Eleven years ago, the then President Abdul Kalam announced his dream of reviving the university of Nalanda, an ancient seat of learning Buddhist philosophy and statecraft. Among the first international residential educational institutions, Nalanda flourished from the 5th to 12th century near Patna before it was most likely ransacked and destroyed by Islamic invaders in the 13th century. The Nalanda University Bill, 2010 received presidential assent in September 2010, and construction began in late 2013.
The external affairs ministry took over the project as it was an international university, with the cooperation of 16 regional nations including China, Japan, Korea and Thailand. But since then, the project has been mired in various controversies and Kalam himself had expressed his sadness over the state of affairs. In 2015, its first Chancellor, Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen, quit blaming the government for delaying his term renewal. Former Singapore Minister George Yeo, who succeeded Sen, quit a year later accusing India of failing to maintain the university’s autonomy.
Kalam never saw his dream come true. Meanwhile, China recently announced the opening of admissions for the Nanhai Buddhism Academy at Sanya Nanshan, the first-ever higher education institute dedicated to Buddhist education in Hainan. It is also the first trilingual Buddhist Institute, offering instruction in Han Chinese Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism and Pali Buddhism. No Sanskrit.
The stunning complex covers 412,000 square meters and comprises four functional zones including monastery classrooms and a Buddhist cultural centre. The students will receive State-approved bachelor’s degrees after four years’ study in Buddhism. The academy, with an international faculty, will enroll 220 students when it opens in September 2017. Students from not just South East Asia but even Latin America have evinced interest. Slowly but surely, Buddhism is being associated with China rather than with its birthplace—India.