The University of Nalanda c7.71

c7.71

After the Upaniṣads comes, the Sūtra literature. This was divided into three parts. There were the Śrauta sūtras, dealing with the details of the ceremonial relating to Vedic rituals. Next come the Dharma sūtras, which prescribed the duties of a man in all the spheres of his life. His duties as a Brahmacārin, that is when he is a student, his duties when he is a householder, his duties when he retires to a forest as a Vānaprasthāśramī, and as a Sanyāsī are enumerated with meticulous precision, by these sūtras. These sūtras also deal with the duties of a king and many other things. They, in short, tell us of the religious, social and legal duties of an individual. Gṛhya sūtras dealing with the domestic life of a person form the last part of this Sūtra literature. Another branch of study that a student before Pāṇini or in his times used to take up was the Science of Pronunciation called Śikṣa or Phonetics. Mention may be made of Chandas or Metre as a branch of science studied by the student. Nirukta or Etymology was also a widely known science at that time, and continued to be so even in the centuries that followed. Lastly comes Jyotiṣa or Astrology.