Education in Ancient India provides us with a glimpse of the education system practiced in ancient India upto 1200 AD. The author examines different sources such as canonical texts, archaeological, and literary compositions, foreign travel accounts, etc., to study the ancient Indian educational system. Certain aspects covered in this book are student- teacher relationship, primary education, female education, educational institutes, society, aims and achievements, rituals associated with education such as yajnopavita, curricula methods, examination systems, convocation ceremonies, and pedagogical skills cum techniques, etc. This book will be largely beneficial to researchers and students interested in ancient India and history of education.

A.S. Altekar (1889-1960) was an ancient Indian historian. He was the Head of Ancient History and Culture at BHU, Varanasi, and served at K.P. Jayaswal Research Institute, Patna, and Patna University. In 1947, he was appointed as the chairman of the Numismatic Society of India. He authored books like The Position of Women in Hindu Civilization: From Prehistoric Times to the Present Day; The Vakataka-Gupta Age; State and Government in Ancient India; Rashtrakūtas and their Times and History of Benares, etc.

In the following pages an attempt has been made to give an authentic, impartial and realistic picture of Education in Ancient India, its theories and ideals, rituals and institutions, courses and curricula and merits and defects. The account is based upon a first-hand study of all the material available,-religious books, literary works, epigraphical evidence, sculptural and arachnological data, and accounts of foreign travellers and historians. Evidence from these diverse sources has been properly evaluated, no partiality being shown or undue importance being attached to any one of them. Every care has been taken to check and verify the conclusions based on the data from one of the above sources by considering what other sources have to say on the points concerned. References to original sources have been given in all cases, and original passages also have been quoted in the more important ones. This, it is hoped, will facilitate further independent enquiry on the part of the reader.

Ancient India covers a period of more than 2,000 years and educational methods, ideals and institutions could not remain unchanged through this long period. In this book the reader will find an effort made to show how changed ideals and circumstances were affecting the growth and evolution of education from age to age. Unfortunately it was not possible to do this in every case owing to the scantiness of the material available for the purpose. The book traces the history of Education in India upto about 1200 A. D. In many places, however, a brief account has been given of the state of affairs down to the advent of the British rule. Wherever possible, a comparison is sought to be made with the state of affairs prevailing in the West to enable the reader to get a proper perspective in the matter.

The book seeks to give a succinct yet comprehensive account of all the aspects of education in Ancient India. No important item or aspect has been left out. The subject matter is presented in a way which should be attractive both to the research student and the general reader. If the former thinks that the book throws considerable new light on several important points, and the latter finds that it gives a readable and realistic account of the Educational System in Ancient India, the author will feel amply compensated for his labour of love.