We accept unquestionably the perspective of the Western world. We know of Aristotle, Constantine and Anthony and Cleopatra, Alexander, Oxford and Cambridge and so on. But what do we know of our own ancient world or own ancient civilisation? I know very little.

So I was glad to have attended the symposium on “Nalanda” last year.

Nalanda was a well-known and highly respected centre of Buddhist scholarship from the 5th to 12th century. It was the biggest university in ancient India, attracting students from all over Asia. At the height of its glory , Nalanda is supposed to have accommodated 10,000 students and 2.000 teachers from across Asia. It taught a wide and holistic range of subjects: the various strands of Buddhism, philosophy, logic, grammar, medicine, mathematics, astronomy and literature.

Nanada was the key destination of many Chinese scholars including the famous scholar Hsuan Tsang. It was at Nalanda that he lectured and wrote his 3,000 stanza on the Treatise on the Harmony of Teaching.

As far as I can tell, from my search on the internet, Nalanda is the World’s oldest university but was destroyed during the Turkish invasion in the 12th century. It is one of the largest archaeological sites in India.

There is now an interest in its revival by the Chinese, Indian and Singapore
Governments.

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