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

XI] ACHIEVEMENTS AND FAILURES 259
it is doubtful whether any progress was made in the
technique or processes of manufacture during the last
one thousand years.
Education of Masses neglected in later Times: At
the time when India was making rapid strides in the
different domains of knowledge, her education was
broad-based. In ancient Athens one in ten and in
ancient Sparta one in twenty five received education,¹
and women's education was altogether neglected. The
case was much different in India down to the com-
mencement of the Christian era. Literacy among the
Aryans was probably as high as 60 per cent in the days
of Aśoka. Anxious thought and care were also bestowed
on female education. Things, however, gradually
changed for the worse in the first millennium of the
Christian era. The education of women began to be
neglected. Kshatriyas and Vaishyas began to become
progressively illiterate. It is true that in Europe also
the masses were little more than barbarous and took
more naturally to warfare than to schooling down to
the end of the Middle Ages.² We can, however, hardly
derive any consolation from this comparison, for the
prevalent illiteracy in India was due to degeneration
from a more creditable condition, obtaining in earlier
centuries.
The neglect of Vernaculars : Hindu educational
system was unable to promote the education of the masses,
probably because of its concentration on Sanskrit and
the neglect of the vernaculars. The revival of Sanskrit
that took place early in the first millennium was un-
doubtedly productive of much good; it immensely
enriched the different branches of Sanskrit literature
which began to reflect the ideals and ideas of the
individual and the race. But owing to the deep fascina-
1 Monroe, A Text Book, pp. 26, 29.
2 Ibid, p. 261.

260 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
tion for Sanskrit, society began to identify the educated
man with the classical scholar as was the case in the
Europe of the Renaissance period. But when the best
minds became engaged in expressing their thoughts in
Sanskrit, Prakrits were naturally neglected. As long as
Sanskrit was intelligible to the ordinary individual, this
was not productive of much harm. But from about
the 8th century A.D. Prakrits and vernaculars became
widely differentiated from Sanskrit, and those who were
using them began to find it difficult to understand
the latter language. Hindu educationalists did not
realise the importance of developing vernacular litera-
tures in the interest of the man in the street. Alberuni
observes, “The language in India is divided into a
neglected vernacular one, only in use among the common
people, and a classical one, only in use among the upper
and educated classes, which is much cultivated.” 1
We no doubt come across a few cases from the 13th
century onwards where provision was made for the
teaching of Telugu, Canarese and Marathi in some of
of the schools and colleges of South India, but the
general impression produced by a survey of the edu-
cational system and institutions is that society was not
alive to the importance of the teaching and development
of vernaculars in the interest of the spread of education
among the masses. Things in India were however quite
on a par with what they were in contemporary Europe,
where Latin continued to be the medium of instruction
down to the 17th century A.D. The classics dominated
the curriculum of the Public Schools in England down
to c. 1850 A.D., boys could write better Latin than
English. In the 16th century school boys were
punished for using the mother tongue, and its study
could be started in Jesuitical schools only with the
1 Sachau, I, p. 18. Some poems and dramas were written in
Prakrit, but their number was very small.

XI] ACHIEVEMENTS AND FAILURES 261
special permission of the Provincial.¹ India however
could have been much in advance of the world ideas in
this matter if the impetus that was given to the cultiva-
tion of vernaculars by the two gifted Seers, Mahāvīra
and the Buddha, had not died down owing to the
revival of Sanskrit.
Depth at the cost of Breadth : Hindu education
was thorough, but it was not sufficiently broad. Each
branch was thinking of its own problems. Education-
alists do not seem to have bestowed much thought on
the relative utility of the study of the different branches
like grammar, literature, logic, philosophy, mathematics
and fine arts for the development of the intellect, the
mind and the imagination. Specialisation was started
too early. A broad-based secondary course embracing
a study of grammar, literature, mathematics,
astronomy and history did not exist.² Subjects of
æsthetic value like music and painting did not form part
of the general course, as they did in ancient Greece.
An undue emphasis was laid on grammar, literature
and logic at the cost of history, mathematics and
astronomy. Here again the impartial historian has to
point out that this defect of the Hindu educational
system was not peculiar to India, but was to be seen
all over the civilised world. In Europe all the energies
of teachers and students were concentrated on
grammar, rhetoric and dialectics down to the 13th
century ; only that much knowledge of arithmetic was
given which was necessary to calculate Church
festivals. Geography was ignored altogether till an
incentive to its study was given by the discoveries
of Columbus and Vasco de Gama. Natural sciences
1 Quick : The Essays, p. 81.
2. Many sided interests were not created probably because it
was difficult to maintain them in after life in an age when cheap
books were unknown. Crowded curriculum also has its own evils as
. the Matriculation student knows to his cost.

262 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
were introduced very reluctantly only by the middle of
the last century.¹
An unfair Comparison : Some of the defects
noted above like the neglect of the education of
women and the masses crept into the Hindu
Educational System only in later times; others like
the non-existence of a broad-based secondary course
and the neglect of the vernaculars were common to all
the contemporary systems. The twentieth century
critic often forgets that the West has gone on
progressing rapidly during the last 300 years owing to
the impetus it has received from the Renaissance, the
Reformation and the Scientific Movement, while India
has gone on deteriorating ever since 1000 A.D. owing
to the almost continuous foreign rule and its natural
consequences. The Muslim conquerors no doubt became
domiciled in India, but they were on the whole unable
to appreciate and encourage Hindu culture and
education to any appreciable extent. The effects of the
Muslim rule on the learning and scholarship of the
Hindus can be described in the words of a Muslim
himself. While describing the state of Hindu learning
after the invasions of Mahmud of Ghazni, Alberuni
observes, ‘The present times are not of this kind ; they
are the very opposite, (because there is no royal support
or encouragement to learning), and therefore it is quite
impossible that a new science or any new kind of research
should arise in our days. What we have of sciences is but
the scanty remains of byegone better times'² Bernier, while
describing the state of Hindu education in Benares

1. In Germany, science was introduced in secondary education
   in 1816 A.D. When the Royal Commission on Education apologeti-
   cally pleaded for the inclusion of science in the secondary courses in
   1856, 10 or 12 lectures began to be given annually in some of the
   Public Schools in England. The Faculty of Science was established
   in the London University only in 1860.
2. Sachau, I, p. 252.

XI] ACHIEVEMENTS AND FAILURES 263
towards the middle of the 17th century, observes,¹
"Students stay for ten or twelve years during which the
work of instruction proceeds but slowly. Feeling no
spirit of emulation and entertaining no hope that honour
or emoluments may be the reward of extraordinary
attainments as with us, the scholars pursue the studies
slowly, without much to distract their attention." The
Report of the Bengal Provincial Committee, Education
Commission, 1882, observes, 'The Mahomaden conquest
proved disastrous to all indigenous educational institu-
tions. The proprietary rights in land changed hands.
The language of the court was changed. Indigenous
learning lost most of its support ; and after the classes
had settled down, the well-to-do classes of the Hindus
took gradually to the cultivation of foreign language,
literature and manners. The tols were more and more
deserted and left to those only, who wanted to learn
the Hindu rituals. In course of time the Musalman
teachers and schools drew off the largest portion of the
upper and the middle classes of the community and
the tols and the pathaśālās either died or barely managed
to survive.'²
A general Estimate : It is therefore hardly fair
to compare 'the scanty remains of bye-gone better
times' with the tremenodus advance the West has
made during the last century and half under very
favourable circumstances³. The impartial historian
will have to note that in the heyday of her glorv.
education in India was broad-based, women and a large
section of the masses being admitted to its privileges and

1. Bernier, Travels in Moghul Empire, p. 334.
2. P. 2.
3. The historically correct procedure would be to compare
   Hindu Sanskrit learning at the advent of the British rule with the
   scholarship of the Christian monks who kept the lamp of learning
   burning during the Dark Ages. If such a comparison is instituted,
   India will have nothing to be afraid of.

264 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA
advantages. It was able to develop character and
personality, to inculcate civic virtues, and to turn out
citizens well qualified to follow their professions and
discharge their duties in life. It introduced a high
standard of culture and emphasised the necessity of
self-imposed discipline and stern regard for duty. It was
not only able to preserve the heritage of the past, but
also to enrich it from generation to generation. It
produced a galaxy of able scholars and thinkers from
age to age, who made important contributions to the
advancement of knowledge in the spheres of philosophy,
logic, mathematics, astronomy, medicine and chemistry.
It enabled India to achieve high material prosperity
by the excellent arrangements it made for training
young men in commerce, industry and fine and useful
arts. The general principles, which underlay the
system,—e. g. intellectual freedom, individual attention
to students, the monitorial system, gurukula ideal, plain
living and high thinking, mass education, combination of
useful and liberal education, the locating of educational
institutions away from the din and dust of the city-life,
etc.—are inherently sound and capable of yielding
excellent results even in modern times, if applied with
due regard to changed circumtances

APPENDIX I.
EDUCATIONAL RITUALS.
Religion has deeply saturated Hindu life in almost
all its phases and the sphere of education is no
exception. Rituals connected with the student’s life are
many, and several aspects of educational theory and
practice are illustrated by their study. For the benefit
of advanced students of the subject, it is therefore
proposed to devote this appendix to a critical survey
and rationalistic interpretation of the important rituals
connected with education.
SECTION A.
VIDYĀRAMBHA RITUAL (SAṄSKĀRA).¹
Its Time and Nature: Vidyārambha Saṁskāra,
which is described by some authorities also as
Aksharasvīkaraṇa, was performed, as the name would
suggest, at the commencement of the primary
education. Fifth year, which is usually regarded as
suitable for the beginning of the primary education,
was the time prescribed for it.² If the ritual had to be
postponed on account of unavoidable difficulties, it had
to be performed at least before the Upanayana
(Initiation or Thread Ceremony).³ An auspicious day
was selected for the purpose. The ritual was a simple

1. The original authorities for the information given in this
   section are the following:—Viramitrodaya, Saṁskāraprakāśa, pp. 321 ff;
   Aparārka on Yājñavalkya-smṛti, I, 13; Smṛtichandrikā, Saṁskārakāṇḍa,
   pp. 67 ff; Saṁskāra-ratna-mālā of Gopīnāthabhaṭṭa.
2. The Bismilla Khani ceremony, which the Muslims perform
   at the beginning of the primary education, is also performed in the
   5th year, or to be more correct, on the 4th day of the fourth month
   of the fifth year. It was performed on this day in the case of
   Humayun; J.A.S.B., 1935, p. 249.
3. द्वितीयजन्मनः पूर्वमारभेताक्षरासुन्धीः । Brihaspati in VMS.

266 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [App.
one, requiring the young boy to worship Sarasvatī, the
goddess of learning, Vināyaka, the god of learning,
and the tutelary deities of his family. Some authorities
prescribe a sacrifice, but probably it was not performed
everywhere. The worship of the deities was followed
by that of the primary teacher and the boy was then
handed over to him. The teacher used to make the
boy write on rice all the alphabets with the help of a
specially prepared golden or silver pen. Suitable
presents made to the teacher and the Brahmanas
invited for the ceremony marked the termination of
the ritual.
The Ritual non-existent in early Times : Why :
Vidyārambha is thus the earliest Sanskāra in the student's
life, but is does not, like Upanayana, go back to hoary
antiquity. The authorities, which prescribe and des-
cribe this ritual, are as late as the second millenium of
of the Christian era.¹ It appears indeed very strange
that the earlier works like the Grihya-sūtras and the
Dharma-sūtras, which have laid down rituals for such
relatively insignificant occasions like Grihya-nishkramaṇa
(when the child is first taken out from the house), and
anna-prāśana (when it is first given food), should have
failed to associate the commencement of the primary
education with any religious ceremony. The reason,
however, is not far to seek. Upanayana Sanskāra,
which existed even in the Vedic age, marked the begin-
ning of education in pre-historic times. There was thus
no necessity to prescribe a different Sanskāra like
aksharasvīkaraṇa (learning of the alphabet) for the simple
reason that the alphabet was then probably unknown.²

1. Viśvāmitra, Bṛhaspati, Mārkaṇḍeya, etc., who are quoted by
   these authorities, cannot be much earlier, as would be clear from
   the astronomical details mentioned by them. Such details make their
   appearance only after the 7th or the 8th century A.D.
2. The view of Dr. Bühler and others that alphabet was un-
   known in India before c. 800 B.C. has now to be abandoned in view of
   P. T. O.

I, A] VIDYĀRAMBHA SAṄSKĀRA 267
The education of children therefore naturally commenc-
ed not with the learning of the alphabets, but with the
memorising of the sacred hymns, which were the most
valued possession of the Aryans and constituted almost
their entire literature. Under these circumstances, the
Upanayana, which was prescribed at the commence-
ment of the Vedic studies, could be the only ritual to
be performed at the commencement of education.
When and Why Evolved : In the course of time
the Vedic Sanskrit ceased to be the spoken language,
the sciences of exegesis and grammar were developed,
and the art of writing was invented or became known.
Even the memorising of the Vedic hymns required
some previous elementary education. Upanayana
could therefore no longer mark the beginning of educa-
tion and a different ritual called Vidyārambha began
to be recommended for the commencement of primary
education. This must have taken place at a fairly
early date; the fact that the ritual is recommended
only by very late authorities is probably to be explained
by the circumstance that it was for a long time combined
with chaula or tonsure ceremony,¹ This combination was
(Continued from the last page)
the Indus Valley discoveries. There is clear cultural evidence to
show that the art of writing was known in the later Saṁhitā period
(c. 1600-1200 B.C.); see Ojha, Prāchīna-lipi-mālā, pp. 1-16. There is
no evidence to show that the art of writing was known in the early
Vedic period (2500-2000 B.C.). The Aryans were probably ignorant of
that art when they entered India and it may be eventually proved
that they learnt it from the "Indus people."

1. Cf. i वृत्तचौलकर्मा लिपिं संख्यानं चोपयुञ्जीत । Arthaśāstra,
   I. 2 [On prince's education].
   ii स वृत्तचौलश्चलकाकपक्षकैरमात्यपुत्रैः सवयोभिरन्वितः ।
   लिपेर्यथावद्ग्रहणेन वाङ्मयं नदीमुखेनेव समुद्रमाविशत् ॥
   Raghu. III. 7.
   iii [ लवकुशयोः ] निवृत्तचौलकर्मणोश्च तयोस्त्रयीवर्जमितरास्त्रिसो
   विद्याःसावधानेन मनसा परिनिष्ठापिताः ।
   Uttararāmacharit, Act II.

268 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [App.
facilitated by the fact that the time for the ritual, the
4th to the 7th year, was suitable also for the com-
mencement of primary education. The number and
nature of the locks of hair to be kept at the time of
the tonsure ceremony had close connection with the
Vedic sages with whom the family was believed to be
connected¹; this may also have suggested a synchroni-
sation of the commencement of primary education
with the celebration of the chaula-karma.
SECTION B.
UPANAYANA (INITIATION²) RITUAL
Upanayana, its Meaning and Significance
Upanayana literally means taking a student to a teacher
in order to hand him over to the latter for his education:
The ritual was originally performed when a student
commenced his Vedic education under the supervision
of a teacher, with whom he usually lived. It was not
an obligatory ritual ; if a student was unfit by character
or calibre to receive the Vedic education, he was not
admitted to its privillege.³ If, on the other hand, during
the course of his education, he had to go to a different
teacher, the ritual had to be repeated. Nay, it was felt
that it should be performed again even in the case of

1. Cf. यथर्षि शिखां विदधाति । A. G. S., XVI, 6:
   दक्षिणेन कपर्दो वसिष्ठानां उभयतोऽत्रिभार्गवकाश्यपानां
   पंचचूडा आंगिरसाम् । V.G.S., section 4.
   2 The popular English translation of the name of the ritual
   by 'Thread Ceremony' does not convey its real meaning at all. The
   wearing of the sacred thread was quite a minor element in the ritual.
2. अशूद्राणामदुष्टकर्मणामुपानयनम् । Ap. Gr. S., 1.1.5.
   विद्या ह वै ब्राह्मणमाजगाम गोपाय मां शेवधिष्टेऽहमस्मि ।
   असूयकायानुजवेऽयताय न मा ब्रूया वीर्यवती तथा स्याम् ॥
   Nirukta, II. 4.1.

I, B] UPANAYANA RITUAL 269
married men, if they wanted to prosecute further
studies under a new teacher.¹ It was thus essentially
an educational ritual and bore some resemblance to the
formality of the admission procedure in modern schools
and colleges. In the course of time, however its signi-
ficance changed. It was felt necessary that the services
of the whole Aryan community should be conscripted for
the preservation of the Vedic literature which had grown
to considerable dimensions in the course of centuries;
Upanayana and Vedic studies were therefore made
obligatory for all. If it was not performed in time, it
was declared that the person would lose his Aryan status
and become unfit for marriage and social intercourse.
This threat no doubt helped the spread of Vedic learning
and gave an impetus to primary education, which was
in later times presupposed by Vedic studies; but it
also tended to transform this educational function into
a bodily (śārīrika) ritual. It began to be argued that it
should be performed even in the case of dumb and
deaf persons in order to render them eligible for
marriage.² Some late Smṛiti writers felt that the
ritual was primarily for the purification of the body;
they have therefore recommended that it should be
repeated in case the body is defiled by the bite of a
1 Ch. Up. V. II. Here, as a special case, King Aśvapati excu
the formality of Upanayana before beginning to teach his distin-
guished Brāhmaṇa pupils. The latter, however, had come ready for
the Upanayana. Cf. :—
ते ह समित्पाणयः पूर्वाह्णे प्रतिचक्रमिरे । तान्हानुपनीयैव एतदुवाच ।
2. See VMS, p. 361. The difficulty created by the impossibility
of the recitation of Vedic hymns by a deaf and dumb person was got
over by the theory that they may be recited by the teacher on behalf
of the dumb student. बटुपठनीयानां मंत्राणामाचार्य प्रत्येकं पाठो विधीयते ।
Ibid. Some writers like Śaṅkha-Likhita however did not agree with
this view ; cf. नोन्मत्तमूकान्संस्कुर्यात् । Quoted in VMS., p. 406

270 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch.
dog or a jackal.¹ And if the holy Brahmana can be
rendered holier by this Saṁskāra, why should it fail
to perform a similar miracle in the case of other
inanimate objects ? In medieval times the custom
therefore arose of performing this ceremony over the
holy Pippal tree in order to make it holier.² All these,
however, are later anomalies that crept into society
when the original purpose of Upanayana was being
gradually forgotten.
Its Antiquity : The antiquity of this ritual goes
back to prehistoric times. It existed in the Indo-
Iranian period and is clearly presupposed by the
Ṛigveda [X. 109, 5; III. 8. 4 and 5]. The Atharva-
veda describes it in detail and attributes the
proper functioning of society and nature to its
mysterious efficacy.³ Details about the student's
life and paraphernalia, more or less similar to those
given in Smṛitis, are to be seen in several passages of
the Brāhmaṇa literature.⁴ In the early period, the
ritual was a simple one ; even a verbal acceptance by
the teacher was sufficient.⁵ For a long time the father
himself acted as the teacher (Br. Up., V. 2.1 ; VI. 2.9).

1. Cf. Śātātapa, Paiṭhīnasi and Yama quoted in VMS.,
   p. 545-7.
2. An inscription from Karnatak refers to a Brahmana, per-
   forming this ceremony on the four Aśvatha trees planted by him in
   a temple garden in 1358 A.D. E.C., III, Malavalli No. 28.
3. ब्रह्मचर्येणं तपसा राजा राष्ट्रं विरक्षति । XI. 5. 17.
   ब्रह्मचर्येण कन्या युवानं विन्दते पतिम् । XI. 5. 18.
   ब्रह्मचर्येण तपसा देवा मृत्युमपाघ्नत । XI. 5. 19.
   स दाधार पृथिवीं दिवं च ॥ XI. 5. 1.
   See also, VI. 138.
4. Tai. S., VI, 3, 10, 5; Sat. Br., XI, 5, 4, (here we have a
   detailed description of the Upanayana); Go. Br., I. 2, 1-8 (here we have
   several interesting reasons for the different rules of Brahmacharya).
5. वाचा ह स्मैव पूर्वमुपयति । Br. Up., VI. 2.7.

I, B] UPANAYANA RITUAL 271
Who were eligible for it ? Brahmanas, Kshatriyas
and Vaishyas were eligible for the Upanayana and Vedic
study. They are collectively called Dvijas, because
they were all believed to get a second birth, a spiritual
one, at the time of the Upanayana. When the ritual
became obligatory, it seems to have been regularly
performed by all these castes for several centuries.
Smritis give detailed rules about the different kinds
of girdles, staffs, sacred threads, etc. which were
prescribed for the members of the various castes.
Details about these minor variations would not have been
evolved if the ritual had not been a general one among
the Kshatriyas and the Vaishyas. In the course of
time, however, Vedic studies fell into background, partly
owing to the setback which the Vedic religion received
by the rise of the Upanishadic, Jain and Buddhist
movements, and partly by the development of other
branches of knowledge in the Hindu community itself.
Upanayana then began to fall into disuetitude among
the Kshatriyas and the Vaishyas, with whose professions
in subsequent life Vedic studies were but remotely
connected. This happened at about the beginning of
the Christian era, when the theory that only the
Brahmanas and Shudras exist in the Kali age seems to
have gained ascendancy¹. Kshatriyas and Vaishyas

1. Bhāsa (3rd century A. D.) and Daṇḍin (7th century A. D.)
   regarded the sacred thread as an insignia of a Brahmana and not of a
   Dvija. Cf :—
   यज्ञोपवीतेन ब्राह्मणश्चीवरेण रक्तपटः । Avimāraka, Act V.
   भवदंसोपनीतं यज्ञोपवीतं भूसुरभावं द्योतयति ।
   Daśakumāracharit, 2nd Chap.
   Cf also Raghuvamśa, XI, 64.
   An inscription however shows that the Upanayana of the Hoysala
   King Narasimha III, who was a Kshatriya, took place in his 9th year
   on 25-2-1255. It appears that even when the ritual had gone out of .
   vogue among the Kshatriyas in general, it continued among the royal
   families.

272 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [App.
were levelled down to the position of the Shudras,
primarily because they were not performing the Upa-
nayana ceremony and wearing the Sacred Thread.
Probably in respectable Kshatriya ruling families, the
ritual continued to be performed down to the 13th
century, but their number was very small. The testi-
mony of Alberuni (I, p. 125) shows that the Vedic
education had practically died down among the
Kshatriyas and the Vaishyas before the 11th century
A.D. In the earlier centuries of the Christian era, the
ritual was performed by these castes as an unmeaning
formality, as is the case with the Brahmanas now.
Later on it was discontinued. It may be noted in this
connection that it was not without difficulty that
Shivaji could succeed in getting a Brahmana Pandit
from Benares, ready to perform the Upanayana for
him at the age of 44.
The Age at the Upanayana : The Upanayana
marks the beginning of the Vedic education, which in
several respects resembled the secondary education of
modern times. Naturally therefore some age between
8 and 12 was regarded as suitable for it. Usually our
texts prescribe that the Upanayana should be performed
in the 8th year in the case of a Brahmana, in the 11th
year in the case of a Kshatriya and in the 12th year in
the case of a Vaishya. No particular sanctity was
attached to these ages¹ ; for, some writers like
Baudhāyana regard any age between 8 and 16 as
suitable for the Upanayana². There was no idea of

1. The selection of these particular ages seems to have been due
   to the rather fortuitous circumstance of the syllables of each line of
   the Sāvitrī Mantras of these castes being 8, 11 and 12 respectively. Cf.
   ब्राह्मणादिवर्णसंबंधिनां छंदसां पादाक्षरसंख्यैरब्दैरुपनयनस्य विधेः ( कार्य-
   वात् ) । Medhātithi on Manu, II. 38. Cf. also VMS., p. 344.
2. अष्टमे आयुष्कामं नवमे तेजस्कामं••••त्रयोदशे मेधाकामं चतुर्दशे
   पुष्टिकामं••••षोडशे सर्वकामम् । Bau. Gr. S., II. 5. 5.

I, B] UPANAYANA RITUAL 273
emphasising the intellectual superiority of the
Brahmanas¹, when a lower age was prescribed for their
Upanayana. Family traditions in Brahmanical circles
facilitated Vedic educatiou at an early age ; such was
not the case with Kshatriyas and Vaishyas. Brahmana
boys could very often begin their Vedic education at
home ; Kshatriya and Vaishya boys had necessarily to
leave their families and go to a Brahmana teacher for
that purpose ; the age of 11 or 12, when boys are to
some extent able to look after themselves, was there-
fore found convenient for them. It is interesting to
note that the Brahmana boy Śvetaketu also performed
his Upanayana at the age 12 and immediately went
to stay with his preceptor for prosecuting his education
(Ch. Up. VI. 1-2). It would therefore appear that
even in Brahmanical families, the Upanayana was post-
poned to a later age when it was to be followed by the
separation of the boy from his family. It is the similar
necessity of sending the boys outside to a town or a
city that compels villagers of our time to begin their
wards' secondary education at about the age of 11 or
12. In cultured Brahmana families, which were very
keen about the quick progress of their sons, the
tradition was to perform the Upanayana and begin the
Vedic studies even earlier than the 8th year². This
practice is similar to that of many well-to-do and
cultured city families, which begin the secondary or
English education of their wards at about the age of
6 or 7. Smṛitis have therefore naturally given much
latitude about the age at the Upanayana in order to
suit the circumstances and convenience of the different

1. As supposed by Keay (p. 29) and Das (p. 72).
2. सप्तमे ब्राह्मणमुपनयीत पंचमे ब्रह्मवर्चसकामम् । J. Gr., S., I. 12.
   Cf. also G. D. S., 1. 1. 7; M. Gr. S., 1. 22. 1; Vâ. Gr. S., 6.
   18

274 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [App.
types of families in society¹. They however felt that
it ought to begin at about the age of 12, for the powers
of mind that were required for the Vedic studies could
be properly cultivated and developed only at an
early age. The commencement of the Vedic studies
after the age of 16 has been definitely discouraged
by them,² for it was rightly apprehended that a boy
who begins his studies at such an advanced age may
find them too tedious, his mind having already become
susceptible to sensuous attractions.
Critical Survey of the Ritual: An educationalist
will find the survey of the Upanayana ritual very
interesting and instructive. The ritual opens with a
breakfast (which precedes even the bath), during which
it is the custom in many parts of the country for the
boy to share food with his mother in the same dish.
A breakfast before bath is unusual in Hindu rituals

1. A child of 6 or 7 could not recite with proper accent and
   pronunciation even the Sāvitrī verse; so it was recommended that in
   the cases of very early Upanayanas, the teaching of this Mantra
   should be postponed by about a year; Cf. तां ह स्मैतां पुरा संवत्सरे
   अन्वाहुः संवत्सरसंमिता वै गर्भाः । S. Br. XI. It may be noted in this
   connection that at a time when there was a prejudice against commit-
   ting the Vedic texts to writing and when grammar had not been
   evolved, not much preparation by way of primary education was
   necessary for commencing Vedic studies. They could therefore be
   begun even at the early age of 6 or 7.
   It is interesting to note that Smṛitis do not lay down any
   detailed rules about the astrological auspiciousness of the day of
   the Upanayana. These were introduced in medieval times.
2. नातिषोडशवर्षमुपनयीत प्रसृष्टवृषणो ह्येष वृषलीभूतो भवति ।
   J. Gr. S., 1. 12.
   The upper limit of 22 and 24 permitted for the Kshatriyas and
   Vaishyas is due simply to the doubling of their normal age. The
   readiness of Mitramisra, a 17th century writer, to permit Upanayana
   upto the age of 24, 33 and 36 seems to be due to the exigencies of the
   age, when some persons like Shivaji were performing the ritual,
   when reminded about it, or when it became absolutely necessary.
   VMS., 351.

I, B] UPANAYANA-RITUAL 275
and its occurrence at the Upanayana was obviously
intended to indicate that the earlier period of
unregulated childhood had come to an end and that
serious and disciplined life was now to follow.
Breakfast was followed by a shave,—an invariable
element in most of the Hindu religious observances.
The boy was then given a bath and offered a
Kaupīna¹. This was to remind him that the Upanayana
commenced a new epoch in his life from which dignity,
decorum and self-restraint could never be separated. A
girdle (mekhalā) was tied round his waist as a support for
Kaupīna. It was made of triple cord, the symbolism
being intended to foster the belief in the scholar that he
was being continuously encircled by the three Vedas².
The verses recited on the occasion of tying the girdle
informed the boy that his belt was a daughter of Faith
(Śraddhā) and a sister of the sages, possesed the power
of protecting his purity and chastity and would keep
him away from evil³. Hindu ideas of decorum
required that when engaged in religious duties, the
upper part of the body should be covered with a
piece of cloth⁴. On the occasion of the Upanayana the
young scholar was therefore offered an upper garment.
In the earliest period, when spinning and weaving were

1. Kaupīna denotes the small strip of cloth used by childrer
   to cover their private parts. It was usually discontinued
   at about the age of 12 when the boy was required to wear
   the full dhoti. Cf. Aśvalāyana quoted in VMS., p. 432
2. वेदत्रयेणावृतोऽहमिति मन्येत स द्विजः । अश्वलायन
   in VMS., p. 432
3. श्रद्धाया दुहिता तपसोधिजाता स्वसा ऋषीणां भूतकृतां बभूव ।
   A. V., VI. 138. 4.
   ऋतस्य गोप्त्री तपसश्चरित्री घ्नती रक्षांसि सहमानाऽरातीः ।
   Vā. Gr. S. 5.
4. स्नानं दानं तपो होमः स्वाध्यायः पितृतर्पणम् ।
   नैकवस्त्रो द्विजः कुर्याच्छ्राद्धभोजनसत्क्रियाः ॥
   Yogayājñavalkya in SCS., p. 299

276 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [App.
probably unknown, a deer-skin was offered on the
occasion. The youth was asked to remember that the
lovely deerskin is symbolical of brahmavarchasam or
spiritual and intellectual preeminence and that its
constant use ought to urge him to attain reputation
as a man of character and scholarship¹. When
spinning and weaving became common, a piece of
cloth was offered to the boy on this occasion, spun
and woven in his own family just before the
ceremony². A survey of the Gṛihya-sūtras, which
describe the Upanayana ritual in detail, shows that
the investiture with the Sacred Thread did not form
part of the Upanayana ritual. The upper garment
that was offered to the boy was in lieu of the Sacred
Thread or rather its predecessor. This will be shown
in the Appendix D, where the whole history of the
Sacred Thread and its significance will be discussed in
details.
Presentation to Deities : Invested with the above
paraphernalia, the boy was taken to the sacred fire,
the earliest Indo-European deity known so far. He
was asked to offer a samidh (a piece of sacred fuel) to
the gleaming fire and the verses recited on the occasion
prayed that God Fire should be auspicious to the
young scholar and endow him with brilliance,
intelligence and vigour³, so that his scholarship and
strength should glow up like the resplendent flame of
fire. In order to intensify his piety, the boy was
then presented to a number of Vedic deities like Bhaga,
Yama, Aryamā and Savitrī. The last mentioned god
was charged with the special duty of protecting the

1. G. Br., I. 2. 1-3
2. वासः सद्यःकृत्वोतं । B. Gr. S., II. 5. 11
3. Cf. अयं ते इध्म आत्मा जातवेदः तेन वर्द्धस्व चेन्द्ध वर्द्धय चास्मान् ।
   Bh. Gr. S., I. 5.

I, B] UPANAYANA RITUAL 277
student from harm, disease and death¹. When this
presentation was over, the teacher assured his pupil
that he was thenceforward under divine protection²;
fortified by that consciousness, he should push forth
his studies without any apprehensions.
Standing on Stone : The next element in the
ritual is a symbolical one; the boy was asked to stand
on a stone and enjoined to be steadfast in the pursuit
of his studies³. Firm determination and singleness
of purpose are most essential for a successful
educational career and the necessity of cultivating them
was emphasised on the scholar's mind by this element
in the ritual.
Acceptance by the Teacher : The scholar was then
brought before his teacher who asked him whose Braha-
chārin⁴ (student) he was. The young boy naturally
replied to the preceptor that he was the latter's disciple.
The preceptor then used to correct him and asked
him to note that he was the pupil of gods Indra and
Agni, the most popular and powerful among the Vedic
deities⁵. When formally taking charge of the pupil
by seizing his right hand, the teacher used to announce
that he was doing so with the command and concur-
rence of God Savitṛi.⁶ The teacher then touched the

1. Cf. देव सवितेरेष ते ब्रह्मचारी स मा मृत । Aś. Gr. S., I, 20, 6
2. Śat Br., XI. 5, 4, 3.
3. Mā. Gr. S., I. 22. 12. Stone was also symbolical of strength:
   Bh. G. S. held that the significance of the ritual was to
   make the boy invulnerable. I. 8.
4. Brahma originally meant prayer; the original meaning
   of Brahmacharya was thus the period of study of the sacred prayers
   or the Vedic Mantras. Since chastity was usually observed in this
   period, the term came to acquire the secondary sense of a period of
   chastity as well. Brahmachārin was one who followed Brahmacharya
   discipline.
5. Cf. कस्य त्वं ब्रह्मचार्यसि । भवत इत्युच्यमाने इन्द्रस्य ब्रह्मचार्यसि
   अग्निरचार्यस्तव अहमाचार्यस्तव । Pā. Gr. S., II, 3.
6. Aś. Gr. S., I. 20, 4.

278 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [App.
heart of his pupil and prayed that there should be a
perpetual and perfect accord between them.¹ All this
was intended to emphasise that the relations between the
teacher and the pupil were sacred and not mercenary
and progress in education was possible only if there
was complete harmony, sympathy and whole-hearted
communion between the teacher and the taught.
Teaching and Significance of the Savitri (Gayatri)
Mantra: Then followed the actual initiation of the
student in the Vedic studies, which was done by
teaching him a prayer to the sun (Sāvitrī-mantra);
this is popularly known as Gāyatrī-mantra on account
of its metre. This prayer, which every student and
householder had to recite morning and evening, runs
as follows:—
Tat savitur vareṇyām bhargo devasya dhīmahi Dhiyo
*yo naḥ prachodayāt.*²

1. H Gr. S., 1. 5. 11.
2. Early authorities like Pā. Gr. S., II. 3. 10 prescribe the
   same prayer to the sun for the students of all the castes. Later
   writers begin to prescribe a different Mantra for the Kshatriyas and
   the Vaishyas, probably influenced by the theory that Trishtubh
   metre is appropriate for the Kshatriya and the Jagatī for the Vaishya.
   The tradition however is not unanimous about these Mantras and
   may be taken to be unreliable as far as the early period is concerned.
   The following Mantras are prescribed by different authorities for the
   Kshatriya:—
   आ कृष्णेन रजसा वर्तमानो निवेशयन्नमृतं मर्त्यं च ।
   हिरण्येन सविता रथेन देवो याति भुवनानि पश्यन् ॥
   (According to Medhātithi on Manu, II. 38)
   हिरण्यपाणिः सविता विचर्षणिुरुभे द्यावापृथिवी अंतरीयते ।
   अपामीवां बाधते वेति सूर्यमभि कृष्णेन रजसा द्यामृणोति ॥
   (According to Nārāyaṇa on S. Gr. S. II. 5)
   The Mantras for the Vaishyas are said to be the following:—
   विश्वा रूपाणि प्रतिमुंचते कविः प्रासावीद्भद्रं द्विपदे चतुष्पदे ।
   वि नाकमख्यत्सविता वरेण्योऽनु प्रयाणमुषसो विराजति ॥
   (According to Medhātithi on Manu II. 38, Śātātapa and
   Laugākshī quoted in VMS., p. 430 and Aparārka on Yāj I. 15)
   P. T. Q.