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

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.