The Ancient and Medieval Architecture of India: A Study of Indo-Aryan Civilisation c13.29

c13.29

were allowed a lower class of servants to wait upon them. Proficiency in four sections entitled the monks to the services of lay disciples, called "pure men" (*upasakas*). The reward for passing the fifth stage was an elephant-carriage. Finally, the monk who had complete knowledge of all six sections was qualified as an abbot and was allowed the dignity of an escort. No doubt the idea of this graduated curriculum was not exclusively Buddhist, but based upon the scholastic tradition of Vedic learning.