An Introduction to Ancient Indian Technology

Professor D. P. Mishra
Department of Aerospace Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology
Module 1
Lecture No 04

Let us start this lecture with a thought process that creativity is the alchemy of human life. As I
told the creativity is a part and parcel of human life provided we are being educated in real sense.
And also that depends on the social and political environment where we are living. So that is the
rather panacea of all the problems what we are facing today. So let us recall, what we learnt in
the last lecture.

We basically looked at the why are our ancient Indian science and technology relevant
today. In the process, we looked at what are the problems we are facing in modern time due to
the blatant misuse, abuse of modern science and technology. And we looked at also the how we
are leading life and how it is connected with the Mother Nature. But now we know the causes of
the problems but what are the solutions? We need to look at them.

(Refer Slide Time: 1:26) 2:17

So for that, we will have look at the wisdom of a very great person. His name is Kautilya whose
name is also known as Vishnugupta who was instrumental in installing the Chandragupta as a
first king of Mauryan empire. So he has also written a very beautiful book known as
Arthashastra which is the most ancient book on the statecraftship. It contains lot of science and
technology. So I would urge upon you people to look at that book. It is a one of the rarest book
and we lost a lot of books of ancient origin due to the invasion by the outside people and they
destroyed lot of building, universities, scriptures and monuments. But fortunately, we are having
this book and we could see that that what science, technology, philosophy and other things we
were having at that time.

What does Chankaya say? He says that Naven anvam shodhyet. What is the meaning of
that? That means, relook at the past heritage with modern outlook. He is not saying that you just
copy the old thing. No, you should not put the old wine in a new bottle. You will have to do
research, find it out, look at the essence and do whatever required at this moment. And this is the
very important aspect. What we are doing today in the name of modernity, we are just copying
the western people and pasting here. We do not understand that those things what they are doing
that may be good for them but not for good for us. That does not mean we will not learn from
them. We should learn from them but with understanding, with its implication, by integrating
with our culture and heritage values that we have inherited from time immemorial. Therefore we
need to look at it and that is the message what he has given.

(Refer Slide Time: 3:25)

So what are the solution then? Solutions are whatever come to my mind I will tell but I just want
to hear from you that what are the solutions coming to your mind. He has given us clues or
the
direction; Kautilya has said, “Look at the heritage with modern outlook. Do research on that,
find it out what is the essence, Meaning is that we need to look at our root; yes or no? Can any of
you tell me any other points? Note that root is very important. And once you look at the root,
then we need to look at this back to our cultural heritage, which thrives for thousands of years.
Even today you will find signature of our culture which was there even during Harappa tie and
before that. Can anybody tell me any signature you are aware?

Even the pitcher the way we make, it was there in Harappan time technology-wise. The mud
pitcher is made of mud which is used for storing and cooling water in summer That still is going
on. There are several signatures; for example in most auspicious occasion, we place a pitcher
full of water. Why? That tradition is continuing from Vedic era, still we are following it. But we
should know why we are following it, right? So there are several signatures but those signatures/
markers are going out day-by-day from us due to the blatant acceptance of modern culture from
western people without understanding them. So I call it as cultural invasion for us. We do not
understand that there is a cultural invasion on us at this moment. Therefore we need to be
careful and try to investigate the ancient scientific heritage of our civilization. As I am
emphasizing time and again, this civilization is still alive although it is about to die. But we can
make it survive with our own effort by understanding its efficacy. Therefore we need to
investigate, do research; do not be too emotional that we are part of it. No, we will have to find
out what is the truth. As I told we are truth searcher. Therefore we should do that and redefine
the philosophy of modern science and technology. If you look at the western way of doing the
thing that they will have to win over the Mother Nature. Those science and technology is
basically reductionist in nature. They look at it with very myopic eyes. They do not look at the
bigger pictures. They will say, “Look, if I take a mountain, what will happen? If I destroy this,
nothing happens?” So for example, we are having Eastern Ghat and Western Ghat which are
protecting us from the sea’s onslaught because nature will work; lot of wind from sea will come
into land mass during the rainy season and summer, right? And that will be thwarted by the
mountain ranges of both eastern and western sides of India. That sea water will come over as the
clouds which make the rain and then we will get water in river and other areas. But if we
destroy, what will happen? What will happen to the ecology? It will get spoiled and we are doing
that in the name of development, right? Therefore we should say that all these aspect of the
Mother Nature are all divine. As our scripture says, “Those are all mountains, jungles, rivers,
ponds, birds, animals, insects, microorganisms and etc. All the limbs of the Mother Nature are
divine. Therefore we should not destroy them. We should be a part of the Mother Nature. And
we look at whole picture, and had holistic approach as enshrined in our scripture. Therefore the
philosophy of modern science and technology has to be redefined and we should say that we
cannot live alone, we should live with others. Man is not only be alone who should be here in
this earth. All living beings are connected and interconnected. So interconnectivity has to be
accepted in total while designing, developing technologies and also unraveling the physical
science. So the modern philosophy of science and technology has to be changed.

We need to redefine our individual life. We are not here to plunder and we are not here
to only take food and sleep and then die. We are here to help and realize our potential. Therefore
we need to reshape the collective life of our society and live together. Togetherness is essence
of life. As per our scripture, Vasudhaiva kutumbakam that means all in this earth are one family.
It is not only the human being but the animal, insect, even birds, even any other living, non-
living, all are part of Brahman as per our scripture. So that has to be looked at.

(Refer Slide Time: 8:43)

Therefore we need to look at our root. Root is very important because without root we cannot
really grow as a tree. And we want to grow as a human being. And therefore we should to have
a faith in our culture and heritage. It is not a blind faith that I am talking about. It is not that
something is written in a Bible or Veda that I will have to follow strictly.
No, I will have to question the wisdom whatever it is there even in our scriptures, even in our life
because as our scripture says, “Jugti Jugtam bacho grayam, bala tapi sukha tapi jugtihinam
bachang tejyam buddhatapi sukha tapi.” Its meaning is that even if a small baby or even a parrot
is telling, please follow that; even if a person of wisdom, a old man or a knowledgeable person is
saying something wrong which is illogical, please do not accept it.

That is the ethos what our scriptures has talked about it and we need to follow it. But that does
not mean that I will say it is no. We need to investigate and find out. We need to look at it,
check it and then say and then have a faith in that. So that is the cultural and heritage, we are
having to explore in new ways and means. We need to overcome the excessive exploitation of
nature being armed with power of modern science and technology. So that means, we need to
overcome the present insurmountable problems and learn how to live with the Mother Nature
and use the minimum material for our life. The Western people consume more; it is other way
around, consume less and distort less. Suppose for example, I can manage with two or three
shirts and pants. I can take less amount of food, I do not need it, right? Nowadays people are
having – husband-wife, two person but they have three cars. We do not need to use too much
materials. Therefore when you are traveling in a car, you can take people with you. Even if you
are going in a car alone, why you will go alone? You take 3-4 people so that people will be
benefited and the pollution can be reduced. So this is the way you need to redefine your life, an
individual life and also find out how we will live with Mother Nature.

So to learn about the philosophy of life laid by our ancestors that may lead us to the sea of
happiness and prosperity. Because the balance is a very important key for the human life which
was being propagated and professed by your ancestors and therefore we need to look at it and to
explore and experience our potentiality.

Our scripture says, “We have infinite potential.” If we are having infinite potential and human
being can experience that. And we can do a better science and technology, so that you will get
intuitive power. And intuitive power is very important for doing better science and technology.

We need to express ourselves for serving others selflessly. Unless you serve other, unless your
heart will bleed for the people around you, then you will not get the ideas of intuitive knowledge
you will not get. So it has to be done to revive our ancient science and technology and its ethos.
That is the way we need to go about it.

(Refer Slide Time: 12:36)

And I will just tell you the glimpses of ancient Indian science and technology because it is a very
vast and also we do not have a lot of scriptures at this moment as most of them are being
destroyed during invasion and foreign rule over thousand years. And also with the modernity, lot
of scriptures which were lying dormant even during my grandfather times were not taken cared.
I will tell from my experience. My father left his village. And then he was having lot of
scriptures lying with my grandfather. I remember that I had gone to village and were in the
pooja room. There were a lot of scriptures in the palm leaves and then my grandfather died. And
then everything got lost. I do not know what are the contents of those scriptures. But today
when I am thinking of looking at them, those are not there. It is not true with my family alone; it
is true with the most of the other families. Therefore we will not get all the ancient literature but I
will tell you about them very roughly.
(Refer Slide Time: 13:55)

We can go by chronological order about ancient scientific and technological developments. If

you look at 25000 BCE and before, we call it basically Early Stone Age and people call it
Paleolithic period. During the early Paleolithic periods, people are using copper and chopping
tools, hand-axe, kind of things. Whatever I am saying it is whatever the historians have accepted.
But if you look at our other scriptures, they do not agree with that. There might be much more
than that and I do not want to invite controversy; otherwise I could have talked about it.
Between 25000 to 5000 BCE, we are having basically Middle Stone Age what we call and
Middle Paleolithic period. The predominance of flake tools like scrappers, borers, pointers; they
were using various stones, even some metals were being used. I think, metal came later on
according to the modern historians.

Between 5000 to 3000 BCE, we call it Late Stone Age. Predominance of microliths, and tiny
tools like flakes and blades and lunates (crescent shape of lunar) and other kind of tools what
they were using. Later they started using the metals tools like the scrappers, chisels, trapezoidal
shape, triangular shapes like drills and borers. The period between 3000 to 1500 BCE, was
accepted worldwide as time duration for Harappa Culture. But as I told in the last lecture,
researchers of , Kharagpur have published a paper in Nature journal about it and they are
claiming that it is to be around 8,000 years back. That means basically it was existing around
6000 BCE. And we always feel that it is not 6,000 rather 10,000 years old. That is our way of
thinking. But we need to do research to prove it. It is not that we will say and we need to do
research. I hope and wish that by this lecture, you people will be motivated to carry out research
and give some of your time to unravel and prove to the world that we are having a very old
civilization and great culture. The copper-bronze technology, we were having was very good.
The Lost-wax casting process, was to known to our ancient people and I will be talking about it.
We use this technique for making the turbine blades, compressors and other very intricate
shapes in modern time.

The wheels were used to make decorated and glazed pottery. The pottery items were very good
at that time. Agriculture technology what I will be discussing about was quite advanced. The
domestication of animal, drainage and public baths were prevailed during this period and we
will be discussing about them later on. We are using bricks since 3000 BC. Mortar
constructions, buildings, Town planning of this civilization will be discussed later on. The
spinning, weaving of textiles, navigations and dockyards, ship building technologies and
dockyard building were in advanced stage. The Indus valley civilization was prevailing over a
large regions like the Sind, Punjab, Rajputana, Haryana, Saurashtra and other regions Of
course, I always feel that the civilization might be also existing in southern side part of India
during this period. I always believe that the southern part of India was also having a great
history and heritage, because the sea was there and therefore I am having these belief. But this
aspect has to be proved with adequate evidences.
The period 1500 to 1000 BCE is considered to be the Vedic era what western people have
already accepted, but my belief is that it is much before that. But I do not have a proof. If you
people will get the proof, it will be nice. The concept of natural laws, what people talk about
physical laws, were put forwarded during this time. The monistic idea concerning water, that I
will be quoting something from Upanishad, water harvesting were considered to be evolved
during this time. The Nakshatra system what we use for our astrology was considered to be
started from Vedic era. And there is a Vedanga Jyotisa which is still used in India. The calendar
system that we are using today was considered to be introduced during this time. We are having
our own calendar which is very old and sophisticated. You can predict a lot of thing by using
this calendar unlike your modern calendar.

Student: Gregorian.

Professor: Gregorian calendar, right. That is not that good according to me but of course we are
using it. The knowledge of diseases and cure like health wise were identified in detail in ancient
scripture. For agriculture, use of plough, other tools fermentation methods were employed. And
the number system on decimal scale up to 1012 were known to them. I cannot think what will be
the size of number they were thinking. Today even it is very difficult to think. The regions of
vedic people were spanned over Punjab, Kashmir regions, Western U.P., Gangetic Plains; The
historian were not concerned about the southern part. I always believe that civilization might be
flourishing in south India during this period. And people have excavated in northern India and
got the evidence. This kind of excavation need to be carried out in the southern side but where
to do that is another question. We cannot excavate all the places. And during 1000 to 700 BC,
Yajurveda, Atharvaveda, Brahmanas and Aranyakas, all those things were being written. There
are a several things. I will not go through it. I will only tell that that these are the branches of
knowledge system which people were having like, mathematical series cosmic cycles, binomial
series and lot of more. The physiological, anatomical and about the health, the doctrine of
Pancha-bhutas were evolved during this time. We talk about them sometimes. You people may
not be aware, at least I was aware about Pancha-bhutas. Painted-grey wares was developed and
then the people started using iron during this Vedic era. They were knowing how to enhance the
fertility of the land. For agriculture, they have started developing compost what we use you
know.
 Between 600 to 500 BCE, the uses of iron and steel were started as per claims of the
modern historians. They are saying that iron and steel were used in the eastern part of India and
extended to central and other parts of India. But I do not believe it. I feel that Iron and steel
might be prevailed much before this period which were across entire India except some small
regions. But you do not go by me and rather go by the historians because those are provable.
From 500 BCE to 1 CE, Vedanga Jyotisa, Sulba-sutra and Vaisesika were developed further.
The Vaisesika philosophy talks about structure of the atom. You must not have studied this as a
part of atomic theory subject earlier because we do not teach it in our school and colleges; we
teach our students the concepts propagated by westerners. We are having a very beautiful
system, atomism and time and motion and the sound whatever the physics you look up; of
course, they look at in a very different way. The main objective was the spirituality but in that
they looked at life. Beside this, if you look at this Pythagoras theorem and other mathematics,
these were existing in Sulba-sutra, which is much before the Pythagoras. The binomial series
and then several others like geometry, rational numbers and lot of mathematics were found in
ancient India.

(Refer Slide Time: 23:03)

Between 1 to 500 CE, several treatise had come up. The important scriptures were Charaka and
Sushruta Samhita, that you might be aware because today Ayurveda is being again coming
back, so also yoga. The Nyayabhasya, is another important ancient text. As I told earlier, the
Arthashastra of Kautilya/Vishnugupta was become prominent during this time. And the Jain and
Buddha scriptures contain lot of science. I will not go through all of them. Only I will tell you
few of them; for example, glass making got started during this time. The propagation of sounds
and the classification of animal and plants, in a very systematic way were considered to be
occurred during this period. We are not teaching those aspects in the schools and colleges which
should be taught to our students.

The values of pie, sine, cos, were improved further. The square and cube roots of
quadratic and cubic equations were found out. Then first order equations and then other
mathematical are being considered to be originated during this period. By engineering-wise, lot
of concepts like forgings, lithographies, laparotomy and rhinoplasty were developed further
which are being used nowadays. They started manufacturing of wrought iron they could cast
iron items in two layers, particularly in Indo-Gangetic Plains.

And if you look at in 600 CE onwards, there were a several concepts like
Panchasiddhantikas like Saura, Paulisa, Romakar, Brahma and Paitamaha. A lot of earlier
concepts were put together. During this period, a concept Mahajuga, was considered to be
evolved what they are saying various jugas like satyayiuga, Tetrajuga, Dwaparajuga and
Kaliyiga. And the Brihat Samhita of Varahamihira was being written at that time and where the
chemical processes, plant and animal classifications have been mentioned. There was another
book which is very good and it is still being used. Of course, lot of scriptures, textbooks were
being burnt out because of invasion by perpetrators. You might be aware the famous Nalanda
university and others got destroyed. Note that we are the first people, who had established
several universities in ancient times. Unfortunately those universities were being destroyed. So
we lost a lot of knowledge and heritage.

The classification, synonyms of plants, animals, and minerals and metals were compiled
in a book known as Amarakosa. And this was of course like the encyclopedia of today that
you are seeing. The book, Surya Siddhanta provides the best and most accurate tithis. During
700 to 800 CE, Brahmashphutasiddhanta, a treatise about mathematics, astronomy and others
was written. The equation of second or arithmetic progression for any terms and lot of complex
mathematics like area of cyclic quadrilaterals, volume rules, diagnostic methods were being
talked about in this book . If you look at this book was translated into Arbic as the Sindhind.
The Brahmashphutasiddhanta by the Brahmagupta, was being translated to Arabic. And there is
another book, Khandakhadyaka, by Brahmagupta which was translated to Arbic language as
Arkand. The Madhavanidhana which was also translated into to Arbic language which is
known as Badon. The Asthangahridaya, an Ayurvedic text by Vagbhata was also translated
into Arabic language which was known as Astankar. So there are several ancient texts which
might be translated and gone to the western countries that we do not know nor we are doing
research on that at this moment. And I would like to stop over here and we look at these
chronological aspects of science and technology in the next lecture. By this time, you can
enough idea about the contribution of our ancestors to the science and technology. Whatever the
little text we are having today, it is showing a lot. Now if we imagine that all that scriptures we
could have kept, even some of the scriptures that people are trying to get them back. And lot of
people are having these texts and they do not want to give because of possessiveness. And there
was an attempt around 20 years back by the government of India to collect some of ancient
scriptures but it was not very successful. But still they are claiming they are having something
around 10,000 scriptures. But where are those scriptures? And I will be also telling you little
later on that where you can get some of the information. I will be discussing after few lectures
where you can go and do research and get those information. Thank you very much listening
and I will continue in the next lecture.