INDIANS
ONCE PIONEERS OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY ARE ONLY FOLLOWERS TODAY--Karmanyeva Adhkariste!
[Compilation for a discourse at Sri Ganesha Temple,
Nashville, TN, USA by N.R. Srinivasan, April 2020]
‘The
Vedas address all aspects of existence through Dharma, the natural laws that
uphold the universe, which reflect not only matter and energy but life, mind
and consciousness. As such, the Vedas constitute what could be called a science
in the modern sense of the word and much more. We can find among the Vedic
sciences a whole range of sciences from astronomy and chemistry to psychology
and surgery, extending to astrology and to the science of Yoga itself. We can
call this integral approach to both the spiritual and material sciences as
‘Vedic science.’ “ writes David Frawley.
“Some of the early Contributions of Indians to
Science are geometry of the Vedic altars, the invention of zero in India, Yoga
psychology, and Indian technology of steel-making that went into the
manufacture of the best swords. But the most astonishing contributions are:
Sanskrit grammar, binary numbers of Piṅgala, music theory, combinatorics,
algebra, earliest astronomy, and the physics of Kaṇāda with its laws
of motion.
Of these, Kaṇāda is the least known.
He may not have presented his ideas as mathematical equations, but he attempted
something that no physicist to date has dared to do: he advanced a system that
includes space, time, matter, as well as observers. He also postulated four
types of atoms, two with mass (like proton and electron) and two without (like
neutrino and photon), and the idea of invariance. A thousand or more years
after Kaṇāda,
Āryabhaṭa postulated that earth rotated and
advanced the basic idea of relativity of motion.
History reveals Kerala School of
Mathematics had developed calculus
long before Newton and Leibniz heralded the Scientific Revolution
that was to change the world-- the discovery of Infinite series and
Calculus. Royal Australia College of Surgeons
in Melbourne, Australia has a prominent display of a statue of Suśruta (600
BCE) with the caption “Father of Surgery”. The ancient Ayurveda texts include
the notion of germs and inoculation and also postulate mind-body connection,
which has become an important area of contemporary research. (Please go through
my detailed discourse on the subject).
There are also
anomalous statements in Indian texts whose origin is not understood. Just to
mention a few: the correct speed of
light, the
correct distance to the sun, cosmological cycles that
broadly correspond to the numbers accepted currently, the fact that the sun and
the moon are approximately 108
times their respective diameters from the earth, the correct
number of species on earth (about 8.4 million), and so
on. Historians either ignore them or say that they are extraordinary
coincidences.
There are also
indirect ways that Indian ideas led to scientific advance. Mendeleev was
inspired by the two-dimensional
structure of the Sanskrit alphabet to propose a
similar two-dimensional structure of chemical elements. Erwin Schrödinger, a
founder of quantum theory, credited ideas in the Upanishads for the key notion
of superposition that was to bring about the quantum revolution in physics that
changed chemistry, biology, and technology’” says Indologist Subhash Kak. We will talk about
these more, later in this compilation
from the voices of world reputed Western Scientists.
This is just a cross-section of what ancient
India had offered regarding science and technology. From advanced hydraulic
engineering of the Indus civilization to the naval technology of the Chola Dynasty,
India has been influenced by our scriptures to focus on science and technology,
explore and benefit the world as pioneers.
But
later brainwashed by foreign rulers, Western educated Indian Scientists not
only neglected serious study of our scriptures but also dismissed them as
myths while Western scientists seriously focused on them became World Leaders
while Indians continue as their
followers. Such an awakening just started but caught in political fights the pessimism and negligence continues.
both at individual as well as the Government level.
The
Government of India, though late than never, is planning to set up a Vedic
Research Centre that would collect both original works and those related to the
religious texts from across the globe, a repository aimed at bridging the gap
between ancient wisdom and modern science. Ujjain-based Maharshi Sandipani Rashtriya Vedavidya Pratishthan (MSRVP) — the
institute would conduct research to
“unearth the scientific and therapeutic knowledge buried” in the Vedas.
Here
are some excerpts from Vedas that provide clues to deep scientific concepts
hidden within them. Unfortunately, due to thousand years of slavery, burning of
Hindu universities and libraries by barbarians and then demands for tackling
issues of survival first, there remains a lot of work to be done to rediscover
the Vedic sciences. However, sufficient clues exist to justify why this
rediscovery would be worthwhile.
Vedas
not being dogmatic in nature and containing eternal truths, do not try to
spoon-feed us. Thus Vedas would contain seeds for all forms of knowledge and
would urge humans to explore further. Because in the Vedic framework, it is our
efforts that can provide us bliss. There may be few defective seeds too that
need to be discarded.
CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE
Vilenkin starts his postulation on
creation referring to Vedas of 3000 years old. Vedas say creation is of repetitive
nature and say “Yathapoorvam akalpayat”-Brahman
created the Universe every time as it was before. In
the model Steinhardt and Turok describe, universes periodically collide with
each other, with each collision acting like a new Big Bang. Whereas the
standard Big Bang model features a single moment of creation, their model — as
with Penrose’s — suggests that we live in “a universe that is made and remade
forever,” as Steinhardt puts it.
Cosmologist
Alexander Vilenkin believes the Big Bang wasn't a one-off event, but merely one
of a series of big bangs creating an endless number of bubble universes.
Vilenkin also feels that explosive form of cosmic expansion — must
have had a beginning, too. By this logic, our universe also had a beginning
since it was spawned by an inflationary process that is eternal into the future
but not the past. While Penrose suggests creation as cyclic Vikenkin
suggests of repetitive nature. Yathapoorvam
akalpayat also means “of repetitive nature” only.
For
many physicists, the beginning of the universe is uncomfortable, because it
suggests that something must have caused the beginning, that there should be
some cause outside the universe. In fact, we now have models where that’s not
necessary—the universe spontaneously appears, quantum mechanically. The
description of the creation of the universe from nothing is given in terms of
the laws of physics.
In quantum physics,
events do not necessarily have a cause, just some probability. As such, there
is some probability for the universe to pop out of “nothing.” Nasadeeya sookta says in the beginning there
was nothing except Brahman alone whence he started his work of creation feeling lonely!
MOTION
OF EARTH
Rig
Veda 10.22.14
“This earth is devoid of hands and legs, yet it moves ahead. All the objects over the earth also move with it. It moves around the sun.
In this mantra,
Kshaa = Earth (refer Nigantu 1.1)
Ahastaa = without hands
Apadee = without legs
Vardhat = moves ahead
Shushnam Pari = Around the sun
Pradakshinit = revolves
“This earth is devoid of hands and legs, yet it moves ahead. All the objects over the earth also move with it. It moves around the sun.
In this mantra,
Kshaa = Earth (refer Nigantu 1.1)
Ahastaa = without hands
Apadee = without legs
Vardhat = moves ahead
Shushnam Pari = Around the sun
Pradakshinit = revolves
Rig
Veda 10.149.1
“The sun has tied Earth and other planets through attraction and moves them around itself as if a trainer moves newly trained horses around itself holding their reins.”
In this manta:
“The sun has tied Earth and other planets through attraction and moves them around itself as if a trainer moves newly trained horses around itself holding their reins.”
In this manta:
Yantraih
= through reins
Prithiveem = Earth
Aramnaat = Ties
Dyaam Andahat = Other planets in sky as well
Atoorte = Unbreakable
Baddham = Holds
Ashwam Iva Adhukshat = Like horses
Prithiveem = Earth
Aramnaat = Ties
Dyaam Andahat = Other planets in sky as well
Atoorte = Unbreakable
Baddham = Holds
Ashwam Iva Adhukshat = Like horses
GRAVITATIONAL
FORCE
Rig Veda 8.12.28
Rig Veda 8.12.28
“O Indra! putting forth your mighty rays, which possess
the qualities of gravitation and attraction-illumination and motion – keep up
the entire universe in order through the Power of your attraction.”
Rig Veda 1.6.5, Rig Veda 8.12.30
Rig Veda 1.6.5, Rig Veda 8.12.30
“O God, You have created this Sun. You possess infinite
power. You are upholding the sun and other spheres and render them steadfast by
your power of attraction.
Yajur Veda 33.43
“The sun moves in its own orbit in space taking along
with itself the mortal bodies like earth through force of attraction.”
Rig Veda 1.35.9
“The sun moves in its own orbit but holding earth and
other heavenly bodies in a manner that they do not collide with each other
through force of attraction.
Rig Veda 1.164.13
Rig Veda 1.164.13
“Sun moves in its orbit which itself is moving. Earth and
other bodies move around sun due to force of attraction, because sun is heavier
than them.
Atharva Veda 4.11.1
Atharva Veda 4.11.1
“The sun has held the earth and other planets”
LIGHT OF MOON
Rig
Veda 1.84.15
“The moving moon always receives a ray of light from sun”
Rig Veda 10.85.9
“Moon decided to marry. Day and Night attended its wedding. And sun gifted his daughter “Sun ray” to Moon.”
ECLIPSE
“The moving moon always receives a ray of light from sun”
Rig Veda 10.85.9
“Moon decided to marry. Day and Night attended its wedding. And sun gifted his daughter “Sun ray” to Moon.”
ECLIPSE
Rig Veda 5.40.5
“O Sun! When you are blocked by the one whom you gifted
your own light (moon), then earth gets scared by sudden darkness.”
“SCIENCE OF BUILDING SHIPS AND AIRPLANES”
Swami
Dayananda has detailed Mantras regarding these in his Vedic commentary and
Introduction to Vedas” (1876). The scientists of IISc., concluded that the
mechanism of airplane as suggested by Dayananda is feasible. The first manned
plane was built 20 years after death of Swami Dayananda. Readers may review “Introduction to Vedas” by
Swami Dayanand or interpretations of following mantras: Rig Veda 1.116.3,
1.116.4, 10.62.1, 1.116.5, 1.116.6, 1.34.2, 1.34.7, 1.48.8 etc.
SCIENCE
OF TELEGRAPHY
Rig Veda 1.119.10
“With
the help of bipolar forces (Asvins), you should employ telegraphic apparatus
made of good conductor of electricity. It is necessary for efficient military
operations but should be used with caution.”
SCIENTIFIC
KNOWLEDGE HIDDEN IN ANCIENT VEDA MANTRAS & SUTRAS
(Extracts
from my Compilation of Gems of Wisdom from Vedas and Upanishads--Hindu
Reflections)
Ancient
scientific knowledge is deeply hidden in our Veda mantras bthat is amazing. I
quote below specific mantras from Rigveda and Vaiseshika Sutras on
Gravitational Force attributed by the West to the discovery by Sir Isaac
Newton:
Vedic
Mantras on Gravity
Rigveda
Mantra 1.6 73
speaks of gravitational force:
अजो न कषां दाधार पर्थिवीं तस्तम्भ
दयां मन्त्रेभिः सत्यैः |
परिया पदानि पश्वो नि पाहि विश्वायुरग्ने गुहा गुहं गाः || ||
परिया पदानि पश्वो नि पाहि विश्वायुरग्ने गुहा गुहं गाः || ||
ajo na(h) kasham dādhāra pṛthivīṃ
ta(t)stambha dyāṃ mantrebhiḥ
satyaiḥ | priyā padāni paśvo ni pāhi viśvāyuraghne ghuhā ghuhaṃ
ghāḥ ||
The
unborn force or field (aja) keeps us (nah) rooted to Earth (kshaam).
The same omnipresent force (tat) or field holds (Sthmbha) the
Earth (prithveem) in space (dyaam),
Rig Veda 8.12.28
यदा ते हर्यता हरी वाव्र्धाते
दिवे-दिवे | आदित ते विश्वा भुवनानि
येमिरे || 28 ||
Yadaa
te haryatā harī vāvṛdhāte dive-dive | ādita te viśvā bhuvanāni yemire
“O
Indra! By putting forth your mighty rays, which possess the qualities of
gravitation and attraction-illumination and motion – keep up the entire
universe in order through the Power of your attraction.”
AN EXTRAORDINARY MANTRA OF THE RIG VEDA FOCUSED ON
SCIENCE:
Scientist Vamadeva Gautama, who is called a Rishi, declared this eternal truth in Rigveda Listen to him, O human being!! This is true even now!
na pramiye savitur-devasya tadyathā viśvam bhuvanam dhārayișyati |
yat pŗthivyā varimannā svanguriḥ varșman divaḥ suvati satyam asya tat || Rig Veda 5.54.4 ||
Scientist Vamadeva Gautama, who is called a Rishi, declared this eternal truth in Rigveda Listen to him, O human being!! This is true even now!
na pramiye savitur-devasya tadyathā viśvam bhuvanam dhārayișyati |
yat pŗthivyā varimannā svanguriḥ varșman divaḥ suvati satyam asya tat || Rig Veda 5.54.4 ||
Never doubt (na pramiye), capacities such as
(tadyathā), of the glorious Sun (savitur-devasya), the celestial objects
(viśvam), and the earth (bhuvanam) sustains (holds, protects, carries)
(dhārayișyati). How, is because, (yat), of the earth (pŗthivyāh), though
extremely huge (varimat), a ring for himself (svanguriḥ) (has made). And constantly (varșman)
divah (in space) set in motion (suvati). What is mentioned here is the truth
(satyam asya tat).
Never underestimate the capabilities of the
glorious Savita (the Sun). He is holding objects in space as he is holding the
Earth. How is the Sun holding the Earth? The Earth is huge! Yet the Sun has made a ring and has set the
Earth in constant motion around him in space. This alone is the truth!
VAISHESHIKA SUTRA (V.S,)
Why
does an object held fall when you let
go?
To describe this first of all Sutra
V.S. 5.1.6 states: आत्मकर्म हस्तसंयोगाश्च
।
Aatmahasta samyogascha --Action of body and its members is also from
conjunction with the hand.
As
the above Sutra describes that it is due to conjunction with hand object
remains. Then the next Sutra describes that in the absence of conjunction,
falling results due to Gravity.
Sutra 5.1.7 states: संयोगभावे गुरुत्वात्पतनम
(–Samyogabhavea gurutva
utpatana)m --In
the absence of conjunction falling results from Gravity.Thus it clearly
recognizes objects fall downward due to Gravity.
Why
does an object thrown in air fall after sometime?
Then
Vaishesika Sutra 5.1.17 discuss role of Gravity in falling of moving objects.
It gives through the analogy of arrow. First it gives mechanism of arrow
projection in this Sutra :
नोदनाद्यभिषोः कर्म तत्कर्मकारिताच्च संस्कारादुत्तरं
तथोत्तरमुत्तरं च ।।
(nodanaadyabhisho karma tatkarmakaaritaccha
samskaaraaduttaram tathottaramuttaram cha) --The first action of arrow is from impulse; the next is
resultant energy produced by the first action, and similarly the next next.
Then
it explains logically why it falls in next Sutra. 5,1,18
संस्काराभावे गुरुत्वात्पतनम
(samskaarabhave gurutvaat patanam) --In the absence of resultant
propulsive energy generated by action, falling results from Gravity.
Why
does water fall (and rise)?
Rig Veda 8.12.30
यदा सूर्यममुं
दिवि शुक्रं जयोतिरधारयः
| आदित ते विश्वा भुवनानि येमिरे ||
|| 30 ||
yadā
sūryamamuṃ divi śukraṃ
jyotiradhārayaḥ
| ādiata te visvaa bhuva-naani yemire || 30 ||
O
God, You have created this Sun. You possess infinite power. You are upholding
the sun and other spheres and render them steadfast by your power of
attraction.”
Then
the Sutras 5.2.3 discusses cause of falling of water from sky. अपां संयोगाभावे गुरुत्वात्पतनम
(Apaam samyogabhave gurutvaat patanam)-- The falling of water in absence of
conjunction is due to Gravity.Then it discusses flow of water in
Sutra 5.2.4
द्रवथ्वास्यन्दनम् (drvyaasyaandanam)--Flowing results
from fluidity.
Then
it discusses why water rises in 5.2.
नाड्यो वायुसंयोगादारोहणम्
।
(naadyo vyusamyogaadaarohanam)--The Sun’s rays (cause) the ascent of
water through conjunction with air.
Thus from above Sutras, we can see
how our ancient rishis were very clear in their scientific thoughts and
postulations. Vaisheshika Sutra clearly discusses Gravity and uses
the word Gurutva repeatedly to mean it. Gravity is translated
as”Gurutva” in Hindi and Sanskrit as the vernacular scientific translation
for Gravity. Gurutva means force which arises due to mass.
“Chatvaari Sringo trayo asya
paadaa dveseersha sapta hastaaso asya | Triddhaa baddho vrishbho
roraveeti maho devo martyaa aavivesa ||
The syllable Om conceived as the Bull possesses
five horns, three feet and two heads and seven hands (of oval shape). This Bull
connected in a threefold manner, eloquently declares the Supreme. The
Self-luminous Deity has entered the mortals everywhere. There are different
explanations of this mantra about which I have talked about before. But
one that is relevant in the context is the first line simply symbolically
represents Brahman as a Kalpa Purusha. We all know Brahman is often referred as
Time or Kaala and Samvatsara (Samvatasrova apaam pushpam; Kaalaaya
namah). Without explaining its deeper meanings, if we simply write
the numbers continuously mentioned in the mantra, it represents 4320000000
Human Years that is Kalpa. 4 comes from four horns, 3 comes from three feet, 2
comes from two heads and 7 zeros that follow comes from seven hands in oval (0)
shape! This Brahman appears again and again for each Kalpa with his band of
controllers to revive and rule the universe which is indicated by the roar of
the bull.
[1 kalpa=4320000x1000=4320000000.
Brahman is compared to a mystic bull with 4horns, 3 feet 2 heads band 7 tongues
that 4 3 2 and 7 zeros represented in 4- by -2-0000000 as explained
above]
Hanuman
Chalisa describes Hanuman’s leap to Sun thus:
"Yug sahasra yojan par Bhanu! Leelyo taahi
madhur phal janu!!
1 Yug = 12000 divine years
1 Sahasra = 1000
1 Yojan = 8 Miles
Yug x Sahasra x Yojan = par Bhanu
12000 x 1000 x 8 miles = (Towards Sun) 96,000,000 miles
1 mile = 1.6kms
96,000,000 miles x 1.6kms = 1,536,000,000 km/96,000,000 miles to Sun
1 Yug = 12000 divine years
1 Sahasra = 1000
1 Yojan = 8 Miles
Yug x Sahasra x Yojan = par Bhanu
12000 x 1000 x 8 miles = (Towards Sun) 96,000,000 miles
1 mile = 1.6kms
96,000,000 miles x 1.6kms = 1,536,000,000 km/96,000,000 miles to Sun
NASA says
that, this is the exact distance between Earth
and Sun (Bhanu). That proves tha Hanuman did jump
to the Planet Sun, thinking it as a sweet fruit (Madhur phal). It is
really interesting how accurate and meaningful our ancient scriptures are.
Unfortunately, it is hardly recognized or interpreted accurately or realized
by any country in today’s world.
How one
Yuga cycle=12000 Divine Years?
The duration of the universe was fixed by the
Supreme as 12000 years each of which was 360 human years so that the whole
period is 4320000 human years. This duration was divided into four ages which
are 4000, 3000, 2000 and 1000 respectively for Krita, Treta, Dvapara and Kali.
After each yuga there is a period of darkness. This was 800, 600, 400 and 200
respectively. All together 10000+2000 makes 12000 divine Years;
All these can’t be accidental but based on
Scientific Vision conveyed through Divine Foresight Vision of our sages. There
are many such mantras and slokas that may contain scientific information that
need to be researched and explained. In
this context please go through a brief scientific history of Indian Science by
Subhash Kak delivered to the Indian Science Congress which I have elaborated in
my earlier discourse on Hindu’s Contribution to Science and Technology in Early
and Medieval Times.
SIX GREAT WESTERN SCIENTISTS WERE
INFLUENCED BY HINDU SCRIPTURES
We’ve seen scientists dishing out people
with religious beliefs, and vice versa. While religion might not be “logical”
to some, but Sanatana Dharma of India has proven to have some science behind
it. And as such, there are scientists who have been influenced by Hinduism.
Here are some of the international figures in the world of science who have
taken inspiration from various Hindu Scriptures about their influences and
Hindu Dharma. These are:
1. Erwin
Schrödinger; 2. Werner Heisenberg; 3. Robert Oppenheimer; 4. Niels Bohr; 5.
Carl Sagan and 6. Nikola Tesla.
Please recall Schrödinger’s cat. It is a
very famous experiment, and the inferences have a great value in the world of
science. That was one of the many scientific experiments Erwin Schrödinger is
known for. He in his biography and some
of the works he has published, reveals the influence of Hindu Dharma:
“This
life of yours which you are living is not merely a piece of this entire
existence, but in a certain sense the whole; only this whole is not so
constituted that it can be surveyed in one single glance. This, as we know, is
what the Brahmins [wise men or priests in the Vedic tradition] express in that
sacred, mystic formula which is yet really so simple and so clear; tat tvam
asi, this is you. Or, again, in such words as “I am in the east and the west, I
am above and below, I am this entire world.” [Schrödinger,’Meine Weltansicht’
(My View of the World), 1961]
“The
multiplicity is only apparent. This is the doctrine of the Upanishads. And not
of the Upanishads only. The mystical experience of the union with God regularly
leads to this view, unless strong prejudices stand in the West.”[Erwin
Schrödinger, What is Life? p. 129, Cambridge University Press]
“From
the early great Upanishads, the recognition Atman = Brahman (the personal self-equals
the omnipresent, all-comprehending eternal self) was in Indian thought
considered, far from being blasphemous, to represent, the quintessence of
deepest insight into the happenings of the world. The striving of all the
scholars of Vedanta was, after having learned to pronounce with their lips,
really to assimilate in their minds this grandest of all thoughts.” [From essay
on determinism and free will]
“Most
of my ideas & theories are heavily influenced by Vedanta“
“There
is no kind of framework within which we can find consciousness in the plural;
this is simply something we construct because of the temporal plurality of
individuals, but it is a false construction… The only solution to this conflict
insofar as any is available to us at all lies in the ancient wisdom of the
Upanishad.” (Mein Leben, Meine
Weltansicht [My Life, My World View] (1961), Chapter 4)
Werner Heisenberg is a key figure in the world of quantum
mechanics. The German Nobel Prize winner
for Physics is believed to have understood much of quantum mechanisms through
his mystical experience in Hindu dharma.
Here are some of his citations:
In
Uncommon Wisdom: Conversations With Remarkable People (1988), Fritjof
Capra writes about the conversation between Rabindranath Tagore and Werner
Heisenberg: “He began to see that the recognition of relativity,
interconnectedness, and impermanence as fundamental aspects of physical
reality, which had been so difficult for himself and his fellow physicists, was
the very basis of Indian spiritual traditions.
While he was working on quantum theory he went to India to lecture and
was a guest of Tagore. He talked a lot with Tagore about Indian
philosophy. These talks had helped him
a lot with his work in physics because they showed him that all these new ideas
in quantum physics were in fact not all that crazy. He realized there was, in
fact, a whole culture that subscribed to very similar ideas. Heisenberg said
that this was a great help for him. Niels Bohr had a similar experience when he
went to China--The Holographic Paradigm (pg. 217-218).
He
has also been seen quoted a couple of times saying; “After the conversations
about Hindu philosophy, some of the ideas of Quantum Physics that had seemed so
crazy suddenly made more sense.”
“Quantum Theory” will not look ridiculous to
people who have read Vedanta.”
Father
of an atomic bomb, Julius Robert
Oppenheimer was a theoretical physicist and was the head of the lab when
the first atomic bomb was invented (Manhattan Project). Bhagavad Gita,
Mahabharata and Indian historical facts have influenced Oppenheimer. He also
studied Sanskrit and read Bhagavad Gita in Sanskrit itself. Here are his
quotes:
Access
to the Vedas is the greatest privilege this century may claim over all previous
centuries.
The
general notions about human understanding… which are illustrated by discoveries
in atomic physics are not in the nature of things wholly unfamiliar, wholly
unheard of or new. Even in our own culture, they have a history, and in
Buddhist and Hindu thought a more considerable and central place. What we shall
find [in modern physics] is an exemplification, an encouragement, and a
refinement of old wisdom.
The
juxtaposition of Western civilization’s most terrifying scientific achievement
with the most dazzling description of the mystical experience given to us by
the Bhagavad Gita, India’s greatest literary monument.
The
Bhagavad Gita… is the most beautiful philosophical song existing in any known
tongue.” [“Sacred Jewels of Yoga: Wisdom from India’s Beloved Scriptures,
Teachers, Masters, and Monks”]
Neils Henrik David Bo another Nobel Peace prize winner
and the Danish physicist is known for
his tremendous contribution in atomic structure and quantum theory. In Stephen
Pother’s book God Is Not One (pg. 144), Neil Bohr has quoted: “I go into
the Upanishads to ask questions.”
American
astronomer, cosmologist, astrophysicist, astrobiologist and philosopher, Carl
Sagan’s contributions to cosmology and modern space science are unprecedented.
He was a devout Hindu and has been seen quoting:
“The
Hindu religion is the only one of the world’s great faiths dedicated to the
idea that the Cosmos itself undergoes an immense, indeed an infinite, number of
deaths and rebirths. It is the only religion in which the time scales correspond,
to those of modern scientific cosmology. Its cycles run from our ordinary day
and night to a day and night of Brahma, 8.64 billion years long. Longer than
the age of the Earth or the Sun and about half the time since the Big Bang. And
there are much longer time scales still.” [Carl Sagan, Cosmos]
“The
most elegant and sublime of these is a representation of the creation of the
universe at the beginning of each cosmic cycle, a motif known as the cosmic
dance of Lord Shiva. The god called in this manifestation Nataraja, the Dance
King. In the upper right hand is a drum whose sound is the sound of creation.
In the upper left hand is a tongue of flame, a reminder that the universe, now
newly created, with billions of years from now will be utterly destroyed.”
[Carl Sagan, Cosmos, pages 213-214]
A
millennium before Europeans were willing to divest themselves of the Biblical
idea that the world was a few thousand years old, the Mayans were thinking of
millions and the Hindus billions.” [Carl Sagan, Cosmos, pages 213-214]
Nikola Tesla (though disputed) is perhaps the
greatest scientist (debatable for sure) ever lived and his inventions have
given a great contribution to mankind; he was a pioneer in many fields. From
Tesla Coil to Radio to Alternate Current to Telephone. He has been seen quoting Vedanta concepts:
“All
perceptible matter comes from a primary substance, or tenacity beyond
conception, filling all space, the Akasha or aluminiferous ether, which is
acted upon by the life-giving Prana or creative force, calling into existence,
in never-ending cycles, all things and phenomena.” [Man’s Greatest
Achievement, John J. O’Neal., & Prodigal Genius, The Life of Nikola
Tesla, 1944]
[References:
wiki.com, teslasociety.com, hawkfeed.com, aumamen.com]
In
this context please go through my various discourses dealing with the subject
Hindus Contribution to Science and Technology.
It is unfortunate this progressive research and discovery in Science and
Technology abruptly became few and far between after medieval period. The West
awakened after Renaissance peeping into Wisdom of Vedas and Upanishads became
leaders in the field. It is a pity Noble
Laureates from India are insignificant compared the West.
Jagadish
Chandra Bose was the first to show wireless signaling in 1895. Satyendranath Bose sent his work on the
statistics of quanta of light photons to Albert Einstein. Pioneer work in Quantum Optics and coherence
was done by E. C. George Sudarshan. G N Ramachandran was the most deserving scientist
for Nobel Prize for the work on bio-molecular structures and Crystallography. Narinder Singh Kapany was the most deserving
Nobel Prize winner for the work related to the transmission of light in fibers
for optical communication. Homi Bhabha’s
name was suggested as many as four times in 1950s. It is very sad and
astonishing that Indian scientists and their work is not recognized at
International level. It
is unfortunate Scientists like J.C. Bose and G. N. Ramachandran were ignored!
Of course Nobel Prize is not the only recognition of talents of science!
No
doubt many Indian Scientists at present are also contented priding in the past
glory or are bogged down in political turmoil without burning for shining!
India
is also no stranger to prominent figures citing ancient Hindu texts like the
Puranas and Vedas as ironclad evidence of the country’s technological prowess.
Science Minister of India Harsh Vardhan last year said ancient Greeks took
credit from India for early mathematical principles and misquoted Stephen
Hawking as praising the Vedas for discoveries greater than Einstein’s theory of
relativity. Economist Kaushik Basu says: "For a nation to progress it is
important for people to spend time on science, mathematics and literature
instead of spending time showing that 5,000 years ago their ancestors did
science, Mathematics and literature. This trend is increasing now-a days. We
have enough Sishyas (followers) but not Gurus as in the past.
Please
go through the analysis by Hari Pulakkat published in Economic Times in 2013,
suitably edited:
“Why an Indian hasn’t won — since CV
Raman — a Nobel Prize in science for work done in India
A Nobel Prize is not a life-time achievement award. It is an award for
blazing a trail. While a Nobel Prize is not the only yardstick for judging an
individual’s research work, it is important for judging a country or even a
top-ranking research institution.
No
quality research institution in science can afford not to produce a Nobel
laureate over long periods of time. It would clearly mean that Indian
scientists are not thinking out of the box enough or not taking intellectual
risks, qualities critical for the success of a research institution at a global
level. Indians are dreaming on the past
glory as leaders with no proper lead and support by their Institutions to
restore the glory of the past.
An
individual can make different kinds of contributions, but an institution has to
produce different kinds of people. For a country with a large research
infrastructure, a complete absence of Nobel Prize winners is a serious
deficiency. There is only one Nobel Prize given in a field in a year, and that
is why they should exercise caution before dismissing Indian science as not
world class by pessimists.
Indian
scientists and their work is not noticeable and recognizable at global level as
compared to the work of the scientists from the West. Dr. Chandra K Mittal, biotechnology professor
living in Houston, Texas in an article has made it clear that many times Indian
scientists do not get the required ‘ownership’ and ‘credit’ for their inputs in
the original work. Mittal and Fervid Murad jointly did the work on the
discovery of nitric oxide signaling system, but only Fervid Murad was awarded
with the Nobel Prize not Mittal. Connection plays a significant role while
selecting the name for Nobel Prize.
Indian
science has usually a follower and not a leader in the global arena today
unlike in ancient times. And followers do not win Nobel Prizes. It takes great
courage to continue working in a field with slim chances of success. James
Rothman, who won 2013 prize in medicine, was told that he was “nuts” to attempt
to reproduce the cell’s complexities. The US university system tolerates or
even awards such courage, no matter what the results are. There is no such
tolerance in India. Indian scientists are only encouraged to pursue safe lines
of research that are guaranteed to result in publications. Unless institutions
reward risk-taking, Indian science will follow and not lead.” May be that lead
may come from Hindu Americans educated and living in USA. I am not exaggerating! At the time when Dr.
Hargobind Khurana won the Prize for medicine in 1968, Subrahmanyan
Chandrasekhar won for physics in 1983 and Venkatraman Ramakrishnan won Nobel
Prize for chemistry in 2009, they were NRIs and residents of America not India.
It was back in 1930 when Sir C.V. Raman an Indian resident won the Nobel Prize
for Physics for “RAMAN” effect. But after him not even a single Indian has won
this prestigious award in science. Do Indians lack in quality or the reason is
something else?
“There
is something wrong with respect to research and development in India after
independence. In US research and development is still a part of Universities.
Scientific discoveries from Universities travel to create technology and
products. But in India, Universities which were responsible for research before
independence no longer receive the required funds. Group of labs were formed
under different scientists after independence. The top most scientific
institutions receive most of the government funding for scientific development.
On the other hand, Universities which used to work in this direction started
getting fewer funds. This resulted in a great decline.
For
quality, Universities and National Labs in India must work with close proximity
to each other. Research and development must be revived in the Universities.
Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh in 2010 stated red tape and political interference as
the major reasons for the decline in the quality of Indian science.
“Real
innovative brains of India either prefer to leave India or deprived of funds
and information to carry out research and development. Most of the Indians are
just interested in doing some secured job. Indians need to be more aggressive.
We generally leave at the turning and at the most challenging point. Developed
countries cross those challenging points and win. Much qualified students who
are interested in research and development do not get direct seats into
research labs and Universities in India. Political interference or strong
backing play their role. Hence we are wasting our talent and mind. We must have
a hunger to do the best. Education must be made available to every Indian child
irrespective of gender, caste and creed.” writes Dinesh C Sharma.
Here are my Discourses and
Compilations on Indian Science and Technology:
If you do
not find time for all these pleas go through “A Very Brief History of Indian
Science” by the reputed Indologist Subhash Kak delivered to Indian National
Congress recently as given in the Appendix. Past glory will not bring
laurels in the future automatically. We have to burn before we can shine!
APPENDIX I
A Very Brief
History of Indian Science
The
annual Indian Science Congress, which just concluded, had its usual share of
controversies about history of Indian science and I have been asked to weigh
in. It so turns out that I did precisely that in a brief account titled
“Science” for Stanley Wolpert’s
Encyclopedia of India (2005) and since that is freely
available online, I shall be more selective of themes in this
revision of the previous essay. This account does not include the modern period
for which many excellent histories exist.
Indian
archaeology and literature provide considerable layered evidence related to the
development of science. The chronological time frame for this history is provided by the archaeological record
that has been traced, in an unbroken tradition, to about 8000 BCE. Prior to
this date, there are records of rock paintings that are considerably older. The
earliest textual source is the Ṛigveda, which is a compilation of
very ancient material. The astronomical references in the Vedic books recall
events of the third or the fourth millennium BCE and earlier. The discovery
that Sarasvati, the preeminent river of the Ṛigvedic times,
went dry around 1900 BCE, if not earlier, suggests that portions of the Ṛigveda
may be dated prior to this epoch.
The
third millennium urbanization is characterized by a very precise system of
weights and monumental architecture using cardinal directions. Indian writing
(the so-called Indus script) goes back to the beginning of the third millennium
BCE, but it has not yet been deciphered. However, statistical analysis shows
that the later historical
script called Brahmi evolved from this writing.
Laws
and cosmology
The
Vedic texts assert that the universe is governed by ṛta (laws) and that consciousness
transcends materiality. The universe is taken to be infinite in size and
infinitely old. By the time of the Purāṇas, other
worlds were postulated beyond our solar system.
It
is asserted that language (as a formal system) cannot describe reality
completely and linguistic descriptions suffer from paradox. Because of this
limitation, reality can only be experienced and never described fully.
Knowledge was classified in two ways: the lower or dual अपरा; and the higher or unified परा.
The seemingly irreconcilable worlds of the material and the conscious were
taken as aspects of the connected. This connection is a consequence of a
binding (bandhu) same transcendental reality.
The
texts present a
tripartite and recursive view of the world. The three regions
of earth, space, and sky are mirrored in the human being in the physical body,
the breath (prāṇa), and mind. The processes in the sky, on earth, and within
the mind are assumed to between various inner and outer
phenomena and it is because of this binding that it is
possible to know the world.
There
is evidence of the knowledge of biological cycles and
awareness that there exist two fundamental rhythms in the body: the 24 hour
related to the sun, and the 24 hour and 50 minute related to the period of the
moon (the moon rises about 50 minutes later every day). This knowledge is not
surprising since monthly rhythms, averaging 29.5 days, are reflected in the
reproductive cycles of many marine plants and those of animals.
The
Ṛgveda 10.90 speaks of these connections by saying that the
moon was born of the mind and the sun was born of the eyes of the cosmic self:
candramā
mana’so jātaḥ | cakṣoḥ
sūryo’ ajāyata | RV 10.90.13
The
connection between the outer and the inner cosmos is seen most strikingly in
the use of the number 108 in Indian
religious and artistic expression. It was known that this
number is the approximate distance from Earth to the sun and the moon, in sun
and moon diameters, respectively. This number was probably obtained by taking a
pole of a certain height to a distance 108 times its height and discovering
that the angular size of the pole was the same as that of the sun or the moon.
It is a curious fact that the diameter of the sun is also approximately 108
times the diameter of Earth.
This
number of dance poses (karaṇas) given in the Nāṭya
Śāstra is 108, as is the number of
beads in a japamālā. The distance between the body and the inner
sun is also taken to be 108, and thus there are 108 names of the gods and
goddesses. The number of marmas (weak points) in Āyurveda is 107,
because in a chain 108 units long, the number of weak points would be one less.
Ancient
Indian views of the universe are more subtle than the
corresponding Western views.
Physical
laws and motion
The
history of Indian physics goes back to Kaṇāda (कणाद) (~ 600 BCE) who asserted that
all that is knowable is based on motion, thus giving
centrality to analysis in the understanding of the universe.
Kaṇāda
asserted that there are nine classes of substances: ether, space, and time,
which are continuous, and four kinds of atoms two of which have mass and two
that have little mass. A brilliant argument was given in support of this view.
Let
the basic atoms of pṛthivī, āpas,
tejas, and vāyu be
represented by P, Ap, T, and V, respectively. Every substance is composed of
these four kinds of atoms. Consider gold in its solid form; its mass derives
principally from the P atoms. When it is heated, it becomes a liquid and
therefore there should be another kind of an atom already in gold which makes
it possible for it to take the liquid form and this is Ap. When heated further
it burns and this is when the T atom gets manifested. When heated further, it
loses its mass ever so slightly, and this is due to the loss of the V atoms.
The
atoms are eternal only under normal conditions, and during creation and
destruction, they arise in a sequence starting with ākāśa and are
absorbed in the reverse sequence at the end of the world cycle. The sequence of
evolution of the elements is given as V→T→Ap→P. The V
and T atoms have little mass (since they do not exist in a substantive form),
whereas P and Ap atoms have mass. This sequence also hides within it the
possibility of transformation from V and T atoms that are energetic to the more
massive Ap and P atoms.
Kaṇāda
also made a distinction between mind and the self, or consciousness. The
conscious subject is separate from material reality but is, nevertheless, able
to direct its evolution. He presented
laws of motion and also spoke of invariants. He saw the atom
to be spherical since it should appear the same from all directions.
The
atoms combined to form different kinds of molecules that break up under the
influence of heat. The molecules come to have different properties based on the
influence of various potentials.
Indian
chemistry developed many different alkalis, acids, and metallic salts by processes
of calcination and distillation, often motivated by the need to formulate
medicines. Metallurgists developed efficient techniques of extraction of metals
from ore.
Astronomy
We
know quite a bit about how astronomical science evolved in India.
The Yajurvedic sage Yājñavalkya knew of a ninety-five-year cycle to harmonize
the motions of the sun and the moon, and he also knew that the sun’s circuit
was asymmetric. The second millennium BCE text Vedāṅga Jyotiṣa of Lagadha went
beyond the earlier calendrical astronomy to develop a theory for the mean
motions of the sun and the moon. An epicycle theory was used to explain
planetary motions. Given the different periods of the planets, it became
necessary to assume yet longer periods to harmonize their cycles. This led to
the notion of mahāyugas and kalpas with periods of billions of years.
The
innovations of the division of the circle into 360 parts and the zodiac into 27
nakṣatras and 12 rāśis took place first in India.
The schoolbook accounts of how these innovations first emerged in Mesopotamia
in the 7th century BCE and then arrived in India centuries later are incorrect.
The
Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa which was compiled soon after the
Vedas says: “The sun strings
these worlds [the earth, the planets, the atmosphere] to himself on a thread.
This thread is the same as the wind…” This suggests a central role to the sun
in defining the motions of the planets and ideas such as these must have
ultimately led to the theory of expanding and shrinking epicycles.
Astronomical
texts called siddhāntas begin appearing sometime in the first millennium BCE.
According to the tradition there were eighteen early siddhāntas, of which only
a few have survived. Each siddhānta is an astronomical system with its own
constants. The Sūrya Siddhānta speaks of the motion of planets governed by
“cords of air” that bind them, which is a conception like that of the field.
The
great astronomers and mathematicians include Āryabhaṭa
(b. 476), who took Earth to spin on its own axis and who spoke of the relativity
of motion and provided outer planet orbits with respect to
the sun. This work and that of Brahmagupta (b. 598) and Bhāskara (b. 1114) was
passed on to Europe via the Arabs. The Kerala School with figures such as
Mādhava (c. 1340–1425) and Nīlakaṇṭha (c. 1444–1545) came up with new innovations
of analysis based on advanced mathematics.
Evolution
of Life
The
Sāṅkhya system speaks of evolution both at the levels of the individual
as well as the cosmos. The Mahābhārata and the Purāṇas
have material on
creation and the rise of humankind. It is said that man arose
at the end of a chain that began with plants and various kind of animals. In
Vedic evolution the urge to evolve into higher forms is taken to be inherent in
nature. A system of an evolution from inanimate to progressively higher life is
assumed to be a consequence of the different proportions of the three basic
attributes of the guṇas (qualities): sattva (“truth” or “transparence”), rajas (activity), and tamas (“darkness” or “inertia”).
In its undeveloped state, cosmic matter has these qualities in equilibrium. As
the world evolves, one or the other of these becomes preponderant in different
objects or beings, giving specific character to each.
Geometry
and mathematics
Indian
geometry began very early in the Vedic period in altar problems, as in the one
where the circular altar is to be made equal in area to a square altar. The
historian of mathematics, Abraham Seidenberg, saw the birth
of geometry and mathematics in the solution of such problems.
Two aspects of the “Pythagoras”
theorem are described in the texts by Baudhāyana and others.
Problems are often presented with their algebraic counterparts. The solution to
planetary problems also led to the development of algebraic methods.
Binary
numbers were known at the time of Piṅgala’s Chandaḥśāstra.
Piṅgala, who might have lived as early as fourth century BCE
used binary numbers to classify Vedic meters. The knowledge of binary numbers
indicates a deep understanding of arithmetic.
The sign for zero within the place
value decimal number system that was to revolutionize mathematics and facilitate
development of technology appears to have been devised around
50 BCE to 50 CE. Indian numerals
were introduced to Europe by Fibonacci (13th century) who is now known for a
sequence that was described earlier by Virahaṅka
(between 600 and 800), Gopāla
(prior to 1135) and Hemacandra (~1150 CE). Nāryāna Paṇḍit
(14th century) showed that these numbers were a special case of the multinomial
coefficients.
Bharata’s Nāṭya Śāstra has results on combinatorics and
discrete mathematics, and Āryabhaṭa has material
on mathematics including methods to solve numerical problems effectively. Later source
materials include the works of Brahmagupta, Lalla (eighth
century), Mahāvīra (ninth century), Jayadeva,
Śrīpati (eleventh century), Bhāskara, and Mādhava. In particular, Mādhava’s
derivation and use of infinite series predated similar development in Europe,
which is normally seen as the beginning of modern calculus. Some scholars
believe these ideas were carried by Jesuits from
India to Europe and they eventually set in motion the
Scientific Revolution.
A
noteworthy contribution was by the school of New Logic (Navya Nyāya) of Bengal
and Bihar. At its zenith during the time of Raghunātha (1475–1550), this school
developed a methodology for a precise semantic analysis of language. Navya Nyāya
foreshadowed mathematical logic and there is evidence that it
influenced modern machine theory.
Grammar
Pāṇini’s grammar Aṣṭādhyāyī
(Eight chapters) of the fifth century BCE provides four thousand rules that
describe Sanskrit completely. This grammar is acknowledged to be one of the
greatest intellectual achievements of all time. The great variety of language
mirrors, in many ways, the complexity of nature and, therefore, success in
describing a language is as impressive as a complete theory of physics.
Scholars have shown that the grammar of Pāṇini represents
a universal
grammatical and computing system. From this
perspective, it anticipates the logical framework of modern computers.
Medicine
Āyurveda,
the Indian medicine system, is a holistic approach to health that builds upon
the tripartite Vedic approach to the world. Health is maintained through a
balance between three basic humors (doṣa) of wind (vāta), fire (pitta), and water
(kapha). Each of these humors had five varieties. Although literally meaning “air,” “bile,” and “phlegm,”
the doṣas represented larger principles. Its division of states
into three categories rather than two is more efficient than the binary division
of other medicine systems.
Caraka
and Suśruta are two famous early physicians. According to Caraka, health and
disease are not predetermined, and life may be prolonged by human effort.
Suśruta defines the purpose of medicine to cure the diseases of the sick, to
protect the healthy, and to prolong life. The Saṃhitās speak of organisms that circulate
in the blood, mucus, and phlegm. In particular, the organisms in the blood that
cause disease are said to be invisible. It is suggested that physical contact
and sharing the same air can cause such diseases to spread. Inoculation was
practiced for protection against smallpox.
Indian
surgery was quite advanced. The caesarian section was known, as was plastic
surgery, and bone setting reached a high degree of skill. Suśruta classified
surgical operations into eight categories: incision, excision, scarification,
puncturing, probing, extraction, evacuation and drainage, and suturing. Suśruta
lists 101 blunt and 20 sharp instruments that were used in surgery. The medical
system tells us much about the Indian approach to science. There was emphasis
on observation and experimentation.
Mind
and consciousness
Vedic deities
represent cognitive centers. It is asserted that parā-vidyā or ātma-vidyā
(science of consciousness) cannot be described in words or design. In the Śrī-yantra,
which is a representation of the cosmos, consciousness (Śiva)
is shown as an infinitesimal dot in the middle.
The interaction
between matter and consciousness is postulated in terms of an observation
process called dṛṣṭi-sṛṣṭi (creation through observation),
which is consistent with a world governed by laws. In the orthodox
interpretation of quantum theory, consciousness
is a separate category as in Vedanta.
Modern
scientific subjects like physics, computer science, and neuroscience have been
unable to explain the phenomenon of consciousness. Philosophy cannot reconcile
our sense of freedom and agency with the framework of machine-like laws. In
physical theory there is no place for the observer, computer science cannot
explain how awareness arises in the brain machine, and neuroscience
has not found any neural correlate of consciousness.
At
the same time, the very association of information with physical systems as is
done using entropy implies postulation of consciousness. So the use of the
reductionist method in the analysis of consciousness has hit a wall.
Indian
texts assert that the phenomenon of consciousness cannot be studied directly as
a material property. Their analysis of consciousness using indirect methods may
very well be relevant for further progress of this question in contemporary
science.
Scientific
speculations and more
Indian
thought is unique in the breadth and scope of its scientific speculations that
are scattered within its high literature. These range from airplanes (Rāmāyaṇa)
to weapons that can destroy the world (Mahābhārata), and to the most astonishing
abstract ideas in a text called Yoga-Vāsiṣṭha.
Many
texts speak of the relativity of time and space — abstract concepts that developed
in the scientific context just a hundred years ago. The Purāṇas
describe countless universes and time flowing at different rates for different
observers.
The
Mahābhārata has an account of an embryo divided into one hundred parts each
becoming, after maturation in a separate pot, a healthy baby; this is how the
Kaurava brothers are born. There is also mention of a conception in one womb
transferred to another: this is how Balarāma is a brother to Krishna although
he was born to a different mother. This Epic has a major section on battle with
a space ship whose occupants wear airtight suits (Saubha Parva). Are these to
be seen as an early form of science fiction?
Universes
defined recursively are described in the famous episode of Indra and the ants in
Brahmavaivarta Purāṇa. Here Viṣṇu in the guise of a boy, explains to
Indra that the ants he sees walking on the ground have all been Indras in their
own solar systems in different times. These flights of imagination are more
than a straightforward generalization of the motions of the planets into a
cyclic universe.
The
context of modern science fiction is clear: it is the liberation of the earlier
modes of thought by the revolutionary developments of the 20th century science
and technology. But how was science fiction integrated into the mainstream of
Indian literary tradition over two thousand years ago? What was the
intellectual ferment in which such sophisticated ideas arose?
Concluding,
India’s civilization valued science and knowledge above all and some of the
most extraordinary scientific advances took place there. These include the
earliest astronomy, geometry, number theory, the Indian numeral system, the
idea of physical laws and invariance, the earliest formal system to describe a
complex natural phenomenon (as in Pāṇini’s computer program-like grammar that
was not rivaled for 2,500 years), a very subtle Yoga psychology, and the idea
of immunization in medicine.
APPENDIX II
Microbiology
Darwinism in Ancient Hindu Texts Vedas
Ancient Vedic Indians, during
the Vedic
period have developed advanced knowledge in Microbiology.
Biology
and Surgery were developed and practiced.
They
knew the classification of Species.
Santi
Parva of Mahabharata, Section XV Arjuna speaks of the world of Microbes, which
“though not seen by the naked eyes, support Life”
Talks
of Darwinism when he says that the strongest survive by feeding and
annihilating them.
The
Mobile and the Immobile World is Food for Living creatures.
Jainism
had such an advanced knowledge and Piety, the Jain Monks use to sweep the path
they travel gently with a fan made of Peacock feathers to make sure that the
smaller organisms are not unintentionally killed by them.
Kara,
Dhooshana, Inderjith and Ravana’s Moola Sena were adept at fighting
biological warfare.
Vedic literature
recorded about 740 plants and 250 animals.
¨ The
first attempt of classification is observed in Chandyogya Upanishad, which
classified animals into three categories — Jivaja (Viviparous =
giving birth to young ones), e.g. mammals, Andaja (Oviparous = egg
lying), e.g. birds, reptiles, insects and worms, and Udbhija (Vegetal
origin), e.g. minute animals. Post-Vedic Indian literature, such as Susruta Samhita (600 BC)
classified all ‘substances’ into sthavara (immobile), e.g.
plants, jangama (mobile), e.g. animals.
¨ Plants
were further subdivided into Vanaspati (fruit yielding
non-flowering plants), Vriksha (both fruit yielding and
flowering plants), Virudha (shrubs and creepers), and Osadhi (plants
that die with ripening of fruits).
Susruta
described in detail the parts of plants, such as Ankura (sprout),
Mula (root), Kanda (bulb or stem), Patra (leaf), Pushpa (flower), Phala (fruit),
etc.
¨ Susruta
Samhita also mentioned about classification of animals, such
as Kulachara (those herbivores who frequent the river banks,
e.g. elephant, buffalo, etc.), Matsya (fish), Janghala (wild
herbivorous quadrupeds, e.g. deer), Guhasaya (carnivorous
quadrupeds like tiger, lion, etc.). Susruta Samhita also
records some observations on snakes (both venomous and non-venomous) and
leeches.
They
knew about Microbes and about fermentation.
They
were aware of the exact combinations and temperatures at which fermentation
takes place in preparing Buttermilk, Curds, and Liquor.
The
existence of Lives, which are smaller and Microscopic was analyzed.
Germ theory of diseases was first established by Vedic Rishis
and was recorded in Vedas.
Vedas are first text in the world to record nexus between
microbes and disease.
In
Vedas, prime etiological factors of diseases mentioned are–
a)
Endogenous toxins, its accumulations, and causation of a disease; b) ‘Krimi’ –’Drisya’ (visible),
‘Adrisya’ (invisible); and c) Imbalance of tridosha.
Rigveda, Yajurveda, and Atharvaveda followed by Āyurvedas
provide rich insight into microbial sciences that existed in Bharat many
thousands of years ago.
In Rigveda (1/191), Rishị Agastya pinpoints out that there are
two types of poisonous creatures viz. those exceedingly poisonous and others
are less poisonous.
Of them, some are visible venomous, while others are invisible
one.
Some of them live in water, while others live on earth.
Perhaps Sage Agastya is the first person to state that invisible
creatures are also toxin producers.
He also prescribes antidotes as remedy for the poison.
Atharvaveda reiterates that whenever there is accumulation of toxins within the
body, disease results.
Use of Biological weapons of Mass Destruction
was known.
There are large number of suktas in the Vedas which provides
information about microbiological knowledge in the ancient Vedic texts.
Kankotan Sukta by Rishi Agastaya (Rigveda 1/191); Krimighnam
Sukta (Atharvaveda 5/23), Krim nashnamSukta (AV. 2/32), Krim-jambhanamSukta
(AV. 2/31) all by Rishi Kanva; Rakshognam Sukta (AV. 5/29) by
Rishi Chatan; KriminashnamSukta (AV. 4/37) by Rishi Badrayani and other
suktas provides insight into the Microbial sciences in Vedas.
Not only the Vedas, Ayurvedic texts like Charaka Samhita, Susruta Samhita,
Ashtanga Hridaya and many others provides rich insight into Vedic Microbiology.
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