Nalanda – Historical facts
Nalanda was one of the most acclaimed
Buddhist monasteries in ancient Magadha (now Bihar). Located about 95
kilometres southeast of Patna, it was a well-known religious centre
of learning from the 5 CE to 1197 CE. The school attracted scholars and
students from not just India, but neighbouring countries like Tibet, China,
Korea and Central Asia. The centre of learning flourished under the rule of
Gupta Empire and later Pala Empire. It is believed that Nalanda was established
during Gupta Dynasty. While, a number of monasteries grew up during Pala
period, Nalanda was one of the famous ones.
Initially, a small village on a major
trade route, Nalanda was situated near Rajagriha (now Rajgir), which was then
the capital of Magadha.
Buddhist connection: Lord Buddha is
believed to have delivered sermons in a nearby forest Pravarik while one of his
chief disciples Shariputra was born and attained nirvana here.
Jain connection: Nalanda also has
strong ties with Jain religion. The Jain thirthankara Mahavira spent 14
rainy seasons at Nalanda.
About the school: A residential
school, Nalanda is claimed to have accommodated over 10,000 students and
2000 teachers. A nine-storied building was its library where huge number of
books were produced and stored. It is believed that the library burned for
three months after the invaders set fire to it in 1197 CE – c. 1203 CE during
the Muslim invasion in which Bakhtiyar Khilji sacked it and set it to flames.
Architecture: An architectural
work of art, Nalanda was built with red bricks. It had a lofty wall, eight
separate compounds, ten temples and a multitude of meditation halls and
classrooms. It also had lakes and parks.
Its ruins occupy an area of 14 hectares (488 by 244 metres.
Scholars and eminent people associated
with Nalanda included:
• Aryabhata
• Aryadeva,
student of Nagarjuna
• Atisa
• Chandrakirti
• Dharmakirti,
logician
• Dharmapala
• Dinnaga,
founder of Buddhist Logic
• Jinamitra
• Nagarjuna,
formaliser of the concept of Shunyata
• Padmasambhava,
master of Tantric Buddhism
• Shantarakshita,
founder of the first monastic order in Tibet
• Shilabhadra,
the teacher of Xuanzang
• Xuanzang,
Chinese Buddhist traveller
• Yijing,
Chinese Buddhist traveller
Destruction of Nalanda: It is believed that
in c. 1197 CE, Nalanda was
ransacked by Bakhtiyar Khilji, a Turk, who wanted to uproot Buddhism.
Nalanda revived: September 1, 2014, saw the
commencement of the first academic year of a modern Nalanda University with 15
students, in Rajgir. It has been established in a bid to revive the ancient
seat of learning. The university has acquired 455 acres of land for its campus
and has been allotted ₹2727 crores by the Indian
government. It is also being funded by the governments of China, Singapore
No comments:
Post a Comment