Jaina System of Education

Author(s): Debendra Chandra Das Gupta
Publisher: Bharti Mahavidyalaya

Page 74

JAINA SYSTEM OF EDUCATION
VICTI's regarding the cducational activitics of the hermitage The ber mitage 1175 a co-educationrl institution admitting males and females ulicrc tlicy rcccncil both thcorctical and pracuical education in a spin wal atmosplicre 10 fit them for their future vocauons
I'roin the aboicuc arc in a position to conclude that co-education was in voglic in ancient India and among others the Jaina educa tionists cffccuni cly helped it through their various agencies of educa lion spyrnalism was incessantly praised in the field of education and what is rcilly astonislung plıysical and cien muitary training were gucn to komen It is implicul in the Jaina literature as the whole range of scienty tlio Arts acre prescribed for the females Females were not debarred by the Jaina fathers from receiving the same kind of clucation with tlıc males The Jainas recognized the equality of the tko sexes Only indı dual interests aptitudes temperaments tastes and nccis dctcrminal the type of education to be pursued by any student. Nccds of society State and industry also were taken into account Thic same view was adioated by Rajaśckhara in his Kavya mimamsa wluch was referred to in our introductory remarh. The educa ted women filled important positions in the family the school or higher institutions of learning in the church or nunnery and in the State. Briefly speaking they were not burden to society but were its actie members and did much for the cultural mental moral and social upheaval of the country in ancient and mediaeval India and their edu cation was utally related 10 the realities of life Thus we get an cdifying sketch of female education prevalent in ancient India among the Jainasma sketch which may be read with interest and profit even by moderns of our scientific age Here we get a graphic zllustrations of sound theories of education on elaborately comprehensive scale All honour to our venerable ancestery tho could think so much and do so much in those hoary days of antiquity