Nalanda

Nalanda is in the state of Bihar in India. In ancient days it was famous for a Buddhist monastery and a university. The district in which this place is situated is named after it. Many ruins are found at this place.

Nalanda came into prominence around the 5th century BC and was a flourishing university town with over ten thousand scholars and an extensive library. Recent excavations have unearthed elaborate structures here.

Hieun Tsang stayed here in the 7th century AD and left detailed description of the excellence of education system and purity of monastic life practiced here. He also gave a vivid account of both the ambiance and architecture of this unique university of ancient times. In this first residential international university of the world, 2,000 teachers and 10,000 monk students from all over the Buddhist world lived and studied here. The Gupta kings patronized these monasteries, built in old Kushan architectural style, in a row of cells around a courtyard. Emperor Ashoka and Harshavardhana were some of its most celebrated patrons who built temples, monasteries and viharas here.

An International Center for Buddhist Studies was established here in 1951.