ratnodadhi and Ratnarañjaka.⁴
Lecturing Arrangement; Strength of Classes:
In the monk population of about 5,000 (perhaps 10,000)
1 Life, Introduction, pp. XXVII-XXXVI
2. Watters, II, p. 165
3. I-tsing, p. 1
4. Vidyabhushana, History of Indian Logic, p. 516

120 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
a thousand could explain, as we have seen already,
twenty collections, of Sūtras. This means that there
were about a thousand competent teachers to look
after the education of about 4,000, but in no case,
more than 9,000 monk students. On the average
therefore each teacher was in charge of about not
more than nine students. Personal attention was
thus possible to each student and the teaching
therefore must have been very efficient. The college
had eight big halls and 300 smaller apartments and
every day the authorities used to arrange for about
a hundred lectures. Learned monk teachers were
held in high veneration and were provided with sedan
chairs. They were experts in the art of teaching and
expounding; I-tsing gratefully observes, 'I have been
very glad that I have had an opportunity of aquiring
knowledge personally from them, which I should
otherwise have never possessed.'
Curriculum : The curriculum at Nālandā was
very comprehensive and catholic. The establishment
belonged to the Mahāyāna school of Buddhism, but
the works of the rival school, the Hīnayāna one, were
also taught. This necessitated a study of Pali
language, in which most of the Hīnayāna works were
composed. Works of the famous Mahāyāna scholars
like Nāgārjuna, Vasubandhu, Asaṅga and Dharmakīrti
must have been specially studied. But it is not to be
supposed that the curriculum of the University was a
sectarian one in the sense that it neglected Hindu
subjects. In the first place it must be noted that
subjects like grammar, logic and literature were
common to both the Hindus and the Buddhists.
Secondly, we have to remember that Bauddha and
Hindu religion and philosophy had become so
intricately interconnected with each other that to study

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 121
the one without the other had become practically
impossible not only for the ambitious controversialist
but also for the sincere lover of truth. Buddhists
themselves inform us that the three Vedas, Vedānta
and Sāṁkhya philosophy were taught at the
University along with ‘miscellaneous works’¹. The
latter expression probably included the study of
subjects like Dharmaśāstra (sacred law), Purāṇas,
astronomy, astrology etc., which were very important
for the lay Hindu and Buddhist students. The study
of medicine chikitsāśāstra) which is referred to in the
sacred canon, was also prosecuted at the place.
Administration: At the head of the general
administration was the abbot-principal, who used to
be assisted by two councils, one academic and the
other administrative. How these bodies used to function
has been already described in the last chapter. To
arrange for the free boarding and lodging of so vast a
number of students as 5,000 (or perhaps 10,000) was
a very costly affair ; the University was enabled to do
it because different kings had assigned the revenues
of a large number of villages for the upkeep of the
establishment. The number of these villages was 200
during I-tsing’s stay at the University (c. 675-685
A.D.). Sealings of a number of these villages,
obviously attached to letters sent by them to the
University administration, have been found in
excavations.
Later History ; A Foreign Endowment : Nālandā
continued to be a famous centre of learning
down to the 12th century A. D. An 8th century
inscription describes how it was then excelling all other
towns and cities on account of its scholars who were

1. Life, p. 112.
2. Mahāvagga, Chap. VI.