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

1] THE CONCEPTION AND IDEALS OF EDUCATION 9 inculcation of civic and social duties, promotion of social efficiency and the preservation and spread of national cul- ture may be described as the chief aims and ideals of ancient Indian education. Let us now see what were the views of our educationalists about each of them. Infusion of Piety and Religiousness: Religion played a large part in life in ancient India and teachers were usually priests. It is therefore no wonder that infusion of a spirit of piety and religiousness in the mind of the rising generation should have been regarded as the first and foremost aim of education. The rituals which were performed at the beginning of both the literary and professional education,—primary as well as higher,—the religious observances (vratas), which the student had to observe during the educational course, the daily prayers which he offered morning and evening, the religious festivals that were observed with eclat in the school or the preceptor's house almost every month,—all these tended to inspire piety and religiousness in the mind of the young student. It was the spiritual background that was thus provided which was expected to help the student to withstand the temptations of life. The very atmosphere, in which he lived and breathed, impressed upon him the reality of the spiritual world and made him realise that though his body may be a product of nature, his mind, intellect and soul belong to the world of spirit, the laws of which ought to govern his conduct, mould his character and determine the ideals of his life. Limitations on Religiousness: Though the edu- cational system thus provided the background of piety and religiousness, its aim was not to induce the student to renounce the world and become a wanderer in the quest of God like the Buddha or Tulsidas. Even in the case of Vedic students, who intended to follow a religious

10 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. career, only a microscopic minority used to remain life- long Brahmachārins, pursuing the spiritual quest: the vast majority was expected to become and did become householders. The direct aim of all education, whether literary or professional, was to make the student fit to become a useful and pious member of society. Formation of Character: The illumination and power, which men and women received from educa- tion, was primarily intended to transform and ennoble their nature. The formation of character by the proper development of the moral feeling was therefore the second aim of education. Like Locke, ancient Indian thinkers held that mere intellectual attainments were of less consequence than the development of a proper moral feeling and character. The Vedas being held as revealed, educationalists naturally regarded their preservation as of utmost national importance; yet they unhesitatingly declare that a person of good character with a mere smattering of the Vedic knowledge is to be preferred to a scholar, who though well versed in the Vedas, is impure in his life, thoughts and habits.¹ Montaigne has observed, "Cry out, 'there is a learned man' and people will flock round him."; cry out 'there is a good man', and people will not look at him." Indian thinkers were aware of this natural human tendency and wanted to counteract it by pointing out that character was more important than learning. One thinker goes to the extent of saying that he alone is learned who is righteous.² This opinion tallies remarkably with that of Socrates, who held that virtue is knowledge. Evil effects of 1 सावित्रीमात्रसारोपि, वरं विप्रः सुयन्त्रितः । नायन्त्रितस्त्रिवेदोपि सर्वाशी सर्वविक्रयी ॥ Manu, II. 118. 2 धर्मं हि यो वर्धयते स पण्डितः । Mbh., XII. 321.78.

1] THE CONCEPTION AND IDEALS OF EDUCATION 11 divorcing power from virtue, intellectual and scientific progress from moral and spiritual values, which are being so vividly illustrated in the west in the modern age, were well realised by ancient Indians; they have therefore insisted that, while a man is being educated, his regard for morality ought to be developed, his feeling of good will towards human beings ought to be strength- ened and his control over his mind ought to be perfected, so that he can follow the beacon light of his conscience.¹ In other words, education ought to develop man's ideal nature by giving him a sure moral feeling and by enabling him to control his original animal nature. The tree of education ought to flower in wisdom as well as in virtue, in knowledge as well as in manners. How Character was to be Formed: Direct injunctions to develop a sense of moral rectitude were scattered over almost every page of books intended for students; they were also orally given to them by their teachers every now and then. Apart from them, how- ever, the very atmosphere in which students lived, was calculated to give a proper turn to their character. They were under the direct and personal supervision of their teacher, who was to watch not only over their intellectual progress but also over their moral behaviour. Ancient Indians held that good character cannot be divorced from good manners; the teacher was to see that in their every day life students followed the rules of etiquette and good manners towards their seniors, equals and inferiors. These rules afforded an imperceptible but effective help in the formation of character. The rituals ¹ Compare the view of Herbert: The aim of education should be to instill such ideas as will develop both the understanding of the moral order and a conscientious spirit in carrying it out. Great Educationalists, pp, 175-6.

12 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. which students occasionally performed and the prayers which they regularly offered every day were calculated to emphasise upon their mind the fact that the student-life was a consecrated one and that its ideals could be realised only by those who did not swerve from the strict and narrow path of duty. Examples of national heroes and heroines like Hariśchandra, Bhīshma, Rāma, Lakshmaṇa, Hanumān, Sītā Sāvitrī and Draupadī, which were pro- minently placed before students, also served to mould their character in a powerful manner. Character was thus built up partly by the influence of direct injunctions, partly by the effect of continued discipline and partly by the glorification of national heroes, held in the highest reverence by society. Personality not Repressed: There is a general impression that Hindu educationalists suppressed persona- lity by prescribing a uniform course of education and enforcing it with an iron discipline. Such however was not the case. The caste system had not become hidebound down to c. 500 B.C. and till that time a free choice of profession or career was possible both in theory and practice. Later on when the system became rigid; the theory no doubt was that everybody should follow his hereditary profession, but the practice permitted consider- able freedom to enterprising individuals, as will be shown in the following chapter. It is wrong to conclude from some stray passages that the whole of the Brahmana community, if not the whole of the Aryan community, was compelled to devote twelve years to the task of memorising the Vedic texts.¹ Kshatriyas and Vaishyas never took seriously to the Vedic learning; only a section of the Brahmanas dedicated themselves to the Vedic studies, while the rest of the community learnt only ¹ E. g., Manu, III. 1; II. 168.

1] THE CONCEPTION AND IDEALS OF EDUCATION 13 a few Vedic hymns necessary for their daily use, and devoted their main energy to the study of the subjects of their own choice like logic, philosophy, literature, poetics or law. The educational curriculum of the Smṛitis represents the Utopian idealism of the Brahmana theologian and not the actual reality in society. Development of Personality: The development of personality was in fact the third aim of the educational system. This was sought to be realised by eulogising the feeling of self-respect, by encouraging the sense of self- confidence, by inculcating the virtue of self-restraint and by fostering the powers of discrimination and judgment. The student was always to remember that he was the custodian and the torch-bearer of the culture of the race. Its welfare depended upon his proper discharge of his duties. If the warrior shines on the battlefield, or if the king is successful as a governor, it is all due to their proper training and education (A. V., XI. 15. 17.). To support the poor student was the sacred duty of society, the non- performance of which would lead to dire spiritual cala- mities. A well trained youth, who had finished his education, was to be honoured more than the king himself. It is but natural that such an atmosphere should develop the student's self-respect in a remarkable manner. Influence of Self-confidence: Self-confidence was also fostered equally well. The Upanayana ritual, as we shall see in Appendix I. B, used to foster self- confidence by pointing out that divine powers would co- operate with the student and help him on to the achieve- ment of his goal, if he on his part did his duty well. Poverty need not depress him; he was the ideal student who would subsist by begging his daily food. If he was willing to work in his spare time, he could demand and get free education from any teacher or institution. Self-

14 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. reliance is the mother of self-confidence, and the Hindu educational system seeks to develop it in a variety of ways, as we shall see in the following pages. Uncertainty of the future prospect did not damp the student's self-con- fidence. If he was following a professional course, his career was already determined. There was no overcrowd- ing or cut-throat competition in professions. If he was taking religious and liberal education, poverty was to be the ideal of his life. His needs ought to be, and as a matter of fact were, few, and the state and society supplied them well. Influence of Self-restraint: The element of self-restraint, that was emphasised by the educational system, further served to enrich the student's personality. Self-restraint that was emphasised was distinctly different from self-repression. Simplicity in life and habits was all that was insisted upon. The student was to have a full meal, only it was to be a simple one. The student was to have sufficient clothing, only it was not to be foppish. The student was to have his recreations, only they were not to be frivolous. He was to lead a life of perfect chastity, but that was only to enable him to be an efficient and healthy householder when he married. It will be thus seen that what the educationalists aimed at did not result in self-repression, but only promoted self-restraint that was so essential for the development of a proper personality. Nor was this self-restraint enforced by Spartan ways of correction and punishment. The teacher was required to use persuasion and spare the rod as far as possible. He was liable to be prosecuted if he used undue force. Self-discipline was developed mainly by the formation of proper habits during the educational course. Discrimination and Judgment Developed: It may

1] THE CONCEPTION AND IDEALS OF EDUCATION 15 be further pointed out that the powers of discrimination and judgment, so necessary for the development of proper personality, were well developed in students taking liberal education and specialising in logic, law, philosophy, poetics or literature. These branches of study bristled with controversies and the student had to understand both the sides, form his own judgment and defend his position in literary debates. It was only with the Vedic students that education became mechanical training of memory. This became inevitable in later times when the literature to be preserved became very extensive and the modern means for its preservation in the form of paper and print- ing were unavailable. In earlier days even Vedic students were trained in interpreting the hymns they used to commit to memory. Stress on Social Duties: The inculcation of civic and social duties, which was the fourth aim of the educational system, was particularly emphasised. The graduate was not to lead a self-centred life. He must teach his lore to the rising generation even when there was no prospect of a fee. He was enjoined perpetuation of race and culture by raising and educating progeny. He was to perform his duties as a son, a husband, and a father conscientiously and efficiently. His wealth was not to be utilised solely for his own or his family's wants ; he must be hospitable and charitable. Particularly emphatic are the words in the convocation address, emphasising these duties.¹ Professions had their own codes of honour. which laid stress on the civic responsi- bilities of their members. The physician was required to relieve disease and distress even at the cost of his life. The warrior had his own high code of honour, and could Tai. Up., I, 11.

16 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. attack his opponent only when the latter was ready. Social structure in ancient India was to a great extent independent of government. Governments may come and go, but social and village life and national culture were not much affected by these changes. It was probably this circumstance that was responsible for the non-inclusion of patriotism among the civic duties, inculcated by the Educational System. Promotion of Social Efficiency and Happiness: The promotion of social efficiency and happiness was the fifth aim of the educational system. It was sought to be realised by the proper training of the rising generation in the different branches of knowledge, professions and industries. Education was not imparted merely for the sake of culture or for the purpose of developing mental and intellectual powers and faculties. Indirectly, though effectively, it no doubt promoted these aims, but primarily it was imparted for the purpose of training every indivi- dual for the calling which he was expected to follow. Society had accepted the theory of division of work, which was mainly governed in later times by the principle of heredity. Exceptional talent could always select the profession it liked; Brahmanas and Vaishyas as kings and fighters, Kshatriyas and even Shudras as philosophers and religious teachers, make their appearance throughout the Indian history. It was however deemed to be in the interest of the average man that he should follow his family's calling. The educational system sought to qualify the members of the rising generation for their more or less pre-determined spheres of life. Each trade, guild and family trained its children in its own profession. This system may have sacrificed the individual inclinations of a few, but it was undoubtedly in the interest of many. Differentiation of functions and their specialisation in

I] THE CONCEPTION AND IDEALS OF EDUCATION 17 hereditary families naturally heightened the efficiency of trades and professions, and thus contributed to social efflciency. By thus promoting the progress of the different branches of knowledge, arts and professions, and by emphasising civic duties and responsibilities on the mind of the rising generation, the educational system contributed materially to the general efficiency and happiness of society. Preservation and Spread of Culture: The preservation and spread of national heritage and culture was the sixth and one of the most important aims of the Ancient Indian System of Education. It is well recognised that education is the chief means of social and cultural continuity and that it will fail in its purpose if it did not teach the rising generation to accept and maintain the best traditions of thought and action and transmit the heritage of the past to the future generations. Any one who takes even a cursory view of Hindu writings on the subject is impressed by the deep concern that was felt for the preservation and transmission of the entire literary, cultural and professional heritage of the race. Members of the professions were to train their children in their own lines, rendering available to the rising generation at the outset of its career all the skill and processess that were acquired after painful efforts of the bygone generations. The services of the whole Aryan community were conscripted for the purpose of the pre- servation of the Vedic literature. Every Aryan must learn at least a portion of his sacred literary heritage. It was an incumbent duty on the priestly class to commit the whole of the Vedic literature to memory in order to ensure its transmission to unborn generations. It is true that not all the Brahmanas obeyed this injunction, but that was because they had the commonsense to realise that 2

18 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. the services of their entire class were not necessary for the task. A section of the Brahmana community, however, was always available to sacrifice its life and talents in order to ensure the preservation of the sacred texts. Theirs was a life-long and almost a tragic devotion to the cause of learning. For, they consented to spend their life in committing to memory what others and not they could interpret. Secular benefits that they could expect were few and not at all commensurate with the labour involved. Remaining sections of the Brahmana commu- nity were fostering the studies of the different branches of liberal education, like grammar, literature, poetics, law, philosophy and logic. They were not only preserving the knowledge of the ancients in these branches, but constantly increasing its boundaries by their own contri- butions, which were being made down to the medieval times. Specialisation became a natural consequence of this tendency and it tended to make education deep rather than broad. The Theory of Three Debts : The interesting theory of three debts, which has been advocated since the Vedic age, has effectively served the purpose of inducing the rising generation to accept and maintain the best traditions of thought and action of the past generations The theory maintains that the moment an individual is born in this world, he incurs three debts, which he can discharge only by performing certain duties. First of all, he owes a debt to gods, and he can liquidate it only by learning how to perform proper sacrifices and by regularly offering them. Religious traditions of the race were thus preserved. Secondly, he owes a debt to the rishis or savants of the bygone ages and can discharge it only by studying their works and continuing their literary and professional traditions. The rising generation was

I] THE CONCEPTION AND IDEALS OF EDUCATION 19 thus enabled to master and maintain the best literary and professional traditions. The third debt was the debt to the ancestors, which can be repaid only by raising progeny and by imparting proper education to it₁ Steps were thus take to see that the rising generation became an efficient torch-bearer of the culture and traditions of the past. Other Methods to Preserve Cultural Traditions: The emphasis laid on obedience to parents, respect to elders and teachers and gratitude to savants of the bygone ages also helped to preserve the best traditions of the past. Especially significant in this connection are the rules about svādhyāya and ṛishitarpaṇa; the former enjoin a daily recapitulation of at least a portion of what was learnt during the student life and the latter require a daily tribute of gratitude to be paid to the literary giants of the past at the time of morning prayers. In later times, when archaic Sanskrit ceased to be understood and abstract and abstruse philosophy failed to appeal to masses, a new type of literature, the Purāṇas, was composed to popularise national culture and traditions among the masses. It was daily expounded to the masses in vernaculars, and as a consequence the best cultural traditions of the past filtered down to and were preserved by even illiterate' population. Devotional literature in vernacular also served the same function. Conclusion : Body, mind, intellect and spirit consti- tute a human being; the aims and ideals of ancient Indian education were to promote their simultaneous and Harmonious development. Men are social beings ; ancient Indian education not only emphasised social duties but also promoted social happiness. No nation can be called ¹ जायमानो वै ब्राह्मणस्त्रिभिरृणैऋणवाञ्जायते । यज्ञेन देवेभ्यो ब्रह्मचर्येण ऋषिभ्यः प्रजया पितृभ्यः। T.S., see also S.Br., 1:5.5

20 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. educated which cannot preserve and expand its cultural heritage. Our education enabled us to do this for several centuries. Aims of Education: Some Comparative Observa- tions: It would be interesting to compare the aims and ideals of ancient Indian education with those of some other systems, both ancient and modern, both eastern and western. We therefore now proceed to do so. In ANCIENT CHINA, Confucian preached that the purpose of education should be to train each individual in his path of duty, wherein is to be prescribed most minutely every deatil of life’s occupations and relationships. If we understand duty in a sufficiently wide sense, this definition of the aim of education would appear to be very similar to that of ancient Indian educationalists. In ANCIENT GREECE as well as in REFORMATION EUROPE, the ideal of personal culture loomed large in the educational system. Ancient Indians held that the individual exists more for society than vice versa; it was therefore the function of education to acquaint the individual with the culture of the race. Personal culture was promoted by the educational system only to the extent it was possible to do so by imparting national culture. Music, painting and fine arts thus did not become subjects of general education in ancient India as they became in ancient Greece. THE SPARTAN EDUCA- TION aimed at providing the state with as many faithful and capable soldiers as possible, who would defend it with the armed hand. The existence of the Aryans in India was not a precarious one; they were not like the Spartans threatened with a slave population about ten times their own number; so their education was not naturally dominated by the military ideal in any degree. MEDIEVAL EUROPEAN EDUCATIONALISTS held that education should be primarily for piety and wisdom; some writers

I] THE CONCEPTION AND IDEALS OF EDUCATION 21 like Montaigne also have advocated that it should develop virtue, wisdom, good manners and learning. Ancient Indians agree with this view but add that education must also fit an individual for a useful profession. JESUITICAL EDUCATION aimed at creating an army of faithful and resolute servants of the Catholic Church. Brahmana priests, who controlled and guided education in ancient India did not have so narrow an aim; the youths they trained very often questioned their traditional beliefs and started new theories of religion and philosophy. The system also provided for the needs of the laity. MILTON held that educational system should qualify a youth to perform skilfully, justly and magnanimously all the offices, both private and public, of peace and war. Ancient Indians held that all persons are not versatile enough to be trained for this ideal; they believed in the differentiation of functions and trained different classes for their different duties. SOME MODERN AMERICAN EDUCATIONALISTS hold that moral character and social efficiency, and not mere erudition and culture, should be the aims of education. Ancient Indians accept this view, but add that the preservation of the ancient national culture, which naturally does not loom large before a young nation like America, must also figure prominently as an aim of education. SOVIET EDUCATION concentrates its activities on the training and upliftment of the proletariate. There was no class war in ancient India; educationalists therefore tried to provide education to each class, suitable for its own needs and traditions. MODERN INDIAN EDUCATION is dominated by the aim of passing examinations with highest honours; this aim was practically non-existent in ancient India. It will be shown in Chapter VI how examinations played quite a negligible part in ancient Indian education.

Chapter II. SOME EDUCATIONAL PRINCIPLES AND POSTULATES. Education for all—Education a serious proposition and marriage incompatible with it—Education to begin in childhood and not to stop with graduation—Student’s cooperation important—Rod to be used very sparingly—Importance of habits, routine, association and imitation— The Gurukula system—The role and importance of the family—Various theories about Nature vs, Nurture—Influence of the caste system—The system once flexible, Brahmanas and non-Brahmanas teaching each others’ subjects—Its influence on the curriculum of Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras in later times—Caste system and Buddhism. Introduction: It is desirable to discuss now important educational principles and postulates accepted and assumed by ancient Indian thinkers. This would facilitate the proper understanding of the evolution and history of the different aspects of education that would be described later on in the book. It has to be observed at the outset that principles and postulates have not been systematically and comprehensively discussed in any ancient work; they have to be gathered from diverse and scattered sources and inferred from educational practice. Education should be thorough : We have seen already how education was regarded as a source of illumination and was expected to enable its recepients to meet successfully the difficulties and problems of life. It was therefore insisted that it should be thorough and efficient. The educational system did not aim at imparting a general knowledge of a number of subjects; its ideal was to train experts in different branches. Printing and paper being unknown, books were very costly and libraries

II] SOME EDUCATIONAL PRINCIPLES AND POSTULATES 23 practically non-existent; the educational system therefore took particular care to train and develop memory in order to ensure that what students had learnt during their college days should stand them in good stead throughout their life. Personal attention to each student was insisted upon to ensure a high degree of proficiency. In pro- fessional education the necessity of practical training was emphasised for the same reason. Education for all: Since education was regarded as the best agency for improving society, it was naturally insisted that it should be available to all those who were qualified to receive it. It was not regarded, as was the case in Ancient Greece, as the priviledge of those lucky few who had the necessary leisure to devote to its acquisition. To ensure literary education to the largest possible number, Upanayana ritual, which marked the beginning of religious and literary education, was made obligatory for all the Aryans, both males and females. It was further declared that a man can discharge his debt to ancestors not merely by procreating sons but by pro- viding for their proper education.¹ Every Aryan, i. e. every Brahmana, Kshatriya and Vaishya, thus received at least the rudiments of literary and religious education. Things however changed for the worse during the first millennium of the Christian era, when Kshatriyas and Vaishyas gradually ceased to perform Upanayana and sank to the level of the Shudras. This gave a great set- back to their literary education. As far as the professional education was concerned, it was ensured to almost all persons anxious to receive it, when the caste system became hereditary; every family was expected to train its children and bring them up in the traditions of its profession. ¹ तस्मात्पुत्रमनुशिष्टं लोक्यमाहुस्तस्मादेनमनुशास्ति । B. Up., 1.5.7.

24 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. Steps Taken to Realise the Ideal: Society also took several other important steps to realise this ideal. To ensure an adequate supply of teachers, it enjoined that teaching was a holy duty which a Brahmana was bound to discharge irrespective of the consideration as to whether any fee was likely to be received or not. It made education free and held to public opprobrium any teacher who would stipulate for fees. In order to bring education within the reach of the poorest, it not only permitted students to beg, but elevated begging into the highest duty of the student life. In order to ensure a reasonable maintenance to teachers, who were expected to devote their lives to the cause of teaching in the missionary spirit of self-sacrifice, society laid down that both the public and the state should help learned teachers and educational institutions very liberally. How these arrangements worked in practice will be explained in Chapter IV. Education a serious Proposition: Though ancient Indians held that all should normally receive the benefits of education, they have also laid down that persons who were morally and intellectually unfit to receive it should be excluded from its benefit (Nirukta, II. 4); this was a necessary precaution to avoid waste. They further point out that real scholarship cannot be obtained by dilettanish or perfunctory studies; impatience is as great an enemy of learning as self-complaceney¹. The rich and the poor have both to submit to stern discipline in order to become learned. Long continued and laborious preparation is necessary to aquire real grounding and efficiency in a subject. One who is lazy or anxious to dabble in several matters, or one who wants to have a merry time during

1. अशुश्रूषा त्वरा श्लाघा विद्यायाः शत्रवस्त्रयः। Mbh., V. 40.4.

II] SOME EDUCATIONAL PRINCIPLES AND POSTULATES 25 his school and college days, cannot become a good scholar¹. Marriage Incompatible with Studentship: Natu- rally therefore ancient Indians held that a student ought not to marry during his course. The term Brahmachārī, which is used to denote a student, primarily refers to a person leading a celibate life in order to realise his educational ideals and ambitions. Our authorities insist that the student should observe celibacy both in thought and deed. He can marry only at the end of his course, when permitted by his preceptor to do so. Lapse from this Ideal: Owing to several causes, which cannot be discussed here, the marriageable age of girls began to fall down gradually from c. 600 B. C. From 16 it came down to 14, then to 12 and then to 11 or 10. The last mentioned limit was reached during the early centuries of the Christian era. The lowering of the marriageable age of girls naturally brought down the marriageable age of boys to about 16 or 18; marriage thus became inevitable before the end of education. As early as the 3rd century B.C. we find occasional references to the cases of husbands staying away from their wives for some years during their educational course;² these cases later became common. We may safely conclude that from about the beginning of the Christian era, more than 50 percent students used to marry before their education was completed. ¹ सुखार्थिनः कुतो विद्या नास्ति विद्यार्थिनः सुखम् ॥' नान्योद्योगवता न चाप्रवसता नात्मानमुत्कर्षता। नालस्योपहतेन नामयवता नाचार्यविद्वेषिणा ॥ लज्जाशीलविनम्रसुन्दरमुखीं सीमन्तिनीं नेच्छता। लोके ख्यातिकरः सतामभिमतो विद्यागुणः प्राप्यते ॥ Subhāshitas. ² ब्राह्मणमधीयानं दशवर्षाणि (प्रतीक्षेत)। A. S. III, 4.

26 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. Education to begin at Proper Time: Ancient Indians were convinced that no good results would follow if education is begun late, in life. A boy who begins his education at 16 is not likely to bring any credit to his teachers¹. During our childhood, mind is pliable, memory keen and intellect receptive; it is only at this period of life, that it is possible to form good habits that may be of life-long use to us. Ancient Indians have therefore insisted that education ought to commence in childhood. One thinker observes that parents themselves would become the greatest enemies of a child, whose education has been neglected during the childhood². It was held that the 5th year and the 8th year would be the proper time for the beginning of the primary and the secondary education respectively. Our educationalists had however recognised that it would be necessary to vary these years in accordance with the cultural traditions of the family.³ Studies not to stop with the Course: Even in modern times, when books are cheap and library facilities fairly good, students forget a good deal of what they learn within a few years after leaving the school or the college. The danger was much greater in ancient times when books were rare, costly and fragile. Our educa- tionalists therefore emphasise that every graduate should recapitulate daily a portion of what he had learnt in the school or the college. At the time of his convocation, the chancellor particularly exhorted him not to neglect his duty of daily revision⁴. To forget what had once been learnt was pronounced to be a sin as grave as the ¹ नातिषोडशवर्षमुपनयीत प्रसृष्टवृषणो ह्येष वृषलीभूतो भवति ॥ J.Gr.S.,I.12 ² माता शत्रुः पिता वैरी बालों येन न पाठितः । Subhāshita. ³ See Appendix I, sections A and B. ⁴ स्वाध्यायप्रवचनाभ्यां न प्रमदितव्यम् । T.U ., I.

II] SOME EDUCATIONAL PRINCIPLES AND POSTULATES 27 murder of a friend or Brahmana (Yáj., III. 228). During the rainy season, every graduate was expected to devote extra time to his studies 'in order to remove their staleness'. Some thinkers like Śvetaketu even recommended an annual stay of two months at the college for this purpose [A. D. S., X. 1. 2. 12]. Importance of Student's Cooperation : Ancient Indians held that education was not a passive or one sided process and that it will be productive of the greatest results only when full and voluntary coopera- tion is coming forth from students. They must feel the urge to acquire more knowledge; then there would be pleasure in teaching them. If there is no real desire for learning and improvement, it would be useless to waste time and labour over the education of insincere students (Manu, II, 113-4, 191). But what was to be done if a student entrusted to the charge and care of a teacher begins to show a continuous indifference to duty ? How was he to be induced to do his work? Was the teacher merely to remonstrate, or was he to inflict physical punishment ? Views about Physical Punishment : As may be expected, there was no unanimity of views among ancient Indian educationalists about the advisability of physical punishment. Āpastamba recommends that a teacher should try to improve refractory students by banishing them from his presence or by imposing a fast (1.2.8.30). He seems to be opposed to physical chastisement. Manu grows eloquent over the virtues of gentle persuasion (II. 159-61), but eventually permits the imposition of mild physical punishment by a thin rod or rope. Gautama agrees with him, but adds that a teacher giving a severer punishment would be liable for legal prosecution.¹ A १ शिष्यशिष्टिरवधेन । अशक्तौ रज्जुवेणुविदलाभ्याम् । अन्येन घ्नन् राज्ञा शास्यः । I. 2.48.53

28 EDUCATION IN ANCIENT INDIA [Ch. teacher in Taxila, when giving physical punishment to a royal student from Benares, who would not give up his stealing habits in spite of repeated exhortations, exclaims that the use of the rod cannot be altogether given up by a teacher (Jā., No. 252). He takes up the position of Manu and Gautama, which represents the via media, and seems to have been generally followed in ancient India.¹ The Taxila teacher seems to have held views similar to those of Locke, who permits corporal punishment for moral remissness. Corporal Punishment Elsewhere: In ancient times corporal punishment was the order of the day. It was given in Sparta not only as a corrective, but also as a means of making students hardier. In the schools of this city, there were rather whipping exercises than the imposition of corporal punishment. Other schools in ancient times did not go to the extreme length of Sparta, but permitted a liberal use of the rod. The same was the case with the Europe of the Middle Ages and it was but natural. At a time when man was regarded as a vessel of sin, and when he hoped to become fit for heaven only through a bitter struggle with the flesh, extreme views about the place of punishment naturally prevailed among educationalists. The reaction started only with Rousseau. Importance of Habits: One of the best ways to secure ready cooperation from students was to encourage proper habits; great importance was therefore attached to the formation of proper habits by the student during his education course. It was realised that habits consti- tuted a second nature and those formed during the pliable

¹ 1. In Medieval India, as in Medieval Europe, corporal punishment was liberally administered in village schools. The old ideals were for- gotten by this time.