The World is only Reinventing Ancient Indian Inventions

Whenever there is a new invention, Indians claim that it was already mentioned in the Vedas or existed in ancient India. The land of India is known to be the land of saints. It is filled with various types of unexplainable things. In ancient times, various saints after doing years of hard meditation, found the secrets hidden in the Vedas. These inventions later came to be known as modern science. Some of the saints came out with such amazing inventions that shocked the kings of those times as well.

During the growth of the ancient civilizations, ancient technology was the result of incredible advances in engineering in ancient times. However, many ancient inventions were forgotten, lost to the pages of history, only to be re-invented later. Here are the best examples of ancient technology and inventions that demonstrate the ingenuity of our ancient ancestors.

1.

Physics

a.

Atomic Theory

John Dalton (1766-1844), an English chemist and physicist, is the one credited with the development of atomic theory. However, a theory of atoms was actually formulated 2,500 years before Dalton by an Indian sage and philosopher, known as Acharya Kanad. Acharya Kanad was born in 600 BC in Prabhas Kshetra (near Dwaraka) in Gujarat, India. His real name was Kashyap. It was Kanada who originated the idea that 'Anu' (molecule) was an indestructible particle of matter. He brought the concept of a matter which cannot be divided further into existence. He called that indivisible matter Anu, i.e. molecule.

b.

Existence of Atomic and Sub-Atomic Particles

The world accounts discovery of atoms and sub atomic particles to Western scientists who coined these words and theories only in the early 17th century. An excerpt from Lalitha Sahasranama, told by Hayagreeva to Agasthya muni, dating back to the distant ages of the past, describes the Goddess as the super consciousness/Brahman that pervades even the sub atomic particles within matter. "Paranjyotih parandhamah paramanuh paratpara". The word "anuvu" means atom. Paramanu is sub-atomic particle, finer than the finest of atom, meaning electrons and the others.

c.

Law of Gravity

“Objects fall on the earth due to a force of attraction by the earth. Therefore, the earth, planets, constellations, moon and sun are held in orbit due to this attraction.” The meaning of these lines is parallel to that of Newton’s Law of Gravity. But these lines are not said by the European scientist. These are said by an Indian - in Surya Siddhanta, dated 400-500 AD, the ancient Hindu astronomer Bhaskaracharya states these lines. Approximately 1200 years later (1687 AD), Sir Isaac Newton rediscovered this phenomenon and called it the Law of Gravity.

d.

Velocity of Light

The Rig Veda Bhashyam by Sayana Madhava gives the following Sloka praising the Sun: Yojanam sahasre dve, satadve, dvecha yojane Ekena nimeshardhena kramamaana namosthuthe One Yojana equals 15788.8 meters, and half of Nimesha equals 8/75 fraction of a second. This gives the velocity of light as 325940 km/s. We have to remember here that the above value is an approximate one intended for easy remembrance, like remembering the value of pi as 22/7. It is better than the value 215000 km/s given by Danish astronomer Ole Roemer in 1676.

2.

Astronomy

a.

Shape and Motion of Earth

Aryabhatt was a master Astronomer and Mathematician, born in 476 CE in Kusumpur (Bihar). In 499 CE, he wrote a text on astronomy and an unparalleled treatise on mathematics called "Aryabhatiyam" He formulated the process of calculating the motion of planets and the time of eclipses. Aryabhatt was the first to proclaim that the earth is round, it rotates on its axis, orbits the sun and is suspended in space - 1,000 years before Copernicus published his heliocentric theory.

b.

Time Taken by the Earth to Orbit the Sun

Bhaskaracharya calculated the time taken by the Earth to orbit the Sun hundreds of years before the astronomer Smart; Time taken by earth to orbit the sun: (5th century) 365.258756484 days. Born in the obscure village of Vijjadit (Jalgaon) in Maharastra, Bhaskaracharya's mathematical works called "Lilavati" and "Bijaganita" are considered to be unparalleled. In his treatise "Siddhant Shiromani" he writes on planetary positions, eclipses, cosmography, mathematical techniques and astronomical equipment. In the "Surya Siddhant" he makes a note on the force of gravity.

c.

Distance between the Sun and the Earth

The first time the modern scientists measured the distance between the Sun and Earth was in 1672 by Jean Richer and Giovanni Domenico Cassini. They measured the distance between the sun and earth as 140,162,000 kms. Famous Indian saint Goswami Tulsidas documented the distance between the Sun and the Earth many years before these scientist. The verse in the Hanuman Chalisa prayer written by Goswami Tulsidas which refers to the distance between the Sun and Earth are as "Juga Sahastra Yojana Para Bhanu, Leelyo Taahi Madhur Phala Jaanu". This basically means "the Sun is 1000 Yuga Years Yojans from the Earth".

According to the Hindu Vedic literature, the following conversion practices were followed:
1 Juga (Yuga) = 12000 Celestial Years, 1 Sahastra = 1000, 1 Yojana = 8 Miles.

Distance of sun fromearth = Yuga x Sahastra x Yojana =  12,000 x 1000 x 8 miles = 96,000,000 miles = 96,000,000 x 1.6 kms = 153,600,000 kms.

And since the earth moves around the sun in an elliptical manner, there will be slight variations based on the season.

d.

Origin of light of the Moon and the Planets

Varahamihir's book "panch siddhant", noted that the moon and planets are lustrous not because of their own light but due to sunlight. In the "Bruhad Samhita" and "Bruhad Jatak", he has revealed his discoveries in the domains of geography, constellation, science, botany and animal science. In his treatise on botanical science, Varahamihir presents cures for various diseases afflicting plants and trees.

e.

The Galaxy is Oval and the Earth is Spherical

Yajur Vedic verse: "Brahmaanda vyapta deha bhasitha himaruja..." describing Shiva as the one who is spread out in Brahmaanda. Anda means an egg depicting the shape of the galaxy. It was the middle east Europians and Greeks who wrongly believed that earth was flat. But Indians, since long have always known that it was spherical. In many scriptures, the word Bhoogola is used, Gola meaning round.

f.

Mizar and Alcor Twin Star System

There happened an amazing discovery of twin stars Mizar and Alcor in 1650. Astronomers believed that double stars were anything other than chance alignments of physically unrelated stars. It took a time from the year 1889 to 2009 to prove that Mizar and Alcor are gravitationally bound and form a true binary star system. The modern science has discovered facts about these stars in the recent past only. But ancient Indians already knew all the facts of this twin star system and they named these twin stars as "Arundahati-Vashishtha". In the Vedic scriptures Sage Vashista (Guru of shri Rama) was married to Devi Arundhati. A perfect couple they were complimenting each other. Arundhati-Vashista is a two star constellation. Usually a two star constellation is such that one star is in the middle and the other revolves around the center star. However there is something special about Arundhati-Vashishta constellation, they revolve around each other. Which signifies how a married couple must be. Therefore, since the ancient time in India, the priests (Brahmins) use to show the married couple this constellation and explain to them the wisdom behind it.

3.

Chemistry

a.

Distillation of Zinc

Zinc is one of the most difficult metals to smelt but ancient Indian metallurgists had mastered the technique of smelting Zinc as is evident from the semi-industrial scale production of Zinc in the Zawar region of Rajasthan in India in 6th Century BC. Thus India is the first to produce zinc by distillation processes. India's Zinc Distillation process was unique because it was downward distillation. Distillation process however was later used only from the 12th century AD by other countries.

a.

Production of Rust-free Iron

The Iron Pillar that stands at the center of the Quwwatul Mosque in Delhi in India dates back to 4th Century A.D. There are many archaeologists, historians and scientists who have been studying it for so many centuries now. But the mystery remains unsolved. It was erected by Kumara Gupta of Gupta dynasty that ruled northern India in AD 320-540. The Iron Pillar has not rusted in all these years leaving everyone bewildered. The pillar thus, highlights ancient India's achievements in metallurgy. The pillar is made of 98 per cent wrought iron and has stood 1,600 years without rusting or decomposing.

4.

Medical Science

a.

Medicines

Acharya Charak has been crowned as the Father of Medicine. His renowned work, the "Charak Samhita," is considered as an encyclopedia of Ayurveda. His principles, diagnoses, and cures retain their potency and truth even today. In the "Charak Samhita" he has described the medicinal qualities and functions of 100,000 herbal plants. He has also prescribed and ethical charter for medical practitioners two centuries prior to the Oath. Through his genius and intuition, Acharya Charak forever remains etched in the annals of history as one of the greatest and noblest of rishi-scientists.

b.

Human Anatomy

When the science of anatomy was confused with different theories in Europe, Acharya Charak revealed through his innate genius and inquires the facts on human anatomy, embryology, pharmacology, blood circulation and diseases like diabetes, tuberculosis, heart disease, etc. He has emphasized the influence of diet and activity on mind and body. He has proved the correlation of spirituality and physical health contributed greatly to diagnostic and curative sciences.

c.

Surgeries

Born to sage Vishwamitra, Sushruta is the father of surgery. 2600 years ago, he and health scientists of his time conducted complicated surgeries like cesareans, cataract, artificial limbs, Rhinoplasty (restoration of a damaged nose), 12 types of fractures, 6 types of dislocations, urinary stones and even plastic surgery and brain surgery. Usage of anesthesia was well known in ancient India. He is the author of the book "Sushruta Samhita", in which he describes over 300 surgical procedures and 125 surgical instruments.

d.

Growth of the Embryo

Using a variety of complicated instruments, gynecologists have gradually come to know how the embryo grows during the period of pregnancy. But the Shrimad Bhagavatam, 3rd canto, 30th chapter, gives a vivid description of the growth of the embryo in the mother's womb. If we compare the information given therein with the information given in a standard textbook such as the embryology section of Gray's Anatomy, there are striking similarities in the information obtained from the two sources.

5.

Mathematics

a.

Trigonometry

Invention of Trigonometry has been credited to Europe. But record of the sine function comes from fifth-century India in the work of Aryabhata (476 to 550). Verse 1.12 of the “Aryabhatiya” (499), instead of representing angles in degrees, contains a list of sequential differences of sines of twenty-fourths of a right angle (increments of 3.75 degrees). This was the launching point for much of trigonometry for centuries to come.

b.

Pythagoras Theorem

It was ancient Indians mathematicians who discovered Pythagoras theorem. This might come as a surprise to many, but it’s true that Pythagoras theorem was known much before Pythagoras and it was Indians who actually discovered it at least 1000 years before Pythagoras was born! The case of Baudhayana is one of the many examples where Greeks and other western civilizations took credit of the discoveries originally made by ancient Indians. Baudhayana in particular is the person who contributed towards the advancements of mathematics and gave us the theorem that became known as Pythagorean Theorem. Actually we should be calling it Baudhayana Theorem.

c.

Calculus

The western books say that Newton invented Calculus. You can see the Sanskrit mathematics texts by Arya Bhatta and Bhaskaracharya which were written many centuries before Newton that they contain Calculus.

d.

Value of Pie

A Sloka in the 10th book of Rig Veda appears to be written for praising Lord Indra. The technical translation of that Sloka gives the value of Pi up to 28 digits accurately. It is not until the invention of the computers that the western mathematicians could get this value up to 16 digits accurately.

6.

The science of wind

The science of wind has been explained by Sage Kanva in Rigveda sections 8/41/6 in Jagati meter of God wind. Sage Kashyapa has described the features and properties of this substance in Rigveda 9/64/26 in the hymns of God Pavamana Soma in meter Gayatri. Kanva was a great Rishi, a descendent of Sage Angirasa. He looked after Shakuntala when she was abandoned by her mother and father (rishi vishwamitra). Bharat, the son of Shakuntala was also brought up by him.

7.

Meditation and Yoga

Kapil muni was born equipped with rare intellect, dispassion and spiritual powers. He authored Sankhya Darshan that defined the term "Dhyaan or Meditation" as “the state of mind when remains without any subjectivity / objectivity i.e. without any thought (when the mind is away from worldly objects), is called the "Dhyaan or Meditation”. He teaches that there is an unbroken continuity from the lowest inorganic to the highest organic forms. The source of world according to him is Prakriti (fundamental nature).

The Science of "Yoga" is one of several unique contributions of India to the world. It seeks to discover and realize the ultimate Reality through yogic practices. Acharya Patanjali, prescribed the control of prana (life breath) as the means to control the body, mind and soul. This subsequently rewards one with good health and inner happiness. His 84 yogic postures effectively enhance the efficiency of the respiratory, circulatory, nervous, digestive and endocrine systems and many other organs of the body.

8.

Creation of Universe

According to Kapil Muni, there are twenty-five principles responsible for the manifestation of the Creation (Samasara), out of which Purusha and Prakriti are eternal and independent of each other. Kapila is not concerned to deny the reality of personal God or Maheshwara. Yet his assertion is that, no arguments can irrefutably establish God's reality. Therefore, in his model of creation the Purusha (Spirit) and Prakrity (Matter) are held solely responsible for creation, without acknowledging an Almighty and intelligent Creator, the God.

9.

Air Travel

In 1875, the Vymaanika-Shaastra, a fourth century BC text written by Maharshi Bhardwaj, was discovered in a temple in India. The book dealt with the operation of ancient vimanas and included information on steering, precautions for long flights, protection of the airships from storms and lightning, and how to switch the drive to solar energy, or some other “free energy” source. Vimanas were said to take off vertically or dirigible. He described 32 models of airships - Pushpak Vimana is one of those. Bharadwaj the Wise refers to no less than 70 authorities and 10 experts of air travel in antiquity.

10.

Nuclear Weapons

A heavy layer of radioactive ash in Rajasthan, India, covers a three-square mile area, ten miles west of Jodhpur. Radiation still so intense, the area is highly dangerous! For some time it has been established that there is a very high rate of birth defects and cancer in the area under construction. Scientists have unearthed an ancient city where evidence shows an atomic blast dating back thousands of years, from 8,000 to 12,000 years, destroying everything most of the buildings and probably a half-million people.

The Mahabharata clearly describes a catastrophic blast that rocked the continent. "A single projectile charged with all the power in the Universe... An incandescent column of smoke and flame as bright as 10,000 suns, rose in all its splendor...it was an unknown weapon, an iron thunderbolt, a gigantic messenger of death which reduced to ashes an entire race.” Historian Kisari Mohan Ganguli says that Indian sacred writings are full of such descriptions.

11.

Living entities everywhere - even in fire

The Vedas claim that there are living entities everywhere - even in fire. Modern science, however, presumed that no life could exist in fire. This presumption is in fact the basis for the process of sterilization. But recent advancements in the field of medicine have shown that microbes called 'fire bacteria' survive even in fire.

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