Ancient Indian Education (Brahmanical and Buddhist) c32.s2.4

c32.s2.4

**Reference in 'Kathāsaritsāgara'.** Lastly, a reference may be made to the interesting fact related in the *Kathāsaritsāgara* [xxxii, 42–3], which tells of a Brahman, Vasudatta, sending his son, Vishṇudatta, as soon as he completed his sixteenth year (*pūrṇashoḍaśavatsaraḥ*) to "Valabhīpuram" for his education (*Vidyāprāptaye*) from his native place in Antarvedi in the Gangetic valley. This shows that the dutiful Brahman father did not consider Benares or Nālandā as suitable for his son's education and took the risk of sending him on to a distant place like Valabhī for the purpose. Unfortunately, we do not possess enough information in proportion to the admitted pre-eminence of Valabhī as a seat of learning in India of those days.