One of the world’s largest centres of brilliance
Owing to much suppression and alteration of India’s history by the Mughals, the British till 1947, and its Nehruvian hijacking for at least seven decades thereafter, the uniqueness and magnificence of Nalanda never received the recognition it deserved. It was the world’s first residential university, a global knowledge hub with immense libraries, attracting scholars from across Asia from the 5th to the 12th centuries CE. After its unfortunate destruction in 1193, the only British contribution was its excavation and some highlighting. As late as 2010, the Congress-led UPA introduced the Nalanda University Act in Parliament, and in 2016 the BJP got it declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognising its global significance. Considering that post-Independence there are not many who wrote about Nalanda, this book by Abhay K is most welcome.
Two of the Buddha’s most prominent chief disciples, Sariputra, who organised the Buddha’s teachings, and Maudgalyayana, a very popular teacher, became instrumental in spreading the Dharma, the Eightfold Path to enlightenment.
Nalanda was the first-ever residential university, spread over a vast, self-contained campus with dormitories housing 10,000 monks and up to 2,000 teachers, classrooms, and a vast nine-storeyed library known as Dharma Gunj (Mountain of Truth), holding millions of manuscripts. This made it a centre for advanced study in various disciplines, apart from Buddhism, including logic, astronomy, medicine, mathematics, philosophy, and grammar.
Nalanda was a prime example of the ancient Indian Guru-Shishya Parampara (teacher-disciple tradition), where students lived closely with teacher-scholars for immersive learning, focusing not just on academics but also on moral and spiritual development. It was a global hub that attracted scholars and students from China, Korea, Japan, Tibet, Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, Java, Sumatra, Greece, and Persia — a gathering that greatly fostered international collaboration.
Some of the many venerated Hindu teachers were Aryabhata, the mathematician and astronomer who wrote Aryabhatiya while at Nalanda, introducing concepts such as zero; Nagarjuna, the philosopher who established Madhyamaka philosophy, meaning the ‘Middle Way’, a major Mahayana Buddhist school at Nalanda; Dharmakirti and Dignaga, the logicians and Buddhist monks who developed Buddhist logic; Asanga and Vasubandhu, brothers who founded the Yogachara (Mind-Only) school; Shantideva, the author of the Bodhisattvacaryavatara, a guide to the Bodhisattva’s way of life; Santaraksita, the head monk of Nalanda Mahavihara who travelled to Tibet to found the Samye Monastery. Tibetan Buddhists credit Nalanda as the source of Tibetan Buddhism; Chandrakirti, revered for his commentaries clarifying Nagarjuna’s philosophy; and Atisha, a Bengali scholar critical to the “later dissemination” of Buddhism in Tibet.
Of the many foreign scholars who came to Nalanda, two famous ones were the Chinese pilgrims Xuanzang (Hiuen-Tsang) and Yijing, who documented their extensive studies and teaching experiences at Nalanda, highlighting its international character.
Around 1193 CE, Turkish-Afghan invader Bakhtiyar Khilji (Khalji) caused atrocious destruction at Nalanda University, brutally killing monks and setting aflame its great nine-storeyed library, which, according to historical accounts, burned for an extended period of weeks or even months, destroying millions of manuscripts and marking a catastrophic loss of knowledge.
Post-Independence, there has been a revival of Nalanda in India.Nav Nalanda Mahavihara was a precursor initiative started in 1951, also near the ruins, focusing on Pali Buddhism and higher learning, predating the international university.
Nalanda Open University was established in 1987 as another step in re-establishing Nalanda’s educational prominence.
In 2010, the process of resurrecting Nalanda began in Rajgir, Bihar, as the modern Nalanda University, a ‘Net Zero’ international research university with a new campus, aiming to revive the ancient centre of learning. While the ancient ruins remain, this new institution carries forward the legacy, attracting scholars and focusing on Asian studies, philosophy, and statecraft. It has been supported by a partnership of 18 participating countries that signed a Memorandum of Understanding for its establishment. These are China, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Portugal, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Singapore, Thailand, Myanmar, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. Various institutions inspired by Nalanda’s legacy have been established in foreign countries. The Nalanda College of Buddhist Studies is in Toronto, Canada. The Nalanda Institute is in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Nalanda Institute for Contemplative Science is in New York, USA, and the International Buddhist College, modelled after Nalanda, is in Hatyai, Thailand.
(The book reviewer is a VSM (Retd), strategic affairs analyst and former spokesperson of the Defence Ministry and the Indian Army); views are personal
