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

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 129 and when all these books came under the observation of the Mussalmans, they summoned a number of Hindus that they might give them information respecting the import of these books; but the whole of the Hindus had been killed. On becoming acquainted (with the contents of those books), it was found that the whole fortress and city was a college'.¹ Śākya-śrī-bhadra and a few others, who escaped the general slaughter, fled to Tibet. Such was the tragic end of this famous college. OTHER BUDDHIST CENTRES OF LEARNING Other Monasteries as Centres of Learning : From stray and casual references in the Life and Travells of Yuan Chwang, we learn that (1) Jayendra monastery near the capital of Kashmir, (2 & 3) Chinapati and Jallandar monasteries in the Punjab, (4) Matipur monastery in Bijnor district, U. P., (5) Bhadra monastery near Kanauj, (6) a monastery in Hiraṇya (?) country, and (7) and another at Amraoti in Andhra country were notable centres of learning in the 7th century.² At most of these monasteries Yuan Chwang stayed for several months in order to study Buddhist works and get their copies. Their presiding abbots were distinguished authors, widely known in the country. At the time of Yuan Chwang's visit in the 7th century we must remember that Buddhism was on the decline in the country, and yet so many monasteries were flourishing centres of Buddhist learning. Budhism continued to be strong in Bihar and Bengal down to the 12th century A. D. and we find monasteries in that province like those at Odantapuri and Jagadalla Vihar (founded by king

1. Raverty's translation of Tabākāt-i-Nāsiri, Vol. I, p. 552; (1881).
2. See Life, pp. 69-70, 77, 81, 84, 127 and 137 respectively. 9

130 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. Rāmapāla at his capital Rāmāvtī) were famous centres of learning, spreading the holy knowledge both in India and abroad. We would not be wrong if we assume that during the days of Buddhist ascendancy, at least ten per cent of the well-endowed monasteries were respectable centres of learning and education, at least of the status of modern degree colleges. The contribution of Buddhism to the cause of learning and education was thus very great. HINDU TEMPLE COLLEGES. Introduction : We have seen already how edu- cational activity became a part of the daily monastic life fairly early in the history of Buddhism. It is, however, only from the 10th century that we get evidence of Hindu temples becoming centres of higher education. It is however quite possible that temples began to undertake educational work much earlier, though we have yet no evidence on the point. The causes that led to this new development have been indicated already at pp. 72-3. SALOTGI TEMPLE COLLEGE. A Famous and Free College : The village of Salotgi in Bijapur District of the Bombay Presidency was a famous centre, probably of Vedic learning, in the 10th and 11th centuries A. D. The Sanskrit college that flourished at this place must have existed for a long time, for it eventually transformed the original name of the place, Pāviṭṭage, into Sālotgi, which is an abbreviated and Prakritised compound of Śālā and Pāviṭṭage. The college was located in a spacious hall, attached to the temple of Trayī-Purusha, which was built by Nārāyaṇa, a minister of the Rāshtrakūṭa emperor Kṛishṇa III. Owing to its far spread fame for efficiency, the college could attract students from

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 131 different parts of the country. The strength of the college is not known, but it seems that 27 houses were necessary for lodging the students. An endowment of 12 Nivartanas (probably equal to 60 acres) of land was made for meeting the lighting charges of the boarding houses.¹ The students were offered free boarding, an endowment of 500 Nivartanas having been received for that purpose. It would appear that at least 200 students were offered free boarding, lodging and education at this institution. The salary of the principal was provided for by another endowment of 50 Nivartanas. The inscription is silent about the salaries of the other teachers. Public Support : The inhabitants of the village were not slow to appreciate the benefits of the institution; they had agreed to offer to the college a donation of five rupees at every marriage, of two and half rupees at every Upanayana and of a rupee and quarter at every tonsure ceremony. Besides whenever

1. The relevant verses from the inscription are given below :— नारायणोऽभिधानेन नारायण इवापरः । प्रधानः कृष्णराजस्य मन्त्री सन्सन्धिविग्रहे ॥ तेनेयं कारिता शाला श्रीविशाला मनोरमा । अत्र विद्यार्थिनः संति नानाजनपदोद्भवाः । शालाविद्यार्थिसंघाय दत्तवान्भूमिमुत्तमाम् । मान्यां निवर्तनानां तु पंचभिश्च शतैर्मिताम् ॥ निवर्तनानि दीपार्थं मान्यानि द्वादशैव च । पंच पुष्पाणि देयानि विवाहे सति तज्जनैः । देयं तथोपनयने विवाहे यत्पुरोदितम् ॥ केनचित्कारणेनेह कर्तव्ये विप्रभोजने । भोजयेत्तु यथाशक्ति परिषदत्परिशज्जनम् ॥ EI V p. 60. I.,

132 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. a feast was given in the village, the host was expected to invite as many teachers and students as possible. A later inscription from the same place informs us that when the college hall built by the minister of Kṛishṇa III in 945 A. D. crumbled down in the next century, it was rebuilt by a local magnate. ENNĀYIRAM TEMPLE COLLEGE.¹ The Strength of the College; Subjects Taught : At the beginning of the 11th century A. D. there existed a famous and well organised college at Ennāyiram in South Arcott district, which was an educational institution of the modern type, with a staff of sixteen teachers, engaged in teaching a pre- determined curriculum. The local village community had endowed the college with 300 acres of landed property, thus enabling its authorities to offer free tuition, boarding and lodging to 340 students. The admission of students was governed by the principle of the reservation of a fixed number of seats for different subjects. Thus 75 seats were reserved for the Ṛigveda and Black Yajurveda each, 40 seats for the Sāmaveda, 20 for the White Yajurveda, 10 for the Atharvaveda, Baudhāyana Dharmasūtra and Vedānta each, 25 for grammar, 35 for Mīmānsā and 40 for Rūpāvatāra (?). The institution was thus predominently a Vedic college. Number of Teachers : For the Ṛigveda and Black Yajurveda, there were three teachers each, for the Mīmānsā two, and for the rest of the subjects one each. There were 16 teachers for 340 students, and so the average number of students per teacher was about 22. Students therefore must have received

1. S. I. E. R. for 1918, p. 145, Inscription No. 333 for 1917

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 133 personal attention and instructions. Big classes like those existing in modern colleges were unknown. Maintenance Allowance to Students : The college supplied free boarding to students, and we have interesting information about the rations allowed per head. Each Vedic student received about one seer of rice per day and this quantity was sufficient for the daily meals. He also received annually an allowances of about one eighth tola of gold, which was probably intended to cover the clothing expenses. The allowance for the students of grammar and philosophy was about 66 per cent higher; the reason for this preferential treatment is not clear. The Salaries of Teachers : The normal allowance for the teachers of the college was about 16 seers of rice every day. The cost of an ordinary meal was about half a seer of rice ; an ordinary Sanskrit teacher was thus getting as his salary about three times the amount necessary for the food expenses of a family of five. He was thus receiving a salary just sufficient for his normal family responsibilities. He was neither rolling in riches nor suffering from abject poverty. Philosophy (Vedānta) was apparently regarded as a difficult subject, for the salary of the teacher of the subject was 25 percent higher. TIRUMUKKUDAL TEMPLE COLLEGE.¹ General Organisation : During the 11th century, Venkatesh Perumal Temple at Tirumukkudal in Chingleput district was a very interesting institution, for it was running a college, a hostel and a hospital. The college was a smaller institution than the one

1. E. I., XXI, No. 220.

134 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. at Ennāyiram, for arrangement was here made for the free boarding and lodging of 60 students only. Out of the 60 seats in the hostel, 10 were reserved for the students of the Ṛigveda, 10 for those of the Yajurveda, 20 for those of grammar, 10 for those of the Pañcha-rātra system, 3 for those of Śaivāgama and 7 for Vānaprasthas and Sanyāsins. All the students in the hostel were provided with oil for bath every Saturday. Teachers’ Salaries : The teachers’ salaries in this institution were lower than those in the Ennāyiram college. Vedic teachers used to receive only about three seers of rice every day ; their salary was thus about one sixth the salary that was paid in the Ennāyiram college. Vedic teachers of this institution were apparently part-time teachers ; for their salary is seen to be practically the same as the wages of the servant appointed in the temple hospital for fetching medicinal herbs and preparing medicines. The grammar teacher was apparently a full time employee, for he received about eight seers of rice every day. His pay was thus half the pay of the teacher at Ennāyiram. In ancient as in modern times, salaries of teachers varied with the financial condition of educational institutions. TIRUVORRIYUR TEMPLE COLLEGE¹ A Grammar College in Memory of Panini : During the 13th century there was a big grammar college at Tiruvorriyur in Chingleput district. The college was located in a big hall adjoining the local Śiva temple. There was a tradition current in the locality, that God Śiva had appeared in this very

1. S. I. E. R. for 1912, No. 201 of 1912

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 135 temple before Pāṇini for fourteen continuous days in, order to teach him the first fourteen aphorisms ; the village community had therefore organised an efficient grammar college in the Śiva temple to commemorate the event. The college was a much bigger institution than the Ennāyiram college. In the latter place an endowment of 300 acres had enabled the organisers to arrange for the free food and education of 340 students. The Tiruvorriyur college had received an endowment of 400 acres; we may not be therefore far wrong in assuming that this grammar college must have had more than 450 students on its rolls. The number of teachers was probably about 15 to 20. This college went on performing its functions down to the 14th century ; for a record, about a century later than the previous one, mentions how certain additional taxes were assigned for the upkeep of the grammar college.¹ Details about the management of this college are not available. MALKAPURAM TEMPLE COLLEGE. A Temple, College, Hostel and Hospital combined: An inscription from Malkapuram, dated 1268 A. D.,² reveals the existence of an institution which was a temple, a college, a hostel and a hospital combined. There were eight teachers in the college, three for the Vedas and five for the secular subjcets consisting of grammar, literature, logic and Āgamas. There was one doctor in charge of the hospital. In the south Indian colleges we have seen so far, there used to be about 20 students on the average under the charge of each teacher. The Malkapuram college therefore had probably about 150 students. They were as usual offered free tuition, boarding, lodging and medicine.

1. Ibid, No. 110 of 1912
2. S. I. E. R., for 1917. pp. 122-24

136 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. Teachers' pay : Each teacher was given an endowment of two puṭṭis of land. We do not know anything about the net income of this land endowment. The inscription, however, states that the carpenters and drummers of the temple establishment were assigned one puṭṭi of land for their wages. The teacher's income was thus twice the wages of the skilled labourer. The society was offering him just what was necessary for a decent family life. The salary of the principal was 100 nishkas; it is difficult to assess its real value as the denotation of the term nishka at this period is not definitely known. SOMES OTHER TEMPLE COLLEGS Temple Colleges fairly common in south India : We have got somewhat detailed information about the free Sanskrit colleges that were organised in the five temple establishments mentioned above. There are, however, clear indications that there were many more similar temple colleges in the Deccan in the medieval times (c. 900—1400 A. D.). Thus at Hebbal in Dharwar district there existed a Maṭha in Bhuja- bbeśvara temple in the 10th century A. D., which had received an endowment of about two hundred acres of land for giving free tuition and boarding to students. About 200 students must have been receiving free education here.¹ At Nagai in Nizam's dominions, there existed a big temple Sanskrit college in the 11th century where two hunndred students were instructed in Vedic lore, two hundred in Smṛitis, one hundred in epics, and fifty two in philosophy. The lib- rary of the institute employed six librarians.² In 1075

1. E. I., IV, p. 355.
2. Hyd. Arch.. S., No. 8, p. 7.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 137 A.D., a temple at Bijapur received a big endowment of about 1200 acres of land for providing food and raiments to ascetics and to the pupils of Yogeśvara Paṇḍita, who was conducting a free Mīmānsā school there.¹ To judge from the endowment, the college of this Paṇḍita must have been much bigger than that at Ennāyiram. At Managoli in Bijapur district, during the latter half of the 12th century, a local temple used to maintain a grammar school where Kaumāra grammar was taught by a teacher, who was given an endowment of 20 acres of land². At about the same time the Dakshiṇeśvara temple authorities at Belgamve in Karnatak used to offer free boarding to students studying in the temple school.³ In 1158 A. D. there flourished at Talgund in Shimoga district a small Sanskrit college in the local Prāṇeśvara temple, where free food and education was offered to 48 students, studying the Ṛigveda, the Yajurveda, the Sāmaveda, Prābhākara-Mīmānsā, philosophy (Vedānta), linguistics (Bhāshā-śāstra) and Canarese. The institution had employed two cooks to manage the kitchen of the boarding house. At Punnavayil in Tanjore District there existed another grammar college, attached to a local temple and endowed with 400 acres of land. As the endowment for the maintenance of this institution was larger than that enjoyed by the Ennāyiram college, it is quite likely that it may have afforded free education and food to about 500 students.⁴ South Indian Inscriptions Nos. 604, 667, 571, and 695 of 1916 record various grants for the salaries of teachers and boarding of students studying

1. I. A., X, pp. 129-31.
2. E. I., V, p. 22.
3. E. C., L. No. 45.
4. S. I. E. R. for 1918, pp. 109-110.

138 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. in different temple colleges in Tamil country. The last of these records is an interesting one, for it records a donation for a Sarasvatī-bhavana or library of a temple college in Tinevelli district. These instances of temple authorities organising Sanskrit schools and colleges are typical of the age. Many more must have existed, whose memory has not been handed down to the present times. For, down to the 18th century almost every religious centre in south India used to maintain a Sanskrit school or college. The whole country was in fact studded with them¹. Temple colleges in northern India : Instances of temple colleges given above all hail from South India. It is not however correct to suppose that no such institutions existed in north India, because they are not referred to in any north Indian inscriptions. A very large number of north Indian temples have been destroyed, along with their documents of antiquity, during the Muslim invasions and rule. If all the documents conveying extensive properties to most of the rich temples in north India are recovered, it would be almost certainly found that a considerable portion of the temple property was originally intended for educational purposes. Temple authorities used to discharge their duty to impart education ; one of the reasons that impelled Aurangzeb to destroy Hindu temples was the report that Brahmanas of Sindh, Multan and Benares were using their temples as schools. It is thus clear that in North India also, the important temples were centres of education throughout the middle ages.

1. Report of the Madras Committee, Education Commission, 1882 p. 1, foot-note.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 139. AGRAHĀRA VILLAGES AS CENTRES OF LEARNING. What is an Agrahara Village? : On auspicious occasions, kings used to invite learned Brahmanas, settle them in villages and assign their revenues to them for their maintenance. Such villages were called Agrahāra villages, and they naturally became centres of learning where higher education was imparted free in different branches of Sanskrit studies. We shall give here information about two such Agrahāra villages, which were typical of their class. Kadiyur Agrahara : The village of Kādiyur, modern Kalas, in Dharwar district in Karnatak, was made an Agrahāra village in the 10th century by the Rāshtrakūṭa administration, and assigned to 200 Brahmanas, who were well versed in Vedas, grammar, Purāṇas, logic works on polity, the science of literary composition and the art of writing commentaries.¹ The village was famous as an efficient centre of education and its Brahmana residents naturally were proud of its reputation. It may be pointed out that the educational activity of this Brahmana centre was not confined to the Vedic studies only; poetics, grammar, logic, Purāṇas and the political science were included in the curriculum. An endowment had been also received for the salaries of some teachers. A free feeding house was maintained in the village; it was most probably intended for the poor students studying in the local institution. Sarvajnapura Agrahara : Sarvajñapura (modern Arsikere in Hassan District, Mysore) was another Agrahāra village, which, as its name would indicate,

1. E. I., XIII. p. 317.

140 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. was a famous centre of learning. An inscription discovered at this place gives us a graphic description of its literary and pedagogic activities. "In some of its streets the Brahmanas were reading the Vedas, Śāstras and six systems of philosophy; every group of Brahmanas was either reading the Vedas or engaged in listening to the exposition of some higher science, or carrying on ceaseless discussion on logic, or joyously reciting the Purāṇas or settling the meaning of the Smṛitis, drama or poetry. All the Brahmanas of Sarvajñapura were devoted to study, teaching and listening to the dictates of religion and morality."¹ Numerous centres of Higher Education: The above two Agrahāra villages were but typical of their class. As a rule in every Agrahāra village free instructions were given in different branches of Sanskrit learning by the Brahmana donees in return for the provision made for their livelihood by the state or sociey.² Sometimes non-Agrahāra villages also, like Bāhur, 15 miles south of Pondichery, were important centres of higher education receiving grants of the revenues of several villages because they were famous centres of well-known scholars, hailing from all parts of the country.³ Agrahāra villages and endowed temples and monasteries were fairly numerous in ancient India; there used to be at least two or three of them in an area equal to the modern district. We may therefore well conclude that

1. E. C., V, p. 144.
2. Cf. एतेषु किलाग्रहारेषु केचिजपन्ति । अपरे पाठयन्ति । केचित्पठन्ति । अन्ये तत्त्वविद्यामुपदिशन्ति । इतरे अध्यापयन्ति । पश्य पश्य । Keralābharaṇam.
3. E. I., XVIII, p. 14.

V] EDUCATIONAL CENTRES AND INSTITUTIONS 141 centres for higher education were more numerous in medieval times (c. 600-1300 A. D.) than they are today in modern India. Tols : Before concluding this chapter, it will be necessary to refer to Tols or Sanskrit schools which are still fairly numerous in Bengal, Bihar and United Provinces. From very early times, Tols have enjoyed grants of land, on which their teachers and pupils subsisted. These grants were augmented in value and new ones were created when the Zemindars felt themselves secure by the Permanent Settlement of Cornwalis¹. Where there was no specific endowment, the village Pandit used to arrange for the free boarding, lodging and clothing of his students by collecting the necessary funds by raising subscriptions at chief fairs and festivals, and from rich charitable persons. Tols thus are a variety of the Agrahāra type of educational institutions. The classes are usually held in a thatched house. As a rule, each Tol enrolls about 25 students, who are accommodated in mud huts built round the school house. Study courses usually extend over six to eight years and enable the students to appear for the Praveśikā or Admission examination in Sanskrit. Tradition of free Education : It is indeed noteworthy that such tradition of free education should have persisted in spite of foreign rule of several centuries. Learned Brahmanas in India have always been anxious to impart education free to deserving students irrespective of their own financial condition. This tradition exists even today in ancient centres of

1. Report of the Bengal Provincial Committee, Education Commission, 1882.

142 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. Sanskrit education like Benares, Nasik, Wai and Nadia. The conclusion therefore seems to be irresistible that in the ancient and medieval periods of Indian history, every student, howsoever poor he may have been, could get the highest education free, provided he was willing, if necessary, to do some manual or menial work for his teacher. Poor parents had not to worry about the educational expenses; their sons could either find admission to free boarding houses or maintain themselves by begging their food daily, which was regarded as the most honorable means of livelihood.

Chapter VI. HIGHER LITERARY EDUCATION.: Curriculum, method of teaching and examinations. Subjects and methods of study in the early Vedic period- And in the later Vedic period-The method of study changes at c. 1000 B. C. New topics of study-Combination of liberal and useful education- Vedic studies in the 1st millennium A D —An age of specialisation- Ascendancy of Sanskrit-Courses in grammar, astrology, literature, Smritis, Purāṇas, logic and philosophy-Courses for laymen and monks in Buddhist colleges-Selection of text-books. Method of teaching and study-Books normally not available, hence the oral method of instruction-Importance of recitation and recapitulation-Texts memorised bnt not crammed-Great importance attached to exposition and debate-Individual attention-Help of monitors-No annual or final examinations-No degrees and diplomas- Competitive element kept within limit. Introductory : The history of ancient Indian education is spread over several millennia and we therefore naturally find considerable changes taking place in the curricula in the course of centuries. This is but natural ; for the curriculum is intimately connected with the achievements and aspirations of a people. When the outlook on life changes or when new branches of knowledge are developed, extensive changes become inevitable in the curriculum followed in schools and colleges. In the present chapter, we shall indicate the main topics of study on the literary side, point out the changes in the curricula that took place in the different ages, discuss the methods of study and teaching and ascertain what importance was attached to examinations. EARLY VEDIC AGE (C. upto 1500 B. C.) Subjects of Study : The Vedic literature naturally

144 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. formed the main topic of study in this period. Besides the sacred hymns, there were also some historical poems, ballads and hero-songs¹ in existence, which were also committed to memory by the young scholars of the day, as they often helped the elucidation of many references contained in the Vedic hymns. Students were required to master the principles of prosody and encouraged to develop the powers of versification. Those who intended to follow the priestly profession had to study the details of the rituals associated with the hymns they had committed to memory. The study of elementary geometry, the knowledge of which was necessary for the proper construction of sacrificial altars, was also included in the Vedic course. A knowledge of astronomy, which had enabled the age to find out the difference between the lunar and solar months, was also imparted. Grammar and etymology did not trouble the students of this age because they were yet to be developed. Vedic studies usually began at about the age of nine or ten and Initiation Ceremony known as Upanayana was performed at their commencement. The nature, details, and educational significance of this ceremony will be found discussed in Appendix I, B. The Method of Study : Vedic hymns were studied in this period as specimens of literature to be understood, appreciated, imitated and even excelled if posssible. New hymns² were being composed and the authors of some of them claimed that they were

1. Itihāsa, Purāṇa and Nārāśaṁsī Gāthā are mentioned as early as the Atharvaveda ; XV. 1.
2. The very second stanza of the Ṛigveda, for instance, refers to the earlier and later poets of the Vedic collection ; cf. अग्निः पूर्वे- भिर्ऋषिभिरीड्यो नूतनैर्वा उत । I. 1. 2.

VI] HIGHER LITERARY EDUCATION 145 superior to the compositions of the earlier poets.¹ It is interesting to note that some of the poems of the later poets were selected for inclusion in the Vedic collection when it was made in a subsequent age. As new hymns were being composed by contemporary authors, it is but natural that they were not yet regarded as revealed. It was therefore not at all felt necessary that they should be committed to memory so meticulously as not to render possible a single mistake of accent or intonation. Professional priests must of course have committed the hymns very thoroughly to memory in order to ensure facility in their use during the performance of the different rituals. But the mass of people consisting of the warriors, agriculturists and artisans used to learn by heart only some select Vedic hymns, and these too in the same way in which the songs of medieval saints are memorised by the Hindu masses today. More effort was made to understand the meaning of the hymns than to remember their exact wording. LATER VEDIC AGE (C. 1500 to 1000 B. C.) The Subjects of Study : The mass of the Vedic hymns was classified in this period and as a result, the Ṛigveda, the Yajurveda, the Sāmaveda and the Atharvaveda came into existence. This led to specialisation in Vedic studies and facilitated the growth of a new type of literature, known as Brāhmaṇa literature, which devoted itself to the exposition of a number of important dogmas, theories

1. नवं नु स्तोममग्नये दिवःश्येनाय जीजनम् । वस्वः कुविद्वनाति नः ॥ V. 15. 4. Cf. also R. V., VII. 35. 14; III. 32. 13. 10

146 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. and practices connected with Vedic sacrifices. Sacrificial rituals became very complex and compli- cated in this period and the professional priests had to devote several years in mastering their details and intricacies. The study of astronomy, geometry and prosody contiuned to progress in this period. The development of the sciences of grammar and etymology started in this age and manuals on these subjects were included in the curriculum. The Method of Study : The Vedic hymns were being gradually differentiated from the Vedic language and it was felt that the sacred literature should be preserved in its pristine form and purity, and should not be allowed to change with the spoken idiom. Vedic scholars of this period began to insist that Vedic hymns should be carefully committed to memory in their precise traditional intonation and accents. Students were not at liberty to change a difficult archaic word for a simple current one. The differentiation of the spoken dialect from the Vedic language raised new problems of interpretation and the age sought to solve them by preparing a list of difficult Vedic words and expressions. which were carefully expounded to students. Vedic students were expected not only to memorise the Vedic hymns, but also to explain their meaning. Ridicule was poured on them if they failed to expound what they had learnt by heart.¹ Learned discussions were a normal and important feature of the student life and young scholars were very anxious to come out successful in them.²

1. स्थाणुरयं भारहारः किलाभूदधीत्य वेदं न विजानाति योऽर्थम्। Nir., I. 18 See also, ibid, 1. 19.
2. A. V., VII. 12, 18; II. 27.

VI] HIGHER LITERARY EDUCATION 147 THE AGE OF THE UPANISHADS AND THE SŪTRAS (First millennium B. C.) VEDIC STUDIES; METHOD CHANGED: The Vedic literature began to be universally regarded as revealed in this period and that honour was gradually extended to the Brāhmaṇas¹ and the Upanishads also. Vedic schools had to perform the onerous task of preserving this great and growing literature. The art of writing was known by this time, but its aid was not taken for this purpose, as it was believed that it would be irreligious to do so². The theory that the slightest mistake in the recitation of the Vedic hymns would not only prevent the realisation of the expected reward, but would also bring about a disaster on the reciter³, gained ground in this period and necessitated the devotion of a large part of the energy of the rising generation to the task of the accurate memorising of the Vedic literature. Extraordinary precautions were taken to prevent the corruption of the Vedic text by devising the pada-pāṭha,⁴ krama-pāṭha, jaṭā-pāṭha

1. The prose literature devoted to the task of explaining the rituals, legends and knotty points about the sacrifices enjoined in the Vedic hymns was known by this name. It should not be mistaken with the members of the Brahmana caste.
2. Cf. वेदानां लेखकाश्चैव सर्वे निरयगामिनः ।
3. मंत्रो हीनः स्वरतो वर्णतो वा मिथ्याप्रयुक्तो न तमर्थमाह । स वाग्वज्रो यजमानं हिनस्ति यथेन्द्रशत्रुः स्वरतोऽपराधात् ।
4. The pada-pāṭha required the students to memorise each word in the Vedic hymns separately after restoring it to its original form. Supposing a, b, and c were the three opening words of a hymn, the krama-pāṭha recited them as ab, bc, etc., the jaṭā-pāṭha as ab, ba, ab, etc., and the ghana-pāṭha as ab, ba, abc, cba, abc. The reader will now get some idea of the onerousness of the task of memorising these pāṭhas.

148 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. and ghana-pāṭha, and all these had to be committed to memory by those who desired to be regarded as experts in the Vedic lore. This further increased the burden on the memory. As centuries rolled on, it became more and more difficult for the Vedic expert to memorise this extensive and growing literature and also to understand its meaning ; for the spoken dialect was becoming more and more differentiated from the Vedic language. It was therefore decided towards the end of this period that some Vedic scholars should devote their energies to the mechanical memorising of this extensive literature with a view to prevent its loss, while others should address themselves to the problem of its interpretation by studying commentaries, etymology, lexicography, etc. But for this differentia- tion of function, the extensive Vedic literature could not have been preserved for posterity. This arrange- ment no doubt exposed some Brahmanas to the taunt of being mere parrot-like reciters of the Vedic hymns. It is gratifying to find that they did not mind it in the wider interest of the preservation of the national literature and culture. New Topics of Study : The period under review was the most creative era in the history of the Hindu intellect ; it recorded remarkable achievements in the realm of philosophy, sacred law, epic literature, philology, grammar, astronomy and several fine and useful arts like sculpture, medicine and shipbuilding. On the one hand the development of these branches naturally created a new fascination for the students of the age, and on the other, the rise of the protestant movements led by the Upanishadic, Jain and Buddhist thinkers told on the popularity of the Vedic religion and literature. The current language had now become very widely differentiated from the