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What Did the Ancient Indian Education

System Look Like?
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India
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What Did the Ancient Indian Education

System Look Like?

Gurukul at the Parmarth Niketan Ashram | © Parmarth Niketan

Ashram / WikiCommons

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Like the culture and traditions of India, the system of education also
has a rich history of its own. Majorly in uenced by the Hindu religion,
the knowledge acquired by people of ancient times was passed on from
one generation to another and is re ected even in the teachings of
today. Here’s a brief take on what the system of education was like
during the early days of the Indian civilization.

In the olden days, there was no formal education in India. A father

passed on knowledge, primarily related to his occupation, to his child.
Much later, two systems of education emerged – Vedic and Buddhist.
The Vedic system revolved around the Vedas, Vedangas and
Upanishads, while the Buddhist system preached the thoughts of the
major Buddhist schools. The language of education was Sanskrit for the
Vedic system and Pali for the Buddhist system.

Buddhist students giving exam © magical-world / WikiCommons

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What was unique about ancient Indian education?

Education in ancient India was quite di erent from the rest of the
world back then. The society and state couldn’t interfere with the
curriculum or the administration. To get an education, a child had to
leave home and live with a teacher in a gurukul for the entire duration
of his studies. No fee was charged for education; in fact, the teacher
took care of everything, including food, clothing and housing.
According to this system, physical labor was of utmost importance. So,
even if a child was interested in acquiring philosophical knowledge, he
would still have to do some manual work every day. Debates and
discussions were a part of education, even in ancient days.

Students praying before lunch © User:Rhariram / WikiCommons

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When could a child start acquiring education?

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In the Vedic system, a child started his education at the age of ve. To
mark this commencement, the Vidyarambha ceremony, which included
worshiping Goddess Saraswati and learning alphabets for the rst
time, was conducted. Leaving home and starting to live with ateacher
required the child to conduct another ceremony called Upanayana. Boys
practiced this ceremony at di erent ages according to their castes (only
children of the Brahmin, Kshatriya and Vaishya did so).

In the Buddhist system, a child started his education at the age of eight,
with a ceremony called Pabbajja or Prabrajya. Unlike the Vedic system,
this initiation ceremony could be practiced by boys of all castes. After
this, the child would leave home and go to live in a monastery under the
guidance of his teacher (a monk).

The education of women

Education for women was quite important in ancient India. They were
trained in housekeeping, as well as in dancing and music. Girls also had
to conduct the Upanayana ceremony. Educated women were divided
into two classes – Sadyodwahas, those who pursued their education
just until they got married, and Brahmavadinis, those who never
married and continued studying throughout their lives. Vedas and
Vedangas were taught to women, too, but were limited to religious
songs and poems necessary for rituals. Some notable Vedic and
Upanishad women scholars were Apala, Indrani, Ghosha, Lopamudra,
Gargi and Maitreyi.

A painting depicting a Buddhist monk imparting knowledge to his

disciples © terimakasih0 / Pixabay

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What were the subjects of study?

Both Vedic and Buddhist systems of education had di erent subjects of
study. The Vedic system comprised of the four Vedas (Rig Veda, Sama
Veda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda), six Vedangas (ritualistic
knowledge, metrics, exegetics, grammar, phonetics and astronomy),
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the Upanishads, Tarka Shastra (logic and reasoning), Puranas

(history), and more. The main subjects in the Buddhist system were the
three Pitakas (Vinaya, Abhidhamma and Sutta), the most recognized
works of all 18 Buddhism schools. Certain other subjects common to
both the systems were arithmetic, military science, law, performing
arts, ethics, and art and architecture.

A student learning Veda © Rhariram / WikiCommons

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The period of learning and vocational education

Mastering one Veda took 12 years. Thus, depending on how many
subjects the student wanted to learn, the study period varied
accordingly. The education could go on for as long as 48 years.

In order to earn a livelihood, men needed to know an art form. As per

the ancient Indian education system, there were about 64 art forms,
including dance, music, jewel making, sculpture, agriculture, and
medical sciences. To acquire vocational training in a particular art
form, men were required to work as trainees under a master to gain
expertise. They were taught without any cost, and food and boarding
were also taken care of by the master.

Methods of teaching
Though teaching in groups was common back then, students were also
taught individually by their teachers based on their capabilities and
aptitudes. Oral recitation was the basic medium of imparting
knowledge and was practiced through various methods
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introspection (listening, contemplation and concentrated

contemplation), storytelling, memorization, critical analysis, practical
study and seminars.

Ancient educational institutions

Just as we have world renowned universities today, there were popular
educational institutions here during the ancient times as well. Four of
these institutions were quite prominent and known for di erent
specializations. The University of Nalanda was famous for its Catholic
and cosmopolitan character and its department of logic. Takshasila
University, in an area what is now modern-day Pakistan, was well-
known across the world for its medical school and was the chief
learning centre in 6th century BC. What Nalanda University was to east
India, Vallabhi was to west India. It was also a famous study center that
specialized in subjects like law, medicine and economics, and had
students attending from all parts of the country. Vikramshila was yet
another esteemed institution, best known for Tantric Buddhism.

Ruins of Nalanda University in Bihar, India © myself / WikiCommons

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