India has a rich tradition of learning and education right
from the antiquity. These were handed over generations to generations either
through oral or written medium. The approach to learning was to study logic and
epistemology. The study of logic was followed by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains. To begin with, in ancient India; the main subject was the
Veda. The teacher would instruct handful of students seated on ground. For many
hours daily they would repeat verses after verses of the Vedas till they attain
mastery of at least one of them. To ensure correctness of memory, the hymns
were taught in more than one way. This
method of teaching was known as gurukul
teaching. The word gurukul means that teacher is the guru who takes
charge of some young students who will stay with him and help to guru in daily chores and learn by
verbal method. Gurukulas have existed
since the Vedic age. Upanishads mention many gurukuls, including that of Yajnavalkya, Varuni. The famous discourse on Brahman, is mentioned to have taken place in Guru
Varuni’s gurukul The gurukuls were supported by public donation. Vedic
school of thought prescribes an initiation (Upanayanam) to all individuals before the
age of 8 or latest by 12. From initiation until the age of 25 all individuals are prescribed to be students
and to remain unmarried. Students were generally from the higher cast of the
society and after the upanayanam ceremony they were called Brahman. So
only upper cast and rich students could have the access of gurukul
facility. In ancient India in 600 B.C. a new doctrine
developed which is called Buddhist philosophy. On the foundation of this
philosophy a new and special Education System originated in ancient India.
Buddhist Education was a strong protest against orthodox education system.
Nobody was deprived of education due to caste
discrimination. This doctrine was very much adored by Swami Vivekananda.
His was in all praise for Lord Buddha, in his words:” You see that non-killing of animals and charity towards animals was
an already existing doctrine when he (The Buddha) was born; but it was new with
him -- the breaking down of caste, that tremendous movement. And the other
thing that was new: he took forty of his disciples and sent them all over the
world, saying, "Go ye; mix with all races and nations and preach the
excellent gospel for the good of all, for the benefit of all." He died at a ripe old age. All his life he
was a most stern man: he never yielded to weakness. I like his method of work,
but what I like [most] in that man is that, among all the prophets of mankind,
here was a man who never had any cobwebs in his brain, and [who was] sane and
strong. When kingdoms were at his feet, he was still the same man, maintaining,
"I am a man amongst men. (Complete works of Swami Vivekananda Volume 3, Page
527 )Those last dying words of his always thrilled through my heart.
Buddha was old, he was suffering, he was
near his death, and then came the despised outcaste -chanda- he lives on
carrion, dead animals; the Hindus would not allow them to come into cities --
one of these invited him to a dinner and Buddha
came with his disciples, and the poor Chanda,, he wanted to treat this
great teacher according to what he thought would be best; so he had a lot of
pig's flesh and a lot of rice for him, and Buddha looked at that. The disciples were all [hesitating], and the
Master said: "Well, do not eat, you will be hurt." But he quietly sat
down and ate. The teacher of equality must eat the [outcaste] Chanda's dinner,
even the pig's flesh. He was already dying.
He found death coming on, and he said, "Spread for me something under this
tree, for I think the end is near." And he was there under the tree, and
he laid himself down; he could not sit up any more. And the first thing he did,
he said: "Go to that Chanda and tell him that he has been one of my
greatest benefactors; for his meal, I am going to Nirvana." And then
several men came to be instructed, and a disciple said, "Do not go near
now, the Master is passing away." And as soon as he heard it, the Lord
said, "Let them come in." And somebody else came and the disciples
would not [let them enter]. Again they came, and then the dying Lord said:
"And O, thou Ananda, I am passing away. Weep not for me. Think not for me.
I am gone. Work out diligently your own salvation. Each one of you is just what
I am. I am nothing but one of you. What I am today is what I made myself. Do
you struggle and make yourselves what I am. . . ."These are the memorable
words of Buddha: "Believe not because an old book is produced as an
authority. Believe not because your father said [you should] believe the same.
Believe not because other people like you believe it. Test everything, try
everything, and then believe it, and if you find it for the good of many, give
it to all." And with these words, the Master passed away. See the sanity
of the man. No gods, no angels, no demons -- nobody. Nothing of that kind, Stern, sane, every brain cell perfect and complete, even at the
moment of death. No delusion .In my opinion -- oh, if I had only one drop of
that strength! The sanest philosopher the world ever saw. Without the Buddhist
revolution what would have delivered the suffering millions of the lower
classes from the violent tyrannies of the influential higher castes? [The
Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda Volume 3 [Page : 528 ] (BUDDHISTIC INDIA)]
The essence of Buddhism was all borrowed from the same
Upanishads; even the ethics, the so-called great and wonderful ethics of
Buddhism, were there word for word, in some one or other of the Upanishads.
(The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda Volume 3 [Page:
230] ) Vedanta in its application to
Indian life’
Many people were attracted by his
(Buddha) philosophy which was new to them. That is why many Buddhist
monasteries grew up during Pala dynasty (that existed
from 750–1174 CE). Buddhist
Monasteries become the Centre of Education. After admission, the students had
to follow monastic rules along with their syllabus and they were classified
according to merit. The period of Education was 12 years. The teachers were the
guardian of the students. They were
responsible for physical, mental, spiritual and moral development of the
students. Since Educational Institution (Monasteries) was residential therefore
the relationship between the teachers and the students were very cordial. The
main stress was given to have a clear idea of various
scriptures. In the later
period according to the demand of the society and professional Education: art, sculpture, architecture, medicine were
also included in the syllabus. At the initial stage medium of Education was
mother tongue, later it included Pali & Prakrit and in the following days
Sanskrit also introduced. It is to be mentioned that Vedic subjects also
included in the syllabus. This was a historic development. Monasteries
became the centre of Buddhist Education
later developed into colleges & universities. Nalanda, Vikramsila, Sompori,
Salban, Taxila became unparallel universities. The teachers were highly
qualified. The aim of Buddhist Education is to make a free man, a wise,
intelligent, moral, non-violent & secular man. Students became judicious,
humanist, logical and free from superstitious. Students became free from greed,
lust and ignorance. Buddhist Education was wide open and available to the
people of all walks of life. The principal goal of the Buddhist Education is to
change an unwise to wise, beast to priest. Although a
small number of students study under a single teacher Students from China, Myanmar,
Thailand, and Gandhara came to have their studies there. Later these universities were preferred by students all over the world and
other international scholars. Indian education in the ancient era contributed a
lot for the growth of medieval education. Furthermore, the ancient education
system popularized the elements of innovation, an appeal and incentive to
improve traditional knowledge.
Famous men connected with Taxila were Panini, the grammarian of the fifth or fourth century
B.C.: Kautilya, the Brahmin minister of Chandragupta Maurya and Charaka one of
the two leading authorities of Indian medical sciences. Taxila was famous for medicine and learning mathematics and astronomy. There were two
other great universities grew up during
Pala dynasty as Nalanda and Vikramashila. These universities were
called Maha Viharas (Pali for "Great Monastery”). Vikramaśīla was the premier university of
the era. Vikramaśīla University
was one of the two most important centers of Buddhist learning in India during
the Pala
dynasty, along with
Nalanda University.
FOUNDATION OF VIKRAMSHILA UNIVERSITY
The Vikramshila University was established by King Dharmapala in the 8th century AD, which grew to
become the intellectual center for Tantric Buddhism. In the beginning of the
11th century AD, during the reign of King Ramapala, India of yesteryears was going through a
transitory phase i.e. the early medieval period. The great dynasties were
gradually giving way to the invaders from the West. The age was no longer The
Golden Age. Political and social values were crumbling, as was the hold of the
central political authority. This was the political setting when Dharampala
established the Vikramshila, on the banks of the river Ganges in Magadha (now
near Bhagalpur). A joint board of scholars governed the Vikramshila University.
Shrigyan Dipankar Atisha, the renowned pundit and the scholar, was the key for
establishing Vikramshila as a center of education. Vikramaśīla is known to us
mainly through Tibetan sources, especially the writings of Taranatha, the Tibetan monk historian of 16th-17th Century AD. The entire campus was circular in
structure spread out within a radius of nearly 150 miles. There were 53 rooms
meant for Tantrik practice, another 54 for general use and 17 monastic cells
opening into the verandahs. This University was established primarily to spread
Buddhism. Vikramaśīla was one of the largest Buddhist
universities, with more than one hundred teachers and about one thousand
students. Highly qualified teachers were called Dwarpalas. Who used to sit on
the gates to take the entrance test of the students seeking admission.
Vikramshila University had four such gates on east, west, north and south. Four eminent teachers of four
different subjects were posted at the gates who took the interview of the
students seeking admission to the university. Subjects like philosophy,
grammar, metaphysics, Indian logic etc. were taught here.
The center of the university once had a huge temple, adorned
with a life-size
copy of the Mahabodhi tree. It is said that approximately 108 temples were
constructed around it. Out of these, almost 53 temples were dedicated to the
study of the Guhyasamaja Tantra. The
entrance of the main temple stood guarded by two brilliant statues of Nagarjuna and Atisa
Dipankar (the great scholar of the Vikramasila University) .This University produced many eminent scholars who were
often invited by foreign countries to spread Buddhist learning, culture and
religion. The most distinguished and eminent among all was Atisa Dipankara.Vikramshila University prospered for about four
centuries then was destroyed by Bakhtiyar Khilji during fighting with the Sena dynasty along with the other major centers.
VIKRAMSHILA RUINS
At present only ruins of ancient university Vikramasila can
be seen which is located at village Antichak about 50 km east of Bhagalpur Bihar and about 13 km north-east of Kahalgaon, a railway station on Bhagalpur-Sahebganj section of Eastern Railway.
It is approachable through 11 km long motor able road diverting from
N.H.80 at Anadipur about 2 km from Kahalgaon. Vikramshila also lies very close to
Champanagar, another famous Buddhist destination in Bihar.
EXCAVATION
The remains of the ancient university have been partially
excavated, and the process is still underway. Meticulous excavation at the site
was conducted initially by Patna University (1960–69) and subsequently by Archaeological Survey of India
(1972–82). It has revealed a huge square monastery with a cruciform stupa in its centre, a library building and cluster of stupas. To the
north of monastery a number of scattered structures including a Tibetan and a
Hindu temple have been found. The entire spread is over an area of more than
one hundred acres.
THE MONASTERY
The monastery, or residence for the Buddhist monks, is a
huge square structure, each side measuring 330 meters having a series of 208
cells, 52 on each of the four sides opening into a common verandah. A few brick
arched underground chambers beneath some of the cells have also been noticed
which were probably meant for confined meditation by the monks. The main stupa,
built for the purpose of worship, is a brick structure laid in mud mortar which
stands in the centre of the square monastery. This two terraced stupa is
cruciform on plan and about 15 meters high from the ground level accessible
through a flight of steps on the north side. On each of the four cardinal
directions There is a protruding chamber with a pillared antechamber and a
separate pillared mandapa in front. In the four chambers of the stupa were
placed colossal stucco images of seated Buddha of which three were found in
situ but the remaining one on north side was possibly replaced by a stone image
after the clay image was somehow damaged. About 32 meters south of the
monastery on its south west corner and attached with the main monastery through
a narrow corridor is a rectangular structure identified as a library building.
It was air-conditioned by cooled water of the adjoining reservoir through a
range of vents in the back wall. The system was perhaps meant for preserving
delicate manuscripts. A large number of antiquities of different materials,
unearthed from this place in the course of excavation, are displayed in the
site museum maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India.
THE MAIN STUPA AT THE CENTER
The Stupa is a sacred solid structure raised over the body
remains or belongings of Buddha or a distinguished monk; or to commemorate any
event associated with them. But some stupas are merely symbolic made for
worship by the monks. Others are miniature stupa erected by a devotee in
gratitude of fulfillment of his desire. The Vikramshila stupa built for the
purpose of worship is a brick structure laid in mud mortar and stands in the
centre of the square monastery. This two terraced stupa is cruciform on plan
and about 15 meters high from the ground level. The lower Terrance is about
2.25 meters high from the ground level and the upper terrace is at a similar
height from the lower side. At both terraces there is a circumbulatory path,
the lower about 4.50 meters wide and the upper about 3 meters wide. The main
stupa placed over the upper terrace is accessible through a flight of steps on
the north side on each of the four cardinal direction. There is a protruding
chamber with a pillared antechamber and a separate pillared mandapa in front, placed beyond the
circumbulatory passage. In the four chambers of stupa were placed colossal
stucco images of seated Buddha of which three were found in Situ but the remaining of the north side was possibly replaced by a
stone image after the clay image was somehow damaged. All the Stucco images are
unfortunately broken above the waist portion. The images are placed over a
brick pedestal having traces of painting in red and black pigments. The walls
and floors of the chamber and Antechamber were plastered with lime.
THE WALL CARVINGS OF VARIOUS DEITIES
The walls of both the terraces are decorated with mouldings
and terracotta plaques which testify the high excellence of Terracotta art flourishing in the region during
Pala period (8th to 12th century A.D). Over the plaques are depicted many
Buddhist deities like Buddha,Avalokiteshvara, Manjisri, Maitreya, Jambala, Marichi, Tara and scenes related to Buddhism in addition to
some social scenes and a few Hindi
deitie like Vishnu, Parvati, Ardhanarisvara and Hanuman. In Addition many human figures like that of Asceitc,Yogi, preacher,
drummer, warier, archer, snake charmer etc. and animal figures like Monkey,
Elephant, Horse, Dear, Boar, Panther, Lion, wolf and birds are depicted.The
Architecture of the Stupa and the Terracotta plaques bear great resemblance to
the somapura
mahavihar, Paharpur
(Bangladesh) which, too, was founded by the same king Dharmapala. On plan both are very much alike with the significant difference that
Somapura is centered on a central temple rather than a stupa. Vikramasila
monastery is also larger and has fort like projections on its outer wall.
RESTORATION WORK
Vikramaśīla was neglected for years which contributed to
extensive damages to the monument A.S.I. is now planning to develop the excavated site of Vikramshila
University. From the year 2009, there has been considerable work in maintaining
and beautifying the place to attract tourism. There has been inflow of western
tourist as well, during their river cruises on the Ganges River.
RELEVANCE OF ANCIENT SYSTEM OF EDUCATION TO
MODERN EDUCATION SYSTEM.
What is the modern education actually offering to the
students? Why there are School shootings, drug Addiction, overexposure to sex,
smoking, alcoholism, raping women, committing suicide at a very young age,
showing disrespect towards elders and other people in the society are
increasing many folds day by day? Why are the well educated people still
involved in immoral activities? Why was the ancient Gurukul education
successful? How the Gurukul system did kept its students away from all kinds of
immoral activities? Why did they have special respect for people and animals
living around them? Why were they so positive, brilliant and austere in nature?
Time has come to probe into the ancient system of education.
First of all one should know how the Gurukul system worked. It was one such
system that offered education to its students who had positive mental attitude.
But where did positive mental attitude come from? The first lesson to gain
positive energy and mental attitude came from the Guru himself. Gurus were
involved in penance, reading Vedas and performed spiritual activities done for
the good of mankind and not for him. Such
lifestyle always has one ambition. Not to hurt anyone but to help many.
The Gurus had the power to transform humans into positive minded people. And
these positive minded people always thought welfare of the people and animals
in the nature.
Gururkul system of education is a simple concept where
children learn under great scholars but they have to stay away from their
parents. It is not the modern boarding school but a school that teaches moral
values and imparts spiritual knowledge. A place where children learn to live in a green and
friendly environment with no distractions around them. Nobel laurite
Rabindranath Tagore also had the same idea, he
was dissatisfied with the western model of education introduced into
India during the British rule and the emphasis on learning English language and
the western subjects, felt that the gurukul system had several merits and could
prove useful in educating the children of India in natural surroundings
and building their character and sense of appreciation. He wrote," My view
is that we should follow the ancient Indian principles of education. Students
and teachers should live together in natural surroundings, and the students should
complete their education by practicing brahmacharya. Founded on the eternal
truths of human nature, these principles have lost nothing of their
significance, however, much our circumstances might have altered through the
ages." He also felt the need to protect children from disturbing
influences, a problem which the gurukuls took care in ample measure. He
wrote, "The human mind is in the embryo stage in childhood and school boys
should live in surroundings which protect them from all disturbing forces. To
acquire strength by absorbing knowledge both consciously and unconsciously should
be their sole aim, and their environment should be adapted to this
purpose."
The small sacrifice made by parents pays great dividends
later in their life. Children learn to lead a simple life with little or no bad
habits. Their memory gains great momentum to learn things. Students learn the
significance of co-existence with nature. Better concentration on their
studies. Body feels lighter and memory is enhanced because of the fresh air
from the surrounding greenery. Parents
do not have to monitor their daily activities when children reach the age of
adolescence because they will be capable of choosing the right way of dealing
with people. With the friendly environment and active teachers they are able to
reach great heights and become good citizens of a nation. They become
supporting pillars to elders in their family.
;
ACCEPTABLE
FEATURES OF EDUCATION OF VEDIC PERIOD AND MODERN EDUCATION.
There is a wide gap of Education
between Ancient Indian Education and Modern Indian Education. Still there are several
elements of ancient education which can find room in modern education both in
theory and practice. Those are: Idealism, Discipline, Teacher – Pupil
Relationship, Subject of studies, Teaching Method, Simple Life of Students, All
Round Development, Equality of Opportunity.
AMALGAMATION OF EASTERN CULTURE AND WESTERN
METHODS.
India surpasses the World by no small measure on issues of
culture and knowledge. It is one of the oldest living cultures in the whole
world, despite hit after hit on it in the past during alien rule. When
it comes to advancement in knowledge and science it is the west that has led
the world. Looking at the mechanism of expansionism and spreading out, the west
has always had the upper hand. Importance of knowledge in education cannot be
denied. Purpose of education has unfortunately been misunderstood to mean
acquiring as much academic knowledge as possible, leading towards award of
degrees. But equally important is inculcating skills in all the vocations
according to aptitude of different individuals through practical training for
overall development of nation. Training in different vocations should be given
when minds of individuals are still in formative stage. Training becomes necessary
for applying knowledge in real life. There is no doubt that modern education
has given to India the key to the treasures of scientific and modern
democratic thought. It is the west that has led the world in advancement in
technology and science. It opened up the doors for liberal and rational
thinking. It widened the mental horizons of Indian intelligentsia during
nineteenth century. However, somewhere it got derailed and now the system of
education at all the stages, from preliminary through secondary right up-to the
college stage makes mind just a store-house of knowledge and discourages
creative thinking. India surpasses the west on issues of culture for building
an ideal structure for education, an amalgamation of eastern culture and
western methods, liberal thinking and advancement in science and technology of
the West would be the best for future generations.. The world is now a global village. Thanks to revolution in
areas of information, communications technology and travel apparatus. It will
be good if the forces of both – culture and systems – could be combined and a
charter of an ideal education blueprint could be evolved for future
generations.. Why not we combine the forces of both these, Culture and
Mechanics for future generations. Technology advances have brought us to a
stage where every concept is an option! Why not cash upo.
The End
[ALPANA GHOSE]
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