A Hindu Education

This book provides a comprehensive account of the Banaras Hindu University (BHU), India's first residential university and the result of Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya's efforts to establish a Hindu university in the country. This book not only discusses the origins and development of the BHU, but also the challenges and issues that the school faced. It studies Malaviya's efforts to introduce religious education in BHU—and even make it mandatory—and his response to Mahatma Gandhi's efforts to boycott the university. It also describes the lives of the students in the campus and its academic, intellectual, and cultural atmosphere. This book also considers the role and influence of the British in the development of Hindu education during the late colonial period and the importance of the university's location.

This book can be used by lay readers as well as students of Short and Full GCSE Courses in Hinduism. Every section has a special section entitled Breadth of Vision that offers deeper insights into religious teachings. This book places a greater emphasis on contemporary version of Hinduism, in contrast to what have now become antiquated versions. Hinduism is a living religion, constantly evolving and refreshing the message of spirituality through the teachings of its contemporary proponents. Western authors writing on Hinduism have often overlooked this feature. Many textbooks on Hinduism are Abrahamic Versions of Hinduism; this book presents a Hindu version of Hinduism focusing on its core teachings of: * The divinity of Man ~ or Spiritual humanism * Religious Pluralism promoted as a central tenet of religion * Religion reconciled with rationality * Emphasis on experiential religion * Spirituality as the common subject matter of both religions and modern sciences

This book builds an overarching view of the essential elements, themes, and teachings of the world's oldest surviving faith tradition Hinduism. Each theme is divided in easy to follow lessons. Highly philosophic content of Vedic chants is made simple enough for students as young as 5. For in-depth study, several appendices guide students into scholarly understanding of complex philosophic ideas such as the nature of reality, the nature of the mind, and the cosmic laws enshrined in the Vedic and post-Vedic texts. As a teacher with 20+ years of experience, the author presents ancient wisdom in simple language. Many books have been written about Hinduism, many of them incomplete and confusing. This book will appeal to those seeking an easy to read, logical approach to both understanding and teaching Hinduism. The book will be useful to parents, grandparents, teachers and students alike.

Just a thousand years ago, India was dotted with universities across its length and breadth, where international students flocked to gain credentials in advanced education. This illustrated book describes how these multi-disciplinary centers of learning existed in several forms such as forest universities, brick-and-mortar universities and temple universities. It examines the funding for these citadels of learning and their graduation ceremonies. The process by which India’s ancient systems of education helped to fuel a knowledge revolution around the world with its manuscripts, forming the basis for monographs and academic papers, is explained with references. The marauding incursions by Muslim invaders, which disrupted the idyllic world of university learning in India, followed by European colonization, which led to further erosion and degeneration of India’s traditional learning systems, have been taken up in some detail. Readers will get a snapshot view of India's education system down the ages from ancient to modern times.