Education in Ancient India c11.s1.20

c11.s1.20

Effect of Buddhism on Female Education: The eventual permission, which the Buddha accorded to the admission of women to his Church, gave an impetus to the spread of education and philosophy among the ladies of the aristocratic and commercial communities. Like Brahmavādinīs, several ladies in Buddhist families also used to lead a life of celibacy, with the aim of understanding and following the eternal truths of religion and philosophy. Some of them even went outside India to countries like Ceylon and became famous there as teachers of the holy scriptures. Among the authoresses of the Therī-gāthā, who were believed to have attained salvation, 32 were unmarried women and 18 married ones. Amongst the former, Subhā, Anopamā and Sumedhā belonged to very rich familles, and are said to have been wooed by princes and rich merchants² When so large a percentage of girls was leading a life of celibacy in pursuit of religion and philosophy, it is but natural that the general average of intelligence and educatioh among them must have been fairly high.