Nalanda Maha Vihara — Ruins
Bihar, India · 1950
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25.13570°N, 85.44400°E
Key Facts
- ◆ Nalanda Maha Vihara was the pre-eminent Buddhist university of the ancient world (5th–12th century CE), housing up to 10,000 students.
- ◆ Destroyed by Bhaktiyar Khilji's forces in 1193 CE; the libraries burned for six months.
- ◆ Sangharakshita and Kashyap went for alms in Kul village nearby, said to be the birthplace of Maudgalyayana.
- ◆ They stayed at the Svetambar Jain Dharmasala at Bargaon and visited a Chinese monk at the Rest House.
“Kashyap-ji and I could not help wondering what it had been like to be a monk at Nalanda and whether, now that Buddhism was returning to India, it would ever be possible for a new Nalanda to rise from the ashes of the old.”
— The Rainbow Road
Source: The Rainbow Road
Other sites in Bihar
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