Tag: applied history

While Muziris and Arikamedu were major ports in India, Alexandria was the primary Mediterranean hub for the Indo-Roman trade route, serving as the gateway to the Roman Empire.

Nalanda University is located in Rajgir, near Nalanda, Bihar, India. It attracted students and scholars from across Asia and even farther away. It was developed under the patronage of the Gupta dynasty but reached the pinnacle of its glory during the time of King Harsha. He patronized the University by remitting a huge amount of money, gifts, etc to it.

The library complex of Nalanda University was famously known as Dharmaganja, which consisted of three main buildings: Ratna Sagara, Ratna Nidhi, and Ratna Ranjana.

According to the accounts of the Chinese scholar Itsing, the revenue from 200 villages was set aside by the state to support the maintenance and operations of Nalanda University.

Nalanda was a premier center for higher learning, specifically renowned for the study of Mahayana Buddhism, although it also taught other subjects.

Vikramshila University, established by the Pala king Dharmapala, became particularly famous for the study and practice of Tantric Buddhism.

Bakhtiyar Khilji, a general of the Ghurid dynasty, is historically credited with the destruction of the Buddhist monastic universities of Nalanda and Vikramshila in the late 12th century.

Answer - (B) - Dharmapala

Hampi is located in the Krishna-Tungabhadra basin, which formed the nucleus of the Vijayanagara Empire, founded in 1336. The magnificent ruins at Hampi reveal a well-fortified city. No mortar or cementing agent was used in the construction of these walls and the technique followed was to wedge them together by interlocking.

The Pala dynasty, which ruled over parts of Bengal and Bihar, were great patrons of Buddhist learning and provided significant support to both Nalanda and Vikramshila.