Ghatika
Topic: Gupta Empire and the Classical Age · NCERT: Class 7, Ch 7 "The Gupta Era: An Age of Tireless Creativity"
Meaning
A ghatika was a centre of learning in south India. It was often attached to a temple, and Brahmins studied Sanskrit, the Vedas and other subjects there. Ghatikas first appeared under the Satavahanas. They grew important under the Pallavas (c. 275–897 CE), whose capital Kanchipuram, the "city of a thousand temples", was a major southern centre of learning. Ghatikas show that organised education existed in south India too, not only in northern monasteries like Nalanda.
Example
According to a well-known inscription at Talagunda (Karnataka), Mayurasharman went to the ghatika at Kanchipuram to study. He quarrelled with a Pallava guard there, gave up his studies, took up arms, and went on to found the Kadamba kingdom in the 4th century CE.
Don't confuse with
- Agrahara / Brahmadeya: these were land grants to Brahmins, mostly free of tax. A ghatika was a place of study, though it was often supported by such grants.
- Ghatika as a unit of time: the same word also means a period of about 24 minutes.