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• Jains have contributed immensely in the education of India right from day one through their monasteries distributed across the country.
• The family is the first school and nucelus for education in India.
• In the primitive India, father and mother were the basic teachers of their children.
• Jains also accepted the family concept which prevailed earlier the rise of the Jain religion and Jain philosophy.
• Jains also focussed and developed the family based system of education not only of Jain religious values but other aspects of life social, cultural, business and others.
• Grammar and correct speech and languageand communication was taught at home.
• Their monastries continued to impart instructions and lectures and education on religious and secular values.
• In the monasteries, the curricula included  instructions in religion, literature, arts and physical cultures.
• The Jain monastries admitted the students of all castes.
• Teachers were of two kinds : teaching religous values and other teachers teaching secular values.
• The teachers/monkds in the Jain monasteries were required to study not less than three hours to upgrade and educate and evolve themselves.
• Intermonasteries debates and sharing thoughts were encouraged.
• In the Jain monastries library, the books, scripts relating religion, philosophy, astronomy, logic and arthmetic could be found.
• Youths of mercantile communities were admitted and trained.
• Rulers of ancient India competed with each other in honouring Tirthankars for their various kinds of contribution including that of the education.

to be continued.

by Dr B M Sharma