Ancient Indian Education (Brahmanical and Buddhist) c32.s2.11

c32.s2.11

**Its History as written in the phenomenal achievements of its Scholars.** We do not know much of the working of this University, its rules and regulations governing the daily life and studies of its resident students, as we know in the case of Nālandā, thanks to the comprehensive account left to us by a foreign pilgrim of the eminence of Hiuen Tsang on the basis of his first-hand knowledge as its student for several years, which has been further supplemented by an equally full account of another foreigner, I-tsing, who had even a greater advantage in observing its working as a student for a much longer period. And the accounts of these Chinese pilgrims have a further value for the spirit of detachment, criticism, and objectivity in which they are written. Unfortunately, Vikramaśīlā is not as fortunate as Nālandā in the matter of the conservation of its history. But its history is written large in the biography of the great men it has produced, the scholars who were invited by foreign countries, chiefly Tibet, to spread its learning, culture, and religion. From the foreign accounts of some of these scholars, we glean something of the history of their Alma Mater. Indeed, the success of the work of Vikramaśīlā as a seat of learning is amply demonstrated by the quality and quantity of its output, the prodigies of piety and learning it produced, and the profound contributions they made to knowledge and religion by their numerous writings which practically built up the culture and civilization of another country, Tibet. Tibet has gratefully treasured up the memories of some of these graduates of Vikramaśīlā, a few of whom it has canonized as its patron-saints. We shall now trace the history of Vikramaśīlā in the Tibetan accounts of some of its famous scholars and teachers.