The title of this book may appear somewhat puzzling to the readers. We all know Vedic mathematics deals with simple numerical calculations. What is then glorious about it? Why does our title speak of 'Glory of Vedic mathematics? - the reader may very well enquire. When one thinks of the importance of a particular discovery one has to take into account the contemporary scenario then prevailing and what was being done in that field in other countries. As far as mathematics was concerned, during early centuries of the Christian era people in the west could not even write big numbers. This was because they were simply not familiar with the basic concept of zero which came to them only in the 8"" century via India. But it was prior to it that our mathematicians through Vedic Sutras had indicated how problems like 99, 1002, 97 x 99 could be solved rapidly and in fact as soon as the problem has been enunciated. Obviously, this was something which would have been unimaginable elsewhere.
As far as the numbers are concerned, in our conventional system all the digits from 1 to 9 are regarded as on the same par. However, our ancient mathematicians showed that the digit 9 indeed possessed some special features which were almost magical. This is something which even the modern mathematics to this day does not acknowledge. Utilizing this special property of digit 9 it is very easy to ascertain whether a particular calculation is correct or not. Similarly, a problem like 9]111 111 111 can be solved instantaneously by the Vedic method. This is possible only when the divisor is 9. All this has no counterpart in traditional-methods.
Perhaps, most important, our ancient sages had grasped even the complex concept of infinity which was developed in Europe only much later in the 18th century. There is little doubt that our forefathers were tremendously ahead of other civilizations as far as mathematics was concerned. In simple Sutras each no more than two lines long they had devised a system of calculations which could be carried out smoothly and rapidly. It is for all these reasons that we have used the word glory in the title of the text. We are sure the readers will agree with our choice.
The readers may also wonder why Vedic sages had turned to mathematics. This is for the simple reason that metaphysics and mathematics bear a close relationship. In the words of India's foremost mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan:
""Zero and infinity are linked to God.""
""An equation has little meaning unless it is a pathway to God.""
Shakespeare says in Romeo and Juliet through Juliet that there is after all nothing much in the name. But as we see in this case the book's title carries much meaning.
Dr. Prakash Joshi joined the Indian Foreign Service in early 1970s. He went on to hold various senior positions with distinction in different parts of the world, including the Gulf region, Africa, Europe, the Caribbean, etc. While posted to Guyana, South America, as High Commissioner, he delivered on their TV network discourses on the Gita for over two years.
Dr. Prakash Joshi was educated in Cambridge, Gonville and Ceius College, U.K. where he did Tripos in Mathematics. He had earlier graduated with high honours from the University of Bombay specializing in Mathematics. He was then nominated as a National Scholar and was awarded the prestigious Tata Scholarship for higher Education for Indians. During 1980s while posted in Delhi he completed his doctorate through the Jawaharlal Nehru University in the field of International Relations. He also qualified at that time as Interpreter in Arabic through the school of Foreign Languages, New Delhi. Dr. Prakash Joshi possesses excellent knowledge of Sanskrit and has a distinguished family background; his father Dr. V.M. Joshi, I.C.S., D.Sc. was a renowned statistician.
FOR 'THE GLORY OF VEDIC MATHEMATICS: BEATING THE COMPUTER'
I am very happy to write this preface for the book on Vedic Mathematics authored by Dr. Prakash Joshi. The term Vedic Mathematics might seem somewhat strange and confusing to many people, especially those who belong to earlier generations. This is because until recent times it was generally not recognized that there was something called Vedic Mathematics with its own distinctive methodology.
The Vedas are mainly associated with metaphysics and are regarded as the very fountainhead of Hinduism as well as of our ancient culture. Of course, apart from religion they cover a number of topics ranging from philosophy, ecology, ethics, to much more mundane issues like how to outwit one's rival in love.
But our ancient sages had also formulated several Sutras relating to computation. In fact, in the field of mathematics too ancient Indians had notable achievements to their credit. It is well known that in the 8th century an Arabic scholar, Al-Biruni or Abu Rehan, who had travelled to India had found that the Indians knew about zero and were proficient in making calculations on the basis of the decimal system. It is in this manner that the invention of zero became known to the Arab world from where it was passed on to Europe. It is very much revolutionized the system of computation then prevailing. The ancient Greeks and Romans were not aware of the decimal system or the use of zero and as such their methods of computations were clumsy, and they found it very hard to deal with big numbers.
But the discovery of zero made by our forefathers had not come in an isolated manner. Much before that came the Vedic Sutras indicating how many computations can be done easily, and what is more important even without the use of paper and pencil by following the methods as laid down in them.
These Sutras however were not known for a long time. The credit for bringing them to light goes to a former Shankaracharya of Puri, the Late Bharti Krishna Tirthaji, in the late 19th century.
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