Nalanda university was the most important and noted center of higher education in ancient India. Nalanda University was a rival of buddhism to oxford and kashi. The importance of Clooney and Clairvaux in France in the Middle age. Nalanda had a same importance in India.
Where was Nalanda University located
There was a Nalanda University in Nalanda district of Bihar. Where students from all over the country and abroad used to come for education. Now a days its remains are visible. 90 km from Patna and about 12 km south of Bihar Sharif, the ruins of Nalanda, the world famous ancient Buddhist university, are located. There were 2,000 teachers to teach 10,000 students. Renowned Chinese traveler Hensang spent an important year of life here as a student and a teacher in the 7th century.
The famous ‘Buddhist Sariputra‘ was born here. There is a lack of definite information about the construction of this university, yet the Gupta Dynasty ruler Kumaragupt (414-455 AD) made the first donation to this Buddhist association. According to Hieunsang , in 470 AD, Gupta Emperor Narasimha Gupta Baladitya built a beautiful temple in Nalanda and installed an 80 feet high copper Buddha statue in it.
One of the rulers of the north Gupta emperors took the fifth century. It was founded in. The rich people of India and the Indian colonies across the sea arranged funds for this. Luckily a lot of information about this Buddhist university is obtained from the descriptions of Hieunsang and Etsing, and from the records and archaeology.
Nalanda University Building
Nalanda University had a grand buildings. It had at least 8 colleges, which were built by 8 scholars. Among these 8 Vidyanuragis, the king of Srivijaya or Sumatra, Balaputradeva was the chief. These colleges were built in rows. The beauty of these buildings has been praised in the Nalanda inscription of Yashovarma. Hieunsang states that the entire university area was inside a brick wall. A door opens in college which stands apart from the 8 buildings in the middle. Highly furnished towers and pillars resembling fairy-like ridges were assembled. The observatory appears to be hidden (in the mist) and the rooms above are higher than the sky. the outside buildings, which have the priest’s place, are of four floors. The floors are big projections, colored caves. There are pillared and ornate red-marin-like columns, there are highly furnished platforms, and tiled roofs, the light of which is reflected in innumerable colors.
Not only were the grand buildings of Nalanda University, but students were also given all kinds of facilities to study. There were three large libraries in it, Ratnasagar, Ratnoddhi and Ratnaranjak. There were more than 10,000 students and teachers of all kinds. They used to come here from Korea, Mongolia, Japan, China, Tibet, Lanka, Tukhar, Greater India and various parts of India itself. In fact, they came from all parts of the Buddhist world. We know the names of many scholars of Korea, such as Hui-nyeh and Aryavarma. Hui-Nyeh’s presence is confirmed by the fact, That Etsing found this sentence on a manuscript – sitting under a neem (datunavriksha) – Nyah wrote this description -Not only people from outside come to Nalanda, scholars of Nalanda used to go to different parts of the world to propagate Buddhism. The scholars of Nalanda went to Tibet, Santarkshit, Padmasambhava, Kamalashila, Sthiramati and Buddhakirti. The names of those campaigning in China were Kumarajiv, Paramarth, Subhakar Singh and Dharmadev.
Nalanda University was primarily a Buddhist vihar. It was established to spread the teachings of Buddha. In this form, he provided facilities to thousands of Buddhist monks to study Buddhism day and night. Nalanda was the temple of God for those people. But Nalanda University has also grown beyond the vihara of Buddhist knowledge. Over time, subjects other than Buddhism began to be taught. Has been reported, that the subjects of study at Nalanda University were books of Veda, logic, grammar, medicine, medical science, Samkhya, Yoga-Nyaya and various branches of Buddhism.
Some of the most famous masters of Nalanda University were Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Anga, Shilabhadra, Vasubandhu, Dingnag, Dharmapal, Chandrapal, Prabhamitra, Jinamitra, Gyanachandra etc. It is reported that apart from these, many thousands of other brothers were also of great merit and wisdom, and hundreds of them were highly respected and very famous. Life in Nalanda was very busy. Days passed in study and debate. Day-Night they kept alerting each other about their duties. The younger- elders all helped each other in attaining full knowledge.
The ideal of Nalanda University was freedom to acquire knowledge.
From all sides, knowledge of all sects and all religions was welcomed. It was a real university. It was not a communal or class major school.
Seminars and debates to be held at Nalanda University
The teachers and learners of Nalanda University were biased and followers of different branches of philosophy. He used to meet in debates and seminars. Hiuensang has described some seminars of this type. Once when Shilabhadra sent him to explain some parts of Yoga-Shastra, another scholar, Sinharashmi, was giving a speech on completely opposite principles. Hiuensang closed his mouth with questions.
He left the university humiliated and was forced to go to Bodhivihar. Shilabhadra brought Chandrasingh of eastern India to Nalanda to debate with Hiuensang. But he is also defeated. A Lokayat philosopher wrote forty principles and hung them at the gate of Nalanda Vihar. He also put this information – If someone from the inside proves these principles wrong, then I will give my head to him as a proof of his victory. Hieunsang accepted the challenge and defeated the philosopher. But Hiuensang did not take his life and made him a disciple.
Nalanda University as a postgraduate institution
Nalanda University was not an ordinary university. It was a postgraduate institution. And it was very difficult to get into it. A tester was taken before admission. Only 20 percent of the students passed it. And the remaining 80 percent were spread. Only the fittest were allowed to enter. Hiuensang tells that people used to come to this university to complete their knowledge. Hiuensang has written – More and more men come here from different cities wanting to get fame soon in the dispute.
Seals from nalanda
Many seals have been obtained from Nalanda, on which this article is inscribed: Srinalanda-Mahavihara-Arya-Bhikshu-Sanghsya, i.e. the governing council of the prestigious Nalanda University. Dharmachakra is inscribed on most of the seals. A seal of a college or vihara was also obtained, on which this article is inscribed, Sri-Nalanda-Mahavihara-Gunakar-Buddha-Bhukshunam. Nalanda University seems to have been given a lot of respect and authority.
A lot of property was donated for the subsistence of Nalanda University. It had its own cereal fields and milk shops for milk. Hieunsang tells that he saw hundreds of packets of ordinary rice and milk and milk cotties coming from hundreds of packets and milks from his farming every day. (One pack is about one and a half mana and one kotti is almost equal to two mana.)
Nalanda University functioned as a corporate institution. The colleges or viharas related to him also functioned in the same way.
Nalanda University continued to progress for five centuries even after Etsing’s visit. The fall history of Nalanda University is a kind of history of the decline of Buddhism in India.
Reference : https://www.indiaolddays.com
