The Odantapurī university

Another Buddhist Monastic University was Odantapurī or Odantapura. It was the contemporary of Vikraṃśilā University. During the decline period of Nālanda Mahāvihāra, the Odantapurī Mahāvihāra was established by certain Gopāla or Lokpāla^[1]. It was located near the Pataliputra in Magadha. Odantapurī basically spread the tenets of Buddhism. It was famous for its strong hold of Tanric Buddhism. Many Tibetan eminent scholars came to Odantapurī Mahāvihāra to learn something new in Tantrism. It had a very splendid library of Brahmanical and Buddhist work^[2]. Atīśa or Dipankara Śrījñāna was the most famous and eminent scholar of Odantapurī Mahāvihāra. He studied at Odantapurī for two years under a Hinayantist teacher Dharmrakṣita. At the age of nineteen he obtained the sacred vows from Śīlarakṣita, the Mahāsaṅghika Ācārya of Odantapurī, who gave him the name of Dipankara Śrījñāna. From this place Atisa passed on to Vikraṃśilā where he became the head of the institution^[3]. Besides this, there were not less than one thousand Buddhist monks and students resided at Odantapurī and received education.

But it is a matter of great regret that the Odantapurī had a high reputation in learning but it could not attain to that level of fame and repute. This University at the end of the eleventh century had gone far in to decline. The Muhammad-i-Bakhtiyar and his troops destroyed the Mahāvihāra in 1199 A.D.