Education in Ancient India c6.s1.1

c6.s1.1

Introduction: We have seen already that the item of students' fees was a minor one in the income of the private teacher and did not figure at all in the budgets of public colleges and universities. The question therefore naturally arises as to how education was being financed in ancient India. Society, which had frowned upon the practice of charging regular fees as a mercenary and unworthy procedure, used to succeed in getting ample support for the cause of education by appealing to the religious and charitable instincts of the public. Vidyādāna or a gift in the cause of education was pronounced to be the best of gifts, possessing a higher religious efficacy than even the gift of land (*bhūmidāna*).¹ Religion had a great hold over the public mind in ancient times and this spiritual exaltation of Vidyādāna secured so wide and ample a response to the cause of education, both from the public and the government, that it used to become possible to impart free education at least to all poor students, wishing to derive its benefits.