Assistant Professor of Religious Studies Abhishek Amar presented a paper titled 'Telhara: What Does It Mean to be a Buddhist Megamonastery in the Early Medieval India,' at the 18th congress of International Association of Buddhist Studies, held at the University of Toronto. Amar questioned the usage of the site of Nalanda as a touchstone to define mega monasteries in the Buddhist historiography.
Based on an archaeological survey and a study of monastic seals, Amar proposed a new set of criterion, specifically institution history/archive, spatial configuration, and royal patronage, which should be considered in any consideration of mega monasteries in the early medieval India.
