The Hindu : National : Mission to revive Nalanda

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Sunday, Dec 02, 2007
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Mission to revive Nalanda

Arunkumar Bhatt

Indo-Chinese Friendship Project under way

Xuanzang’s writings will serve as guide
ISRO to provide satellite imagery

MUMBAI: Plans are on to resurrect the ancient university of Nalanda and make it a world-class institution, under an Indo-Chinese Friendship Project, during the Indo-Chinese Friendship Year for Tourism and Culture.

The Archaeological Survey of India will begin excavations in February to unearth the campus, which in its heyday was spread over 16 sq km, going by the writings of seventh century Chinese scholar Xuanzang. It was located some 90 km from present-day Patna.

Dr. Ravindra Panth, Director of Nava Nalanda Mahavihara, deemed a university, told The Hindu here: “Today we know only 10 per cent of Nalanda. We have to find the remaining 90 per cent of the campus. We have to properly map it to rebuild it. Right now these mounds are like a jigsaw puzzle.”

Xuanzang described in detail Nalanda and its major gateway to the campus, its eight halls, richly adorned towers and deep translucent ponds. He came to India in A.D. 630 after a journey through Central Asia. He spent five years at Nalanda, as a student and a teacher.

He took back with him 657 volumes of sacred texts and spent his final years translating and interpreting them. Nalanda and its three libraries were destroyed by Muslim invaders in the 13th century. Xuanzang’s collection and works survived in China.

As in India, in China Xuanzang is highly respected. According to Dr. Panth, China has agreed to present to the resurrected Nalanda University Xuanzang’s Chinese translations and some original volumes that he had taken with him.

Dr. Panth said the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) would provide satellite imagery of the area.

The Indo-Chinese collaboration to revive Nalanda began in the 1950s when the founder-director of Nava Nalanda Mahavihara, Ven. J. Kashyap. visited China and met Prime Minister Zhou Enlai. In 2001, the Xuan Zang Memorial Hall came into being at Nalanda.

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