Related papers: Birth and Early Development of Indian Astronomy
We have summarized here the astronomical knowledge of the ancient Hindu astronomers. This knowledge was accumulated from before 1500 B.C. up to around 1200 A.D. In Section \ref{equiv} we have correlated terms used by the Hindu astronomers…
This work explores a possible course of evolution of mathematics in ancient times in India when there was no script, no place-value system, and no zero. Reviewing examples of time-reckoning, large numbers, sacrificial altar-making, and…
The earliest origins of mathematics in the Indian subcontinent is generally dated around 800-500 BCE when the {\em Sulbasutras} are thought to have been written. In this article we suggest that mathematical thinking in South Asia, in…
In point of fact the Indian tradition in mathematics is long and glorious. It dates back to earliest times, and indeed many of the Indian discoveries from 5000 years ago correspond rather naturally to modern mathematical results.
Did the Indian and Babylonian astronomy evolve in isolation, was there mutual influence, or was one dependent on the other? Scholars have debated these questions for more than two centuries, and opinion has swung one way or the other with…
The history of astrometry, the branch of astronomy dealing with the positions of celestial objects, is a lengthy and complex chronicle, having its origins in the earliest records of astronomical observations more than two thousand years…
Despite the extensive amount of scholarly work done on Indian mathematics in the last 200 years, the conditions under which it originated and evolved is still not clear. Often, one reads the ancient texts with the present concepts and…
The early Greek and Indian cosmologies are summarized in this paper. The two traditions appear to have developed independently although after the time of Alexander they were consciously aware of each other. The focus and style of the two…
In this article we review some key time cycles in ancient Indian astronomy, especially those that have emerged from researches in the past couple of decades expressing knowledge of the changing frame of earth's axis. The article also…
Textual and archaeological sources are used to provide a synoptic vision of the universe in India. This vision was based on an assumed equivalence of the outer and the inner cosmoses and it is embodied in architecture, music, and art. It…
X-ray astronomy is a mature area of observational astronomy. After the discovery of the first non-solar X-ray source in 1962, X-ray astronomy proliferated during the Apollo era's space race. Then, it matured as an established area of…
We present the results of a nation-wide baseline survey, conducted by us, for the status of Astronomy education among secondary school students in India. The survey was administered in 10 different languages to over 2000 students from…
Sumedh Anathpindika surveys astronomy in India and finds a lively and developing community as well as great public interest.
This paper shows that characteristic features of Puranic cosmology, such as alternating cosmic continents and oceans of successively doubling areas, can be traced to Vedic texts. The Rigveda speaks of seven regions of the universe, and…
This paper is a review of archaeoastronomy in India.
The cyclic model of the universe has an old history in India. It has held the preeminent position regarding the origins of the universe, and it is described in astronomical texts, Puranic encyclopaedias, and philosophical literature. Within…
I shall discuss the history of Indian astronomy, Aurveda (life science), chemistry and metallurgy to illustrate how downgrading experiments from scientific learning lead to the decline of ancient Indian science and civilization. We shall…
While reading ancient texts one has to be cognizant of the assumptions made about the past. One has to ask: Are these assumptions valid? Are we projecting the present views into the past? A case in point is the dating of Vedanga Jyotisa.…
We show that many ancient Indian mythological legends are really allegorical depictions of astronomical and other physical phenomena of which the composers had a good idea. This detail enables us to also use techniques of astronomical…
Historians of science are generally unaware of the contributions of India to physics. The main reason for this is that very little research has been done on the subject in the recent past, a consequence of the fact that there are few…