Nava Nalanda Mahavihara

Nalanda had been an ancient seat of learning and a religious centre that imparted manifold knowledge. It existed in ancient Magadha (presently, Bihar and parts of Bengal, Orisha in India) between the fifth century AD to twelve century AD. It was believed that the term ‘Nalanda’ might have been originated from the word nalam (lotus), or da nalanda, signifying “giver of knowledge”. The ancient Mahavihara at Nalanda was established during the reign of a king called Śakrāditya, of the Gupta Dynasty.

Nalanda was visited by both Buddha and Mahavira around the fifth and sixth centuries BC. It was also the place of birth and nirvana of Sariputta, one of the famous disciples of Buddha. Many of the famous Buddhist scholars had studied and taught at Nalanda including Nagarjuna, who formalised the concept of Sunyata; Dharmapala, the teacher of Xuan Zang; Dharmakirti, the logician; Dinnaga, the founder of Buddhist Logic; Jinamitra Santaraksita, who founded the first monastic order in Tibet; Padmasambhava, the master of Tantric Buddhism; Candrakīrti, Śīlabhadra and Atisa.

Nalanda was one of the world's first residential universities. More than 10,000 students and 2,000 teachers resided in this monastic campus. The Mahavihara, built in red bricks, was considered to be an architectural masterpiece. It had eight separate compounds and ten temples, along with many other meditation halls and classrooms. The library was located in a nine storied building where valued copies of texts were produced. The subjects taught by the renowned teachers amassed every field of learning, and attracted pupils and scholars from all parts of the world-Korea, Japan, China, Tibet, Indonesia, Persia and Turkey. Nalanda was ransacked and destroyed by an army of the Muslim Mamluk Dynasty under Ikhtiyar ad-Din Muhammad bin Bakhtiyar Khilji in 1193 AD.

Presently, the ruins of the ancient Nalanda Mahavihara occupy an area of 14 hectares and most of it remains unexplored. The historical significance of Nalanda, Rajgir and Bodhgaya attract thousands of tourists every year from both India and abroad.

The world has been made a global village through the use of computers and the internet. Therefore it is essential for everyone to have at least a basic knowledge of computers in order to survive in this cyber space. The largest computer Lab in the Nava Nalanda Mahavihara (NNM) can accommodate 25 Students in its capacity. It is fully Air-Conditioned with the latest technological devices, Internet and audio-visual facilities.

Both indoor and outdoor sports are integral part of the University curriculum. Facilities are available for the both indoor and outdoor Sports in the campus. The University has a boat club where facilities for the Water sports are available from October to March every year. As per the conventions of the ancient Nalanda Mahavihara, NNM emphasiges and encourages its students to participate in regular elocutions and debares, to enrich their abilities of oratory and judgement. The largest conference room in the Nava Nalanda Mahavihara (NNM) can accommodate many people in a professional set up and is well equipped with a multimedia projection screen.