class 8 SST chapter educating the nation brief summary
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How the British saw Education
The tradition of Orientalism
In 1783, William Jones arrived in Calcutta, appointed as a junior judge at the Supreme Court. Jones was a linguist who had studied Greek and Latin at Oxford and knew French, English, Arabic and Persian. At Calcutta, he learnt the subtleties of Sanskrit language, grammar and poetry from pandits. He also studied ancient Indian texts on law, philosophy, religion, politics, morality, arithmetic, medicine and the other sciences.
Henry Thomas Colebrooke and Nathaniel Halhed were also interested in the ancient Indian heritage, to master the Indian languages and to translate Sanskrit and Persian works into English. Jones along with them set up the Asiatic Society of Bengal and started a journal called Asiatick Researches.
Jones and Colebrooke felt that the Indian civilisation had attained its glory in the ancient past, but had subsequently declined. To understand India better, it was necessary to discover the sacred and legal texts that were produced in the ancient period. Jones and Colebrooke went on discovering ancient texts, understanding their meaning, translating them, and making their findings known to others. This project will help Indians rediscover their own heritage, and understand the lost glories of their past.
The Company officials felt that institutions should encourage the study of ancient Indian texts and Sanskrit and Persian literature and poetry. Hindus and Muslims should learn what they were already familiar with, and what they valued and treasured.
In 1781, a madrasa was set up in Calcutta to promote the study of Arabic, Persian and Islamic law; and the Hindu College was established in Benaras in 1791 to encourage the study of ancient Sanskrit texts that would be useful for the administration of the country.