Education in Ancient India c14.s2.68

c14.s2.68

Significance of the ritual :—At the time when the significance of the Upanayana ritual and Mantras was perfectly grasped, a very powerful impression must have been produced on the mind of all the parties participating in the ceremony through the various suggestions conveyed to them by the different elements in the ritual. The ritual heralded the beginning of a new epoch in the student's life, characterised by dignity, decorum and discipline. The scholar was to regard himself as a self-reliant traveller bound for the realm of knowledge; the journey was to be long and arduous, but if there was singleness of purpose, devotion to studies and perfect accord between him and his teachers, he would