home / Self-development/ Nalanda Monastery India. Nalanda Monastery, Buddhist University of Ancient India

Nalanda monastery india. Nalanda Monastery, Buddhist University of Ancient India

Nalanda is a place located near Rajgir. The most famous of the ancient Indian universities was located here. Nalanda was a prosperous city during the time of Buddha. He visited him during his missionary travels. In Nalanda, Buddha stayed with his disciples in the mango grove of Ambavana. We have extensive information about Nalanda University thanks to the writings of Xuan Zan and Fa Xian, who left notes about their travels and stays at the university.

The first monastery in Nalanda was built by King Kumara Gupta (415-455 AD). This was a seminary for the training of Buddhist monks. It was located near the city and for this reason was chosen by the monks as an ideal center for Buddhist learning. As a result of the growth and expansion of this seminary, Nalanda University came into being. King Buddha Gupta (455-467 AD), King Jatagatha Gupta (467-500 AD), King Baladitya (500-525 AD) and Vijra (525) contributed to the expansion of the university in terms of additional facilities. King Baladitya built a sanctuary 300 feet high. His son Vijra built the fifth monastery. King Harsha Siladitya built the sixth monastery and surrounded the university with nine high walls.

In the tenth century, when Xuan Zan came to the university, 10,000 students lived here. They all came here from various parts India and other countries. It was a leading Indian university. Its rector was considered the most eminent Buddhist scholar in India and during Xuan Zan's residence this was Silabhadra Maha Thera. At that time there were 10,000 students, 1,510 teachers and 1,500 workers. Students came from Tibet, China, Japan, Korea, Sumatra, Java, and Sri Lanka.

Those who have passed are allowed to study at the university oral exam. He was received in the lobby by the professor, whose name was Dvara Pandita. It was necessary to know Sanskrit well, since the training was carried out in it. All the Chinese monks who wanted to receive higher education in India, they first went to Java to hone their skills in Sanskrit. Xuan Zan wrote that only 20% of foreign students passed the difficult exams. Among Indians the percentage was higher - 30%. Thus, the standard requirements were high. Neither caste, nor worldview, nor nationality influenced the passing of the exams - in full agreement with the Buddhist approach. There were no students at the university distance learning. The university was supported by the income of seven villages by decree of the king. Study of Mahayana Buddhism was mandatory. The student could also choose to study the doctrines of the other 18 Hinayana Buddhist schools, as well as secular subjects: science, medicine, astrology, art, literature, commerce, management and so on. The six systems of Hindu philosophy were also taught. The tallest building housed an observatory. Part of the university course of study included lectures, debates, and discussions. Xuan Zan wrote that 100 lectures were given every day. Exemplary discipline reigned at the University.

Major role Nalanda played a role in promoting Buddhism and spreading Indian culture abroad, especially in China and Tibet. Without exaggeration, we can say that during its heyday (VII-X centuries) Nalanda was one of the largest Asian centers of education and science. From Central Asia, Tibet, China, Korea, Japan, Indochina, Indonesia, Ceylon, Buddhist scholars came to India who wanted to complete their education under the guidance of famous teachers. So from I Ching we learn that in the forty years between Xuan Tsang’s trip and his own, 56 scientists from countries visited India East Asia and most of them were trained in Nalanda. Even more foreigners came to India in the following centuries. Having received a comprehensive education here and collected hundreds of valuable manuscripts, they returned to their homeland, where they founded Buddhist communities, taught Sanskrit to their compatriots and translated works of Indian literature into their languages. This is how Indian culture seeped into the most remote countries of Asia.

The university occupied an area of 30 acres. There were three large libraries: Ratna Sagara, Ratna Nidhi, Ratna Ranjana, one of which was nine stories high. Nalanda is known for the greatest Buddhist thinkers, among whom are Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Dharmapala, Silabhadra, Santarakshita, Kamalasela, Bhaviveka, Dignaga, Dharmakirti. Their works are represented by fourteen Tibetan and Chinese translations. The originals, however, fell into oblivion when Muslim invaders led by Bhaktiar Khilji burned the university and beheaded the monks in 1037. Until this moment, Nalanda flourished for a thousand years, was a storehouse of wisdom and learning, the only one of its kind in the whole world.

Bhaktiar Khilji invaded Magadha and attacked Nalanda just as the monks were about to have lunch. It's confirmed archaeological evidence which showed that the monks left the food in great haste. The same fact is confirmed by the fact that charred rice remained in the granaries. The blessed centuries-old life of Nalanda was once abruptly cut short. So only the memory of Nalanda and its history remained, which was subsequently presented to Europeans, first by Hamilton, and then by Alexander Cunningham.

The ruins and excavations of Nalanda are protected by the Indian government. In 1958, Indian President Rajendra Prasad inaugurated the Nava Nalanda Viharaya near the site of the ancient university.

Now almost all the ruins have been put in order, and the territory of the complex itself is carefully maintained and in some places looks like a huge flower garden, with clean paths, benches, and flower beds.

Unfortunately, we can only see the ruins of the monastery. But they are also amazing in their scale. According to archaeologists, most of the buildings still remain hidden underground. But since even what is already open to view occupies an area of one and a half hundred thousand square meters, there is no doubt that the university was of impressive size.

On the site of today's ruins there were once several temples, seven monasteries, numerous buildings for classes (according to some estimates there were several hundred), large auditoriums, and dormitories. In addition to this, of course, there were other buildings here - it was a whole city, bounded by walls, and it had everything that was necessary for a normal life (and about ten thousand people lived in Nalanda) and excellent education.

Even the ruins of monasteries allow you to see a lot - lecture halls, student rooms, food preparation rooms, you can even see how the ventilation and sewage system was arranged. The wide foundation and the preserved bases of the walls allow you to imagine the size of the buildings.

In the center of the complex stood a large educational institution with eight separate spacious halls adjacent to it. Fabulously beautiful pavilions crowned magnificent, brightly painted multi-story buildings. Among them stood out the observatory, which, according to Xuan Zang, touched the clouds with its tower top. Numerous rooms for the clergy and mentors, grouped around courtyards, were distinguished by the richness of their decoration: painted cornices, a carved balustrade, red pillars covered with carvings and paintings; brightly colored tiles glittered and shimmered in a thousand shades on the roofs.

Some buildings were higher than 60 m, and in one of them - five storeys - there was a copper statue 24 m high. The roofs were covered, perhaps, with gilded copper or colored tiles. Precious stones and gems were used in the interior decoration. Wooden columns and beams were brightly painted (often red). The tallest building in Nalanda, reaching a height of about 90 m, was one of the largest structures of its era.

All educational campus was surrounded by a wall with corner towers and several gates. The towers were adapted for astronomical observations. On the gate, every visitor could read the names of the famous teachers of Nalanda and thus, from the very beginning, was imbued with respect for this temple of science.

The Shariputra stupa has been best preserved to this day, with external staircases, stucco images of Buddha on the walls, and many small stupas nearby. Obviously, other temples were equally richly decorated with sculptures and bas-reliefs. The history of this construction of this stupa is as follows:

Buddha's closest disciples, Shariputra and Maudgalyana, were from Rajgir, a village located near Nalanda. It was to Rajigir that Shariputra returned to deliver his last sermons before entering parinirvana.

One of the Jatakas describes his departure as follows: “Having learned of Shariputra’s departure to Nirvana, the lord of the gods Indra, surrounded by many hundreds of thousands of deities who took flowers, incense and other objects of sacrifice, headed in the direction [where this event took place]. The gods huddled closely in the upper sky, their tears poured out like rain, and fallen flowers covered the ground up to their knees.

All the inhabitants of the city and its environs, having learned that Shariputra had passed into nirvana, took with them the items necessary for the sacrifice - animal and vegetable oil, incense, flowers, arrived at the place and, overcome with unbearable grief, performed the sacrifice.

Then the lord of the gods, Indra, gave the following order to Vishwakarma: “Prepare a chariot decorated with many jewels! Place the body of Shariputra on it.” After this, the gods, nagas, yakshas, the king, dignitaries, the entire population of the country, groaning loudly, brought [Shariputra’s remains] to a calm and blissful place.” So Shariputra’s body was transferred to Nalanda, where the gods themselves performed farewell rituals over him. A stupa was built over the remains of Shariputra by Anathapindada.

Wandering through the ruins of the monastery, you can feel the soaring spirit of knowledge. Buddhism is a tradition associated with learning. What makes it unique in its own way. Buddha is an enlightened being who can be said to be an ideal scientist, one who has come to a final and perfect understanding of the nature of reality. And this realization was enough for the Buddha to free himself from suffering. Because he realized that reality itself gives us the opportunity to free ourselves from suffering if we understand its nature. It was the idea of deep knowledge of reality that underlay university education in Nalanda. Education - the purpose of which was to achieve awakening. Now this fertile place, which has carried through centuries the spirit of scientific wisdom, a state of deep concentration and peace, is visited by thousands of tourists from all over the world.

Nalanda - a Buddhist university and monastery complex that existed in the V-XII centuries in northern India, one of the largest educational centers of his time, in which many outstanding Buddhist philosophers from different countries, and where numerous pilgrims gathered. Its name literally means “place that gives lotuses.” Currently, the ruins of Nalanda are a historical monument in the Indian province of Bihar, 90 km southeast of Patna , the ancient capital of India.

According to history, the Buddhist university was founded in the first third of the 5th century. Nalanda flourished during the reign of the Gupta dynasty, but the Pala rulers who replaced the Guptas continued to patronize this institution.

The famous Chinese Buddhist scholar and traveler of the 6th century wrote about Nalanda Xuanzang . A thousand professors taught there, ten thousand students studied there, the university owned nine-story buildings, 6 temples and 7 monasteries. Nalanda Library known as Dharma Gunj (Mountain of Truth) or Dharmagan-ja (Treasury of Truth), was the most famous repository of Buddhist knowledge in the world at that time. The library had three tall buildings - Ranasagara (Sea of Jewels), Ratnodadhi (Ocean of Jewels), and Ratnaran-jaka (Admiration of Jewels), according to Xuanzang, there were more than nine million books in it.

In 1193, the university was destroyed as a result of the invasion of a Turkic army led by a Muslim fanatic. Bakhtiyar Khalji who spread Islam by force of arms. Thousands of monks were burned alive or beheaded, the richest library of Nalanda was burned (according to rumors, it burned for several months in a row). This event dealt a great blow to Buddhism in India, which then fell into decline. Many Buddhist monks, fleeing persecution, fled to Nepal and Tibet.

Opened in Tibet in 1351 The educational center under the same name.

In the 9th-12th centuries, thanks to the activities of teachers from Nalanda, the Tibetan Buddhist tradition was formed. The overall influence of the university on both Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism was incomparable - many people and teachers came here who wanted to “join” the process of knowledge and learning. Scientist Darmakirti (ca. 7th century), one of the Buddhist founders of Indian philosophical logic, as well as one of the main theorists of Buddhist atomism, taught at Nalanda. Scientists from Nalanda formulated the fundamental principles of Mahayana, on which most schools of Far Eastern Buddhism later relied, as well as some ideas that were developed in Theravada.

Emperor Ashoka built Viharu , Emperor Harshvardhan ordered the creation of a copper buddha statue at 26 m high.

Nalanda University housed workshops for copying books, as well as workshops for the production of Buddhist painting and bronze sculpture. In all likelihood, Vajrayana canons for the depiction of Buddhist deities were developed in Nalanda, which were later transferred to the art of Nepal and Tibet along with the monks who fled from the Islamic iconoclasts.

Partially preserved ruins remain on the site of the university. A modern Theravada center is located nearby. The excavated archaeological area covers an area of approximately 150,000 square meters. m, but a significant part of the excavations has not yet been carried out. The nearby museum houses manuscripts discovered during excavations. Many destroyed buildings have survived to this day. For example Surya Mandir temple .

In 1951, it was opened in Nalanda International Center studying Buddhism, 2 km from here there is a Buddhist Institute Nava Nalanda Vihar . Nalanda Vihar is mentioned as the source of the traditions of the existing monasteries. Some modern Buddhist organizations are named after Nalanda, such as the Nalanda Monastery in France.

Ruins of the ancient Nalanda monastery- historical, located in the state of Bihar near Rajgir and included in. The most famous of the ancient Indian universities was located here. Nalanda was a prosperous city during the time of Buddha. He visited him during his missionary travels. In Nalanda, Buddha stayed with his disciples in the mango grove of Ambavana. We have extensive information about Nalanda University thanks to the writings of Xuan Zan and Fa Xian, who left notes about their travels and stays at the university.

In the tenth century, when Xuan Zan came to the university, 10,000 students lived here. They all came here from various parts of India and other countries. It was a leading Indian university. Its rector was considered the most eminent Buddhist scholar in India and during Xuan Zan's residence this was Silabhadra Maha Thera. At that time there were 10,000 students, 1,510 teachers and 1,500 workers. Students came from Tibet, China, Japan, Korea, Sumatra, Java, and Sri Lanka.

Those who passed an oral examination were allowed to study at the university. He was received in the lobby by the professor, whose name was Dvara Pandita. It was necessary to know Sanskrit well, since the training was carried out in it. All Chinese monks who wanted to receive higher education in India first went to Java to hone their skills in Sanskrit. Xuan Zan wrote that only 20% of foreign students passed the difficult exams. Among Indians the percentage was higher - 30%. Thus, the standard requirements were high. Neither caste, nor worldview, nor nationality influenced the passing of the exams - in full agreement with the Buddhist approach. There were no part-time students at the university.

The university was supported by the income of seven villages by decree of the king. Study of Mahayana Buddhism was mandatory. The student could also choose to study the doctrines of the other 18 Hinayana Buddhist schools, as well as secular subjects: science, medicine, astrology, fine arts, literature, commerce, government, and so on. The six systems of Hindu philosophy were also taught. The tallest building housed an observatory. Part of the university course of study included lectures, debates, and discussions. Xuan Zan wrote that 100 lectures were given every day. Exemplary discipline reigned at the University.

Nalanda played a major role in promoting Buddhism and spreading Indian culture abroad, especially in China and Tibet. Without exaggeration, we can say that during its heyday (VII-X centuries) Nalanda was one of the largest Asian centers of education and science. Buddhist scholars came to India from Central Asia, Tibet, China, Korea, Japan, Indochina, Indonesia, and Ceylon to complete their education under the guidance of renowned teachers. Thus, from I Ching we learn that in the forty years between Xuan Zang’s trip and his own, 56 scientists from East Asian countries visited India and most of them studied in Nalanda.

Even more foreigners came to India in the following centuries. Having received a comprehensive education here and collected hundreds of valuable manuscripts, they returned to their homeland, where they founded Buddhist communities, taught Sanskrit to their compatriots and translated works of Indian literature into their languages. This is how Indian culture seeped into the most remote countries of Asia.

The university occupied an area of 30 acres. There were three large libraries: Ratna Sagara, Ratna Nidhi, Ratna Ranjana, one of which was nine stories high. Nalanda is known for the greatest Buddhist thinkers, among whom are Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Dharmapala, Silabhadra, Santarakshita, Kamalasela, Bhaviveka, Dignaga, Dharmakirti. Their works are represented in fourteen Tibetan and Chinese translations. The originals, however, fell into oblivion when Muslim invaders led by Bhaktiar Khilji burned the university and beheaded the monks in 1037. Until this moment, Nalanda flourished for a thousand years, was a storehouse of wisdom and learning, the only one of its kind in the whole world.

Bhaktiar Khilji invaded Magadha and attacked Nalanda just as the monks were about to have lunch. This is supported by archaeological evidence, which showed that the monks left the food in a great hurry. The same fact is confirmed by the fact that charred rice remained in the granaries. The blessed centuries-old life of Nalanda was once abruptly cut short. So only the memory of Nalanda and its history remained, which was subsequently presented to Europeans, first by Hamilton, and then by Alexander Cunningham.

The ruins and excavations of Nalanda are protected by the Indian government. In 1958, Indian President Rajendra Prasad inaugurated the Nava Nalanda Viharaya near the site of the ancient university.

Even the ruins of monasteries allow you to see a lot - lecture halls, student rooms, food preparation rooms, you can even see how the ventilation and sewage system was arranged. The wide foundation and preserved bases of the walls allow one to imagine the size of the buildings.

Numerous rooms for the clergy and mentors, grouped around courtyards, were distinguished by the richness of their decoration: painted cornices, a carved balustrade, red pillars covered with carvings and paintings; brightly colored tiles glittered and shimmered in a thousand shades on the roofs.

The entire educational campus was surrounded by a wall with corner towers and several gates. The towers were adapted for astronomical observations. On the gate, every visitor could read the names of the famous teachers of Nalanda and thus, from the very beginning, was imbued with respect for this temple of science.

a famous historical Buddhist monastic complex and university in Northeast India, dating back to the 5th century.

It existed for seven centuries and was destroyed in the 12th century during the Muslim invasion.

In fact, it was the first university in South and East Asia to teach not only Buddhism and not only Buddhists.

Nalanda University housed workshops for copying books, Buddhist painting and bronze sculpture.

Perhaps it was in Nalanda that the main Buddhist artistic canons were formed, which were later brought into the art of Nepal and Tibet by Indian Buddhist monks who fled Islamic persecution in the 12th century.

Nalanda University Educational Program

Nalanda was famous throughout the world not only for its outstanding mentors, but also for its strict routine, as well as high demands on students, who had to memorize basic texts, have a good knowledge of commentary literature, and participate in public thematic debates.

The minimum program provided for thorough training in the “five great sciences”:

Invasion

In 1193, the university was destroyed during the Muslim invasion by an army of invaders led by Bakhtiyar Khalji, who spread Islam with fire and sword. Thousands of Buddhist monks were burned alive or beheaded, and the world's richest library, Nalanda, was destroyed in the fire. These events dealt a crushing blow to the development of Buddhism in India, and from that moment its decline in this country began. This has led to the fact that in modern India, only 0.5% of the indigenous population professes Buddhism, this figure is less than in Russia.
In the 12th century, to escape persecution, many Buddhist monks from India fled to neighboring Nepal and Tibet.
In 1351, a monastery was created on the territory of Tibet, where Buddhist philosophy was taught, under the same name - Nalanda.

Modernity

Since the 12th century, partially preserved ruins have remained on the site of Nalanda - now it is a historical monument for which the Indian province of Bihar is famous. The ruins are located 90 km southeast of Patna; this city was once the ancient capital of India.

The modern center of the Theravada tradition is now located near Nalanda.

The area excavated by archaeologists covers an area of about 150 thousand square meters, but a significant part of the territory has not yet been studied. The nearby museum houses manuscripts that were discovered during excavations.

India, Singapore and several other Southeast Asian countries have been discussing the revival of Nalanda International University for the past 10 years.

In 2007, a council was formed for these purposes, headed by the outstanding Indian economist, Nobel Prize winner, Amartya Sen. According to his plan, the revived famous university should be on a par with such famous universities in history as Bologna, Cambridge or Harvard.

Literature:
Androsov, Valery Pavlovich. Indo-Tibetan Buddhism: encyclopedic Dictionary. M., 2011, pp. 294-295.

Nalanda Mahavihara (Nalanda)

Nalanda is a Buddhist university and monastic complex that existed in the 5th-12th centuries in northern India, one of the largest educational centers of its time, where many outstanding Buddhist philosophers from different countries worked, taught and studied, and where numerous pilgrims gathered. Currently, the ruins of Nalanda are a historical monument in the Indian province of Bihar, 90 km southeast of Patna, the ancient capital of India.

The university was founded in the first third of the 5th century. Nalanda flourished during the reign of the Gupta dynasty; the Pala rulers who replaced the Guptas continued to patronize this establishment.

The famous Chinese Buddhist scholar and traveler Xuanzang of the 6th century wrote about Nalanda. A thousand professors taught there, ten thousand students studied there, the university owned nine-story buildings, 6 temples and 7 monasteries, and the library stored 9 million books. According to Xuanzang, there was an early similarity in the university entrance exams: the gatekeepers asked those who arrived to participate in the discussions difficult questions, so those who were unable to give an answer abandoned the idea of entering.

In 1193, the university was destroyed as a result of the invasion of the Turkic invading army led by the Muslim fanatic Bakhtiyar Khalji, who spread Islam by force of arms. Thousands of monks were burned alive or beheaded, and the richest library of Nalanda was burned. This event dealt a great blow to Buddhism in India, which then fell into decline. Many Buddhist monks fled to Nepal and Tibet to escape persecution.

In 1351, a training center under the same name opened in Tibet.

In the 9th-12th centuries, thanks to the activities of teachers from Nalanda, the Tibetan Buddhist tradition was formed. Thanks to the efforts of the Nalanda philosophers, the doctrines of Madhyamaka and Yogacara were formulated in the form in which they were later transferred to Tibet.

Nalanda University housed book copying workshops, as well as workshops for the production of Buddhist painting and bronze sculpture. In all likelihood, Vajrayana canons for the depiction of Buddhist deities were developed in Nalanda, which were later transferred to the art of Nepal and Tibet along with the monks who fled from the Islamic iconoclasts.

Partially preserved ruins remain on the site of the university. A modern Theravada center is located nearby. The excavated archaeological zone covers an area of about 150,000 m², but a significant part of the excavations has not yet been carried out. The nearby museum houses manuscripts discovered during excavations.

Since 2006, the efforts of Buddhists in India and other countries have been planning to revive Nalanda University under the name Nalanda International University.

Nalanda monastery india. Nalanda Monastery, Buddhist University of Ancient India

Nalanda University Educational Program

Invasion

Modernity

Password recovery