Nalanda ancient university of India
The ancient Nalanda located in the Indian state of Bihar is known as the largest university. This university was built by Kumaragupta, the ruler of the Gupta dynasty during 450-470 AD. In this university at that time, not only from India, but students from many big countries like China, Japan, Tibet, Korea, Indonesia and Turkey used to come to study. It is also said about this university that at that time there were at least more than 300 class rooms in this university, where about 10 thousand students used to study together. There was also a huge library of 9 floors for the teachers and students. It was considered very difficult to get admission here, for admission students had to pass the entrance examination.
India once had such dominance in the field of education that students from abroad used to come to Nalanda University for education. But then something happened that all these things just became history. After all, what happened that tried to make India educationless. Let us know what is the history of Nalanda University
Meaning of the Name Ancient Nalanda University
The rise of Nalanda University is believed to be in the 5th century. Nalanda University is one of the oldest universities in the world. Presently it is situated in Bihar. According to Xuanzang, an early 7th-century Chinese pilgrim, local tradition states that the name Nalanda came from a naga – the serpent deity in Indian religions – whose name was Nalanda.
It is also said that Nalanda is made up of three Sanskrit words – Na + Alam + Da. Which means non-stop flow of knowledge. We get information about Nalanda from the accounts of Chinese travelers like Hiuen Tsang and Etsing.
Hiuen Tsang visits Nalanda in the 7th century. They attribute its establishment to Kumar Gupta I, the ruler of the Gupta dynasty. He writes that 10,000 students and more than 2,000 teachers lived here. Meaning it used to be a residential university. Where people from countries like China, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, Persia, Turkey and Sri Lanka used to come to study.
Along with Buddhism education, subjects like Mathematics, Astronomy, Philosophy, Medicine and Grammar were also taught here. Even some original copies of the Upanishads were believed to exist here. Not only this, no fee was charged from the students studying here.
Big names like Harshvardhan, Vasubandhu, Dharmapala, Nagarjuna, Hyun Tsang, Padmasambhava are among those who studied here. It is also believed that famous mathematician and astronomer Aryabhatta was a student of this university. This center of knowledge continued to flourish like this for about 800 years. But suddenly in the 12th century it is lost in the darkness of the past. The story behind this is very exciting.
Attack on ancient Nalanda University
On reading the history of Nalanda University, it is known that there were not one but three Attacks on Nalanda. It was rebuilt after the first two invasions. But the third attack proved fatal for it.
The first Attack was done by Huns under the leadership of Mihirkul in 455-467 AD during the time of Skandagupta. Huns are a group of tribes of Central Asia. Those who enter India through Khyber Pass. 4 and 6 BC The Huns had invaded India. But the descendants of Skandagupta not only rebuilt Nalanda but also made it bigger and stronger than before.
The second invasion of Nalanda was by the Gaudas dynasty of Bengal in the 7th century. After this attack, the Buddhist king Harshvardhan gets it rebuilt.
Nalanda was attacked for the third time in 1193 AD by Turkish ruler Bakhtiyar Khilji. Let us know the story behind this that what happened after all, due to which Bakhtiyar Khilji demolished Nalanda University.
It is said that once Bakhtiyar Khilji had fallen very ill. There was no improvement in health even after many remedies and treatment of doctors. In such a situation, someone suggested that Rahul Shri Bhadra, the Principal of Nalanda Mahavira, can do the treatment. Get them treated once and see. Bakhtiyar Khilji was not allowed to treat any non-Muslim. But when there was no improvement in his health, he thought that once Rahul should be called and seen.
When Rahul Shri Bhadra came to treat Bakhtiyar Khilji, Khilji put a condition in front of him that he would not eat any medicine given by him. He wanted to challenge Rahul Shree Bhadra and was trying to humiliate the Hindu as well, yet Rahul Shree Bhadra assures him that he will get well soon. He gives Quran to Khilji and says that he will read some pages of it daily. His health improves in a few days.
Rahul Shri Bhadra had put such a medicine in the Quran which would reach Khilji while reciting it. Because of which he becomes completely right. When Khilji comes to know about this, he feels very insecure and anxious that how these infidels have more knowledge than the Muslim doctors. Just in this spirit, Khilji decides that he will destroy the source of this knowledge. And this is where the destruction of Nalanda started.
Who burnt the ancient Nalanda University
The source of knowledge for the students studying in Nalanda were the books of the library situated in the campus of Nalanda University. At that time it was the largest library in the world. Its name used to be Dharamganj. It was made up of three multi-storey buildings. The names of these three buildings were Ratansagar, Ratnodhadhi and Ratranjak. It had a collection of about 90,00,000 books.
When Khilji came to know about this, he would have decided to attack Nalanda. Thousands of unarmed students are killed, many of whom are burnt alive. After this the library is set on fire. It is said that it takes 3 months to burn the books kept in the library.
It was not just an attack on a university but an attack on a civilization. This attack was so serious that after this there was nothing left to restore Nalanda once again. All that is left is the remains of the walls. Bakhtiyar Khilji did not stop here after Nalanda he also destroyed the universities named Vikramshila and Odantapuri located in Bihar. It was a loss not only to India but to the whole world.
Due to the jealousy of one person, thousands of years of knowledge was burnt to ashes. Now this knowledge collection cannot be retrieved, but the Government of India has started making Nalanda Mahavira an Educational Hub. When the former President of India, Honorable Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam while addressing the Bihar State Legislative Assembly in March 2006 proposed the idea of reviving the ancient Nalanda University, then the first step towards realizing the dream of reconstruction of old Nalanda was taken.
Around the same time, the Government of Singapore presented the "Nalanda Proposal" to the Government of India. And suggested the re-establishment of ancient Nalanda to once again make it the focal point of Asia.
In the same spirit, the State Government of Bihar consulted with the Government of India to move ahead with the readiness to adopt the visionary idea. Also, it began the search for a suitable location for the new Nalanda University. 450 acres of land was acquired in Rajgir Hills on the basis of proximity to nature. Thus, a high level of cooperation between the State of Bihar and the Government of India has shaped the establishment of Nalanda University in its new avatar from the very beginning.
Finally, the project gained momentum when the Nalanda University Act 2010 was passed in both the Houses of the Indian Parliament. Renowned economist Amartya Sen was also made the chairman of the Governing Committee of this university. In September 2014, the university opened its doors to the first batch of students, marking the beginning of a historic development after a gap of nearly eight hundred years.