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Ancient Education System of India, I, Comprehension Check, 1.) Why were travelers attracted towards India?, Answer: India is known for its rich cultural heritage. The fame of Indian culture, wealth, religions,, philosophies, art, architecture, as well as its educational practices had spread far and wide.The, ancient education system of India was considered as a source of knowledge, traditions and, practices that guided and encouraged humanity. For the travelers, India was a land of wonder, and attracted them., 2.) What were the sources of the ancient education system?, Answer: Education of the Vedas, Brahmanas, Upanishads and Dhramasutras were the sources, of the ancient education system.Writings of Aryabhata, Panini, Katyayana , Patanjali and the, medical treatise of Charaka and Sushruta were also other sources of learning in the ancient, education system., , 3.) What were the features of the education system in ancient India?, Answer: The following are the main features of education system in ancient India:, The system didn’t just teach from the books, but it was focused on the moral, physical, spiritual, and intellectual aspects of life., It inculcated values such as humility, truthfulness, discipline, self-reliance and respect for, everyone., Students were taught to admire the balance between human beings and the nature, Principles of Vedas and Upanishads were taught in order to fulfill one’s duties towards self,, family and society., Education combined both learning and physical development which shows that the focus was, on a healthy mind and body., , 4.) What was the role of a guru in pupils’ lives?, Answer: In every pupils’ life the guru holds a special place. In ancient times, the gurus and their, pupils worked conscientiously together to become proficient in all aspects of learning., Shastrarth (learned debates) were organized in order to assess pupils’ learning. Advanced, level’s pupils guided younger pupils. The guru and their shishyas lived together and helped each, other in day-to-day life. This helped the bond between them to strengthen.
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II, 1.) Where did nuns and monks receive their education?, Answer: The nuns and monks receive their education from monasteries or viharas. In viharas, they would meditate, debate and discuss with the learned which helped them to gain, knowledge., , 2.) What is Panini known for?, Answer: Panini was an alumnus of Takshashila. He was a legendary grammarian. He was an, expert in language and grammar. He authored of the greatest works on grammar called, Asthadhyayi., , 3.) Which university did Xuan Zang and I-Qing study at?, Answer: Xuan Zang and I-Qing were Chinese scholars. When Xuan Zang visited Nalanda, it, was called Nala. They visited Nalanda(then Nala) in the 7th century CE., , 4.) Which subject did Xuan Zang study in India?, Answer: Xuan Zang studied yogashastra in India., , 5.) How did society help in the education of the students?, Answer: In ancient times, knowledge was considered sacred and fees were not charged., Contributions towards education were considered the highest form of donation. People from the, society contributed in some or the other way to this valuable thing. Financial support came from, rich merchants, wealthy parents and society. Besides gifts of buildings, the universities received, gifts of land., Exercise, Discuss the following questions in small groups and write your answers., 1.) Which salient features of the ancient education system of India made it globally renowned.
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Answer: The following are the salient features of the ancient education system of India that, made it globally renownedIn ancient India, both formal and informal education was imparted., The system laid emphasis on the overall development of an individual., It focused on the moral, physical, spiritual and intellectual aspects of life., Principles from Vedas and Upanishads were taught and followed which in turn helped in fulfilling, duties towards self,family and the society., It focused on learning and physical development, which means it gave importance to the well, being of mind and body., The gurus and their shishyas lived together in gurukuls and helped each other in day-to-day life., , 2.) Why do you think students from other countries came to India to study at that time?, Answer: India is famous for its rich cultural heritage. For travelers India was a land of wonder., India’s culture, wealth, religions, philosophies, art, architecture, as well as its educational, practices had spread in many other countries and this attracted the students across the world to, come to India. Around the viharas, educational centers of higher learning developed that, attracted students from China, Korea,Tibet, Burma, Ceylon, Jav, Nepal and other countries. In, ancient times, Takshashila was a noted center of learning, including religious teachings of, Buddhism, for several centuries. It continued to attract students from around the world until its, destruction in the 5th century CE., , 3.) Why is education considered ‘a way of life’?, Answer: During ancient times, India had both formal and informal ways of education. Indigenous, education was imparted at home, in temples, pathshalas, tols, chatushpada and gurukuls., People in homes, villages and temples imparted religious knowledge to the young children., Temples were also key centers of learning and took interest in the promotion of knowledge of, our ancient system. Teaching was mainly focused on oral and pupils remembered and, meditated on what was taught by their gurus., , 4.) What do you understand about holistic education?, Answer: Ancient Indian education didn’t just focus on teaching from the books but it gave, importance to overall development of an individual. Holistic refers to the development of inner, and outer self. In other words it means to make an individual completely ready in every aspect., Education was free and not centralized. Its foundations were laid in the rich cultural traditions of
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India thereby helping in the development of the physical, intellectual, spiritual and artistic, aspects of life holistically., , 5.) Why do you think Takshashila and Nalanda have been declared heritage sites?, Answer: Takshashila was an ancient Indian city. It holds an important place in archeological, sites and UNESCO declared it to be a World Heritage Site in 1980.It became famous for, learning because of its teachers’ expertise. Nalanda was one of the oldest universities of the, world and UNESCO declared the ruins of Nalanda Mahavihara, a world heritage site. The, courses of study offered by, Nalanda University covered a wide range, almost the entire circle of knowledge then available.
