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In ancient Kerala educational institutions were mainly classified in to three. Kutipallikutam, Kalary and Salai. Kutipallikutams were functioning in all the villages in Kerala. Basic skills in reading and writing were taught in these schools. In In selected schools Amarakosam, Siddharupam, Astangahrdayam and texts on Jyotisam were taught. In Kalaries were taught physical exercises and military training for soldiers. And the last one is Salai for the Brahmanic education in Vedas and Sastras. Among these institutions village schools were the product of the influence of Buddhist system, Kalari were related to Dravida tradition. Vedic institutions or Salais were connected to the Brahmanic traditions. Temples became the centers of all cultural activities in Kerala after the 8th century AD. All the major Hindu temples had institutions for learning attached to them. Gradually educational institutions formed a part of

66 temple establishment. In certain places institutions imparted higher education in special subjects. All these institutions were commonly called salais. Educational institutions as part of the Hindu temple complex was in fact a legacy of Buddhism and Jainism which taught the disciples within the premises of place of worship. The inscriptions of this period give some details about the origin of the salas and the system of education. Buddhism and Jainism were practiced by the people of Kerala and there were several Buddhist temples in different parts of the region until about the 10th century AD. The renaissance of Hinduism under the intellectual leadership of Sankaracharya destroyed the influence of Buddhism. The Bhakti movement led by King Kulasekhara and Cheraman Perumal Nayanar too contributed to the decline of the influence of Buddhism and Jainism in Kerala. Many Buddhist temples were converted into Hindu shrines. However allied institutions such as schools and libraries continued to exist on the pattern laid down by the Buddhist but under the Brahmanic content and direction.