Nalanda was an ancient Mahavihara, a large and revered Buddhist
monastery, in the ancient kingdom of Magadha (modern-day Bihar) in India.
Widely considered to be India's first residential university, Nalanda was also
the greatest university of the ancient world. The site is located about 95
kilometres (59 mi) southeast of Patna near the city of Bihar Sharif, and was
an important centre of learning from the fifth century CE to c. 1200 CE.
The highly formalized methods of Vedic scholarship helped inspire the
establishment of large teaching institutions such as Taxila, Nalanda, and
Vikramashila, which are often characterised as India's early universities.
Nalanda flourished under the patronage of the Gupta Empire in the 5th and 6th
centuries, and later under Harsha, the emperor of Kannauj. The liberal
cultural traditions inherited from the Gupta age resulted in a period of
growth and prosperity until the ninth century CE. The subsequent centuries
were a time of gradual decline, a period during which the tantric developments
of Buddhism became most pronounced in eastern India under the Pala Empire.
At its peak the school attracted scholars and students from near and far, with
some travelling from Tibet, China, Korea, and Central Asia. Archaeological
evidence also notes contact with the Shailendra dynasty of Indonesia, one of
whose kings built a monastery in the complex.
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Entering the archaeological site of the ancient Nalanda
University.
The Nalanda archaeological site is spread over a large area to the
northwest of Bargaon (Nalanda) village, and is between the historical
manmade lakes Gidhi, Panashokar and Indrapuskarani.
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Walking along the alley that leads to the ruins.
While its excavated ruins today only occupy an area of around 488 by 244
metres (1,600 by 800 ft) or roughly 12 hectares, Nalanda Mahavihara
occupied a far greater area in medieval times.
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The subjects taught at Nalanda covered every field of learning, and it
attracted pupils and scholars from Korea, Japan, China, Tibet,
Indonesia, Persia and Turkey.
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Approaching the surrounding brick wall.
In the detailed account of his stay at Nalanda, Xuanzang (630–643 CE)
describes the view out of the window of his quarters thus, "Moreover,
the whole establishment is surrounded by a brick wall, which encloses
the entire convent from without. One gate opens into the great college,
from which are separated eight other halls standing in the middle (of the Sangharama)."
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A map of the excavated remains of Nalanda.
After its decline, Nalanda was largely forgotten until Francis
Buchanan-Hamilton surveyed the site in 1811–1812 after locals in the
vicinity drew his attention to a vast complex of ruins in the area.
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Systematic excavation of the ruins by the ASI did not begin until 1915
and ended in 1937. The second round of excavation and restoration took
place between 1974 and 1982.
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The remains of Nalanda today extend some 488 metres (1,600 ft) north
to south and around 244 metres (800 ft) east to west.
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Excavations have revealed eleven monasteries (also known as vihara)
and six major brick temples arranged in an ordered layout.
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A 30 m (100 ft) wide passage runs from north to south with the temples
to its west and the monasteries to its east.
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Most structures show evidence of multiple periods of construction with
new buildings being raised atop the ruins of old ones.
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Temple no. 3 seen from northeast.
Temple no. 3 (also termed Sariputta Stupa) is the most iconic of
Nalanda's structures with its multiple flights of stairs that lead all
the way to the top.
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The temple was originally a small structure which was built upon and
enlarged by later constructions.
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Archaeological evidence shows that the final structure was a result of
at least seven successive such accumulations of construction.
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The fifth of these layered temples is the most interesting and the
best preserved with four corner towers of which three have been
exposed.
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Temple no. 3 seen from north.
The towers as well as the sides of the stairs are decorated with
exquisite panels of Gupta-era art depicting a variety of stucco figures
including Buddha and the Bodhisattvas, scenes from the Jataka tales.
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The temple is surrounded by numerous votive stupas some of which have
been built with bricks inscribed with passages from sacred Buddhist
texts.
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The apex of Temple no. 3 features a shrine chamber which now only
contains the pedestal upon which an immense statue of Buddha must have
once rested.
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According to Win Maung, the stupa was influenced by Gupta
architecture, which itself had Kushana era influences.
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In a shrine near the bottom of the staircase, a large image of
Avalotiteshvar was found which was eventually moved to the museum.
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Monasteries (right) seen from southwest.
All the monasteries at Nalanda are very similar in layout and general
appearance.
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Their plan involves a rectangular form with a central quadrangular
court which is surrounded by a verandah which, in turn, is bounded by
an outer row of cells for the monks – a typical design of vihara
architecture.
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Monastery no. 1 seen from west to east.
Monastery no. 1 is considered the oldest and the most important of the
monastery group and shows as many as nine levels of construction.
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Its lower monastery is believed to be the one sponsored by
Balaputradeva, the Srivijayan king, during the reign of Devapala in
the 9th century (see Nalanda copper-plate of Devapala).
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The building was originally at least 2 storeys high and contained a
colossal statue of a seated Buddha.
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See more at
Nalanda inscription of Devapaladeva - Wikipedia.
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See also
Source
Location
