Religion, society and education

Religion in early medieval India was lived through temples, pilgrimage, Bhakti songs and monastery schools rather than through a single church or creed. A concrete example is Nalanda, where monks studied logic, grammar and Buddhist philosophy alongside medicine and astronomy, drawing students from across Asia. Society around these institutions was organised by caste and kinship, yet Bhakti saints and merchant donors constantly pushed at its boundaries. This chapter links belief, social order and learning as one system.