S.V.Vedic University Series No :- 104 ISSN No (Web) :- doXX{e©Zr (AÝVmam{ï´>¶m ‘yë¶mpL²>H$Vm ‘m{gH$emoYn{ÌH$m) V®da Dar¿in¢

(An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal) Issue - IV : January, 2017

Editor - in - Chief Prof. K.E. Devanathan Vice - Chancellor

Editor Dr T. Umesh Assistant Professor, Dept of Mimamsa

SRI VENKATESWARA VEDIC UNIVERSITY Established under A.P State Act - 29/2006 (Sponsored by T.T.D and Recognised by U.G.C) Alipiri-Chandragiri Bypass Road Tirupati - 517502 Andhra Pradesh 2017 doXX{e©Zr, (AÝVmam{ï´>¶m ‘yë¶mpL²>H$Vm ‘m{gH$emoYn{ÌH$m)

V®da Dar¿in¢, (An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal) Issue - IV : January, 2017 Chief - Patron : His Excellency Sri E.S.L. Narasimahan, Chancellor, Hon’ble Governor of Andhra Pradesh & Telangana States Editor - in - Chief : Prof. K.E. Devanathan, Vice - Chancellor Advisory Committee Members : Dr Alladi Mohan, Professor & Head, Department of Medicine, SVIMS, Tirupati Prof P.Murali Krishna, Professor, S.V. Ayurvedic College, Tirupati Prof V.V.Jaddipal, Dept of Research Publications, R.S.Vidyapeetha, Tiurpati Dr K.Tarakarama Kumara Sarma, Dean, Faculty of Veda - Vedanga, SVVU, Tiruapti

Editor : Dr T. Umesh

First Impression : 2016 Copies : 200 Price : ISSN (Web) :

© Sri Venkateswara Vedic University, Tirupati, AP. All Rights Reserved Published By The Registrar, Sri Venkateswara Vedic University Alipiri-Chandragiri Bypass Road Tirupati - 517502, Andhra Pradesh, India

E-Mail : [email protected] [email protected] Website : www.svvedicuniversity.ac.in

Phone : +91-877-2264651, +91-8333038730 Fax : +91-877-2222587

Prepared by : JSVN Sekhara Sarma CONTENTS

1. Astro – Herbal Relations as found in Ancient Texts 1 - 12

G.S.R. Krishna Murthy

2. Some Scintillating Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 13 - 32

K. Vanadeep

3. Ayurveda and Human Resource Management 33 - 38

I.V.N.S. Raju

4. Bio-diversity - Ancient Indian Wisdom 39 - 44

C. Raghothama Rao

5. Social Aspects of Kitava Sukta in 45 - 50

V.S. Neetu

Addresses of Contributors 51 Astro – Herbal Relations as found in Ancient Sanskrit Texts G.S.R.Krishna Murthy* It is a well - known fact that we are as integral part of the nature. We live on earth, which is surrounded by atmosphere, which is composed of “Pancha Maha Bhootas” (Five Eternal Elements) n¥{Wdr, Amn…, VoO…, dm¶w…, AmH$meíM and houses enormous wealth of natural habitat. As the Indian Ancient Astrological concept goes, the solar system is made up if nine planets gy¶©…, MÝÐ…, ‘“b…, ~wY…, Jwé…, ewH«$…, ‘ÝX…, amhþ…, Ho$VwíM, and receives the effect of those planets that are neighbouring the earth, We are aware that seasons change and as a result of this change the human behaviour also changes. The same phenomenon is observed in animals and plants also. H$m{bXmgHw$‘magå^do - MÝÐmoX¶maå^ Bdmå~wam{e… We see that the high and low tides are the result of the on the seas. In the same way, the animals follow the season for reproduction. The crops are known to yield more due to the effect of the planets. ^d^yVo… CÎmaam‘M[aVo - {dH$g{V {h nV“ñ¶moX¶o nwÊS>arH$‘² The lotus blossoms when the rises and the water lily does when the moon rises. Insects effect the bamboo when it is cut in the dark phase of the moon. Similarly we get a better yield of honey when it is extracted during the moon-phase. And the fruits ripen during night time. That is way, Moon is called the “Oshadheesa” {Zéºo$ - Amof§ éO§ Y¶{V B{V Amof{Y… The herbs cure diseases and the same is described in the Ancient Sanskrit texts. Ayurveda also says that the collections of herbal medicines must be carried out during specific period only(Hw$emoËnmQ>Zm‘dmí¶m). The similar effect is also observed in inanimates. CÎmaam‘M[aVo - Ðd{V M {h‘aí‘mdwÒVo MÝÐH$mÝV… Moonstone oozes during on moonlit day and sunstone brightens when it is hit upon by the sunrays nydm}ºo$ ZmQ>Ho$ - Z VoOñVoOñdr àg¥V{‘Vaofm§ Z ghVo. This paper deals with these facts in depth with illustration to various concepts. The Plant Exhibition high – lights the facts that are dealt with here. The present paper is related to Star –Plant as described in Tantra Sastras and Ayurvedic Texts like, Sarada Tilaka, Narada Purana, Narada Samhita and Raja Nighantu. All the above said facts were presented in a paper entitled “ and Ayurvedic Plant” by Dr Ramesh Waygaonkar and Dr Radha Raman Das which was published in the Astrological Magazine dated February – 2002. Even before the presentation of this paper, we’ve exhibited the plants in our Sanskrit Science Exhibition in April – 2000 itself. The Plants Exhibited were according to Ayurvedic Texts like Raja Nighantu and Dhanwantri Nighantu. For instance –

* Professor, Dept. of Sahitya, Rastriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha, Tirupati 2 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 {dfd¥jmoíd^m¶må¶{Yîʶo¶‘H$aVé& CXþå~aíMm{¾{Yîʶo amo{hʶm§ Oå~wH$ñVé…&& BÝXþ^mËIm{Xamo OmV… H¥$îUßbjíM am¡Ð^mV²& g§^yVmo@{X{V^mÛ§e… {nßnb… nwî¶g§^d…&& gn©{YîʶmÞmJd¥jmo dQ>… {nV¥^g§^d…& nmbmemo ^m½¶^m‚mmV… AjíMm¶©‘g§^d…&& A[aï>d¥jmo a{d^mÀN´>rd¥jñËdmï´>g§^d…& ñdm˶¥jOmo@Ow©Zmo d¥jmo {ÛX¡d˶m{ÛH§$H$V…&& {‘Ì^mÛmHw$bmo OmVmo {d{ï>… nm¡a§Xaj©O…& g‚m©d¥jmo ‘yb^mƒ d§Owbmo dm[a{YîʶO…&& nZgmo d¡íd^m‚mmVíVmH©$d¥jíM {dîUw^mV²& dgw{YîʶmÀN>‘rd¥j… H$X§~mo dméUj©O…&& AOmhmoíMyVd¥jmo@^yXþ~ÜݶO… {nMw‘ÝXH$…& ‘Ywd¥j… nm¡îU{Yî¶m{Õîʶd¥jm… àH$s{V©Vm…&& ¶pñ‘ÄN>Z¡íMamo {Yîʶo VÕjmo@À¶©… à¶ËZV…& - ZmaXnwamUo {dfÐþ… YmÌrVé ho‘Xw½Ym Oå~yñVWm Im{XaH¥$îUd§em…& AídËWZmJm¡ M dQ>… nbme… ßbjñVWm@å~ð>Vé… H«$‘oU&& {~ëdmOw©Zm¡ M¡d {dH$L²>H$VVmo@W gHo$gam¡eådagO©dÄOwbm…& gnmZgmH©$íM e‘rH$Xå~mñVWm@@‘«{Zå~m¡ ‘YwH$Ðþ‘… H«$‘mV²&& A‘r ZjÌX¡d˶m d¥jm… ñ¶wñgßVqde{V…& Apídݶm{XH«$‘mXofm‘ofm ZjÌnÕ{V…&& - amO{ZKÊQ>m¡ It was also shown that those were the medicinal plants which are being used even today in curing several diseases like Mushini (Nux-Vomica) for diarrheal. S.No Name of Constelleation Name of Plants Botanical Name 1. Aswini Karaskara Strychnos nux-vomica L 2. Dhatri Phyllanthus emblica L 3. Krittika Udumbara Ficus racemosa L 4. Rohini Jambu Syzygium cuminii (L.) Skeels 5. Mruhashira Khadira Acacia catechu (L.f.) Willd 6. Aarudra Krishna Dalbergia sisso Roxb. Astro - Herbal Relations as found in Ancient Sanskrit Texts 3 7. Vamsa Bamboo 8. Ashvattha Ficus virens Ait 9. Aashlesha Naga Mesua nagassarium (Burm.f.) 10. Vata Ficus benghalensis L 11. Purva Phalguni Palasha Butea monosperma (Lamk.) Taub 12. Uttara Phalguni Palasha Ficus virens Ait 13. Hastha Arishta Sapindus mukorrossi Gaertn 14. Chitra Bilva Aegle marmelos (L.) Corr 15. Swathi Arjuna Terminalia arjuna (Roxb.) W&A 16. Vishakha Vikamkatha Flacourtia indica (Burm.f.) Merr 17. Vakula Mimusops elengi L 18. Sarala Pinus roxburghil Sarg 19. Sarja Shorea robusta Gaertn.f 20. Purvashadha Vamjula Salix tetrasperma Roxb 21. Uttarashadha Panasa Artocarpus heterophyllus Lamk 22. Arka Calotropis procera Br 23. Shami Prosopis cineraria (L.) Druce 24. Shatabhishak Kadamba Anthocephalus chinesis (Lamk.) 25. Purva Bhadrapada Aamra Mangifera indica L 26. Uttara Bhadrapada Nimba Azadirachta indica Juss 27. Revathi Madhuka Madhuca indica Mac Jyothissastra has allocated names to the stars as per the appearance of the constellation in which they are. For example the constellation of Aswini looks like horse head hence the name. The presiding deities are Aswini Kumars who are also happen to be the Deva Vaidyas as indicated in Vedic Texts. This concept of the relation between the shape of the constellation and their derived name is illustrated in the Jyotish text – Muhurtha Chintamani. Now, due to these facts we can see that there exists some relation between the stars and plants. As a matter fact all the flowers blossom during nights. Stars also appear during nights only and some stars are not visible which are with sun. Now, Sin is in Kanya Rasi and therefore the stars from Revathi to Chitta are not visible. 4 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Sunrays, as we know, are the lifeline for the plants for making their food and also blossoming of flowers. So it concluded that the rays of stars and Sun combined are effecting the plants. The Sages have established this fact very long ago and formulated the customs accordingly like consuming of Nimba flower with mango on the New Years Day i.e. the Sukla Pratipat. This reveals the fact that there is some relation between plants and sunrays combined with stars. The sun transit from star to star in 13 1/3 days (i.e. one karti). (13.33 X 27 = 360 days = 1 year in sauramana.) Accorfing to Raja Nighantu, the plant for Poorvabhadra is Mango and for Uttarabhadra is Nimba. When Sun is across the Poorvabhadra the mango tree blossoms for 13 days. And the flowers become fruits after thirteen days. When the Sun is across Uttarabhadra the Nimba tree blossoms. So the Nimba flowers mixed with mango pieces to be eaten on that day. This custom indicates the science of relation between stars and plants. Just like that, every starry plant blossoms in particular nakshatramana days. It is proved in Botanical Research Institute. Lucknow in 1998. The flowers of this period alone become fruits and seeds that are formed other that this particular period are not suitable for plantation. This trait will not apply for the Hybridized plants but those hybridized fruits never contain the medicinal characteristics. That is way it is also suggested in Vedic cult, the seasonal fruits are offered to the God as oblation (Naivedya). These starry plants are worshipped in several temples especially inTamilnadu for example at Ekambranatha Temple in Kanchipuram. It is also suggested that the person of that particular star should not consume any part of the plant either as a medicine or food. Because the person possess the same characteristics of the starry plant. If the suggestion is not followed it may lead to reaction due to the excess of similar content. This phenomenon is not observed in the modern medicinal science. To preserve these plants, caution is given to those persons who are born in this particular constellation should not use it in any manner whatsoever. If he does so miseries may follow. For instance, Lord Rama was born in Punarvasu constellation of which the starry plant is bamboo. He was using the bow made of bamboo always as ‘Kodanda’ and this act has to safeguard and propagate his starry plant as far as possible for his own benefit and prosperity. Further to this, the research on Plants and Pancha Parna Plants etc., to be undertaken through this Sanskrit Science Organisation. In public gardens like “Lal Bagh” in Bangalore, “ Ganapati Sachhidananda Ashramam” in Mysore, “Divyarama” in Tirupati, “Gurukul Kangadi” in Haridwar and “Kukrail Park” in Lucknow all these starry plants are reared and displayed for Astro - Herbal Relations as found in Ancient Sanskrit Texts 5 public. The forest department should take care to preserve these plants more and more. In town planning also there should be a provision to establish the different Vatikas for these plants. Aegle marmelos (L) Correa The Beal Tree Sanskrti: Bilwa Arab & Pers: Shul Hindi, Bengali, Marathi: Bel Telugu: Maredu Tamil & Malayalam: Vilvam Kannada: Bilapatre Terminalia arjuna (Roxb.) W.&A Hindi: Arjuna Bengali: Arjun Marathi: Sanmadat, Sadaru, Vellamrda Gujarati: Sadado Telugu: Yerramaddi Tamil: Vellamatta Kannada: Maddi Oriya: Arjuno, Sahajo Assam: Orjun Punjabi: Arjan Trade: Arjan Flacourtia indica (Burm.f.) Merr. Not listed in Wealth of India Bengali: Ban-Chanda Telugu: Poyina Di Putatige Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam: Ponambuvalli, Panampuvalli Oriya: Bomugra Mimusops elengi L. Hindi: Maulsari Bengali: Bakul Marathi: Ovalli Gujarati: Barsoli, Barsari 6 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Telugu: Pogada Tamil: Vagulam, magadam, Ilanji Kannada: Bakula, Pagade Malayalam: Elangi, Ilanni Oriya: Bakulo, Banla Assam: Gokul Trade: Bullet Wood Mesua nagassarium (Burm.f) Not listed in Wealth of India. However , M.Ferra L. is listed Trade Name: Mesua Hindi & Bengali: Nagakesar, Nagesar Gujarati & Marathi: Nagachampa Telugu: Nagakesara, Kesaramu, Nagachampakamu Tamil: Nangu, Nangal, Irul, Nagachambagam Kannada: Nagakesara, Nagasampige Malayalam: Nanga, Peri, Vewthaphala Assam: Nahur, Dieng-nagi, Nagi-ching Andamans: Gangane Ficus bengalensis L (The Banyan) Sanskrit: Bahupada, Vata Hindi: Bar, Bargad, Bor Bengali: Bar, bo Gujarati: Vad, Vadlo, Vor Marathi: Vada, Wad, War Telugu: Marri, Peddamarri, Vati Tamil: Al, Alam Kannada: Ala, Alada Mara, Vata Malayalam: Ala, Vatam Butea monosperma (Lamk.) Taub Listed in Wealth of India as B.monosprma (Lam) Kuntze Syn: B.frondosa Koeing ex.Roxb (The flame of the forest) Sanskrit: Palasa Hindi: Palas Bengali & Marathi: Palas Gujarati: Khakra Astro - Herbal Relations as found in Ancient Sanskrit Texts 7 Telugu: Moduga Tamil: Parasa Kannada: Mutthuga Malayalam: Palas in samatha Ficus virens Ait Not listed on this name in Wealth of India. Sampindus mukorrossi Gaertn (Soapnut tree) Sanskrit: Phenila, Urista Hindi: Ritha, Reetha, aritha, Dodan, Kanmar, Thali Bengali: Ritha Oriya: Ita Punjabi: Reetha Shimla: Keeltha Lushai: Hlingsi Telugu: Kunkudu Acacia catechu (L.f.) Willd Cutch Tree Sanskrit: Khadira Hindi, Bengali & Marathi: Khair Telugu: Sandra Tamil: Karangalli Kannada: Kaggali Burm: Sha Dalbergia sissoo Roxb. Sisso Sanskrit: Shinshapa, Aguru Hindi: Shisham, Sissu, Sissai Bengali: Shishu Gujarati: Sisam, Tanach Telugu: Errasissu, Sinsupa Tamil: Sisuitti, gette Kannada: Agaru, Birdi Malayalam: Iruvul Oriya: Sisu, Simsapa 8 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Bamboo The more important bamboos are, Arundinaria, Bambusa, Cephalostachys, Dendrocalamus, Gigantochloas, Melocanna and Ochlandra. Sanskrit: Vnash Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati: Bans Bengali: Ketua, Kutvasi Telugu: Bongu - Veduru, Pente - Veduru Tamil, Malayalam: Mungail Kannada: Biduru Assam: Kotuha Burm: Kyakatwa Ficus religiosa L. The peepul Sanskrit: Aswatha Hindi: Peepul, Pipli Bengali: Ashvatha, Pimpala Telugu: Aswathamu, Bodhi Tamil: Arsu, Aswatham Kannada: Arali, Ashwathha Malayalam: Arachu, Arayal, Ashvatham Strychnos nux-vomica L. Snake wood, Nux-vomica, Strchnine Tree Sanskrit: Karaskara, Chipita, Dirghapatra, Geradruma, Kakasphurja, Marakatindu, Vishamushti. Hindi: Bailewa. Chibbige, Kajra, Kuchla. Bengali: Kuchila, Thalkesur. Marathi: Jharkatachura, Kajra, Kar, Kara. Gujarati: Kuchla. Telugu: Mushti. Tamil: Etti, Kagudi, Kanjiri Kannada: Hemmushti, Ittangi, Itti, Kanjira. Malayalam: Kanjiram, Kariram. Oriya: Kachila, Kora, Kosla. Punjabi: Kaguphale, rajra, Ruchila. Bombay: Jharakarachura, Kaaaajra, Kara Astro - Herbal Relations as found in Ancient Sanskrit Texts 9 M.P: Kuchla. Nepal: Nirmal. Phyllanthus emblica L. Not listed in Wealth of India under this name. Seem to have been transferred to genus Emblica. However, the following names were found to be given to this plant. Syn.Syzigium cuminii Aonla, Ammla, Jambolan, Java plum, Jamun, Jambu, Jambool, Black-olu, tree, Protugese plum, Malabar plum, Indian blackberry, Duhat. Ficus racemosa L. Mentioned under F.glomearata Roxb. Syn: F.racemosa Hindi: Gular, Umar ? Bengali: Dumur, Jagyadumbar Marathi: Umbar Gujarathi: Umar, Gular Telugu: Atti, Bodda, Paidi, Udumbaramu Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam: Athi Oriya: Dimri Syzigium cuminii (L.) Skeels Hindi: Jamun, Jam Bengali: Jam, Kalajam Gujarati: Jambu, Jamli Marathi: Jaman, Jambul Telugu: Neredu Tamil: Neredam, naval, Sambal Malayalam: Naval, Pevinnoval Oriya: Jano Kannada: Nevala Common Name: Jaman, Jambolam, Black plum, Blackberry Punjabi: Jammu Nepal: Kalajam Andaman: Thabye, Jamun 10 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Pinus roxburghii Sarg, Syn. P.longifolia Chir Pine, Himalayan long leaved pine Hindi: Chir, Chil, Sarala Trade: Chir, Chil Other vernacular names are mostly derivatives of these names Shorea robusta Gaertn.f. Sal Hindi & Bengali: Sal, Sakhu, Shal Marathi & Gujarati: Ral, Rala (resin) Telugu: Gugul, Guggilamu (resin) Tamil: Kungiliyam (resin) Kannada: Kabba (resin) Malayalam: Maramaram (resin) Oriya: Sal, Sagua, Salwa, Sekwa Punjab & Haryana: Sal, Seral (resin) Lepcha: Taksal-kung Assam: Sal, Doieng-blei, hal-orang, Bolsal Trade: Sal Salix tetrasperma Roxb. Indian willow Hindi: Bod, Bent, Jalmala, Bilsa, Laaaaaaaaaaila, Bhinsu Bengali: Panijama, Bolshaki Marathi: Boch, wallunjm Bitasa Telugu: Etipala, Eetipisinaka Tamil: Vanji, Nirvan, Atrupalai Kannada: Niravanji, Bariche Malayalam: Vanji, Attupaa Oriya: Baisi, barija, Panilamo Kashmir: Yir, Bins Punjabi: Bis, Bein, Beis, Bista, Bakshel, Mogsher, Safedar, Bida, Bedleila Assam: Veh, BheGaro, Bol-Slak, Bhesh M.P: Dhanie Trade: Indian Willow Astro - Herbal Relations as found in Ancient Sanskrit Texts 11 Artocarpus heterophyllus lamk. Syn: A.integra (Thunb) Merril Sanskrit & Telugu: Panasa Hindi: Kathal Bengali: Kanthal Marathi: Phanas Tamil: Pilaphalam Kannada: Halasu Malayalam: Chakka Calotropis procera Br. Listed as C.Procera (Ait) R.Br. in Wealth of India Sanskrit: Alarka Hindi: Akada Marathi: Mandara Tamil: Velerukku Anoka Prosopis cineraria (L.) Druce Syn. P.spicigera L;, Mimosa cineraria L. Hindi: Jand, Chaunkra, khar, khejra Bengali: Shami Marathi: Shemri, Saunder Gujarati: Sami, Semru, Khijado, Haamra, Kandi Telugu: Jammichettu Tamil: Perumbay, Jambu Kannada: Banni, Perumbai Malayalam: Parampu, Tambu Oriya: Shami Anthocephalus chinensis Lamk. Not listed in Wealth of India on this name but seems to be same as A.cadamba as listed here. Sanskrit, Hindi, Bengali, Marathi & Gujarathi: Kadamba Telugu: Kadambamu Tamil: Vellai-cadamba Kannada: Kadawala 12 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Malayalam: Attutek Burma: Mau-lettanshe Trade: Kadam Mangifera indica L. (The Mango) Sanskrit: Amra, Chuta Hindi: Am Marathi: Amba Gujarati: Amri Telugu: Mamidi, Mari Tamil: Manga, Mau Kannada: Mavu Malayalam: Amram, Chutam, Mavu Azadirachta indica, juss. Syn. Melia azadirachta L. (The Neem Tree) Sanskrit: Nimb Pers: Nib, Azad-Darakht Hindi & Bengali: Nim Marathi & Gujarati: Limba Telugu, Tamil & Malayalam: Vepa Kannada: Bevu Madhuca indica Mac. Syn M.latifolia Macb., Bassia latifoloa Roxb Listed in Wealth of India as M.indica J.f.Gmd Hindi: Maaahua, Mohwa Telugu: Ippa Marathi: Mahona, Mool, Madhuka Gujarathi: Mahona Tamil: Elapa Kannada: Hippe Malayalam: Poonam, Ilupa, Mahoula, Moha, Mods

***** Some Scintillating Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha K. Vanadeep* Introduction:- The word ‘Science’ finds its origin in the Latin term ‘Scientia’, meaning ‘Knowledge’. Thus, science can be interpreted as a knowledge that can be relied upon completely. Till medieval times, the words ‘Science’ and ‘’ were used as complementary and transposable terms. Science was often known by the name ‘Natural Philosophy’ till recent times, since Science and Philosophy were treated like the two faces of the same coin and to be precise, Science was considered to be an inseparable and integrated part and parcel of Philosophy. This is the specific reason why the highest degree, even in Sciences (and for that case, any other subject as well), is called ‘Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)’. It is of everyone’s knowledge, that the progress of science was triggered to momentum by ‘The Renaissance’. To be specific, this was the renaissance of Science, followed by Culture, more than anything else. Till then, the western world was engaged a sort of ignominious sorry state of affairs, at least as far as the formulation of various scientific postulates is concerned. But, we can infer unassumingly that the Indian texts, scriptures and treatises were replete with references and discussions, right from the Vedic times to the times of VaraahaMihira (505 – 587 B.C.) and aftermath. Discussions:- A fleeting look at the multi-faceted Indian prowess in the arena of sciences Chemistry:- Ancient Indian chemists were well aware of the process of distillation. In the ‘Rasa Ratna Samucchaya’ of Vaagbhata, it has been mentioned thus: “Place the chemical in a vessel provided with a long tube inserted in an inclined position, which enters the interior of another vessel arranged as a receiver. The mouth of the vessel and the joint should be luted clay and cloth. Now, put a strong fire at the bottom of the vessel containing chemicals, while the other vessel is in cold water. The apparatus is used for distillation” (Rasa Ratna Samucchaya, I. 48 – 50).

* Lecturer & Researcher, Tirupati 14 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 This apparatus was called ‘Tiryak Patana Yatra’ and is believed to be introduced by Nagarjuna for the extraction of cinnabar essence. This was also used for the distillation of perfumes and ointments. Batteries:- “Place copper plates in an earthen pot, cover it with copper sulphate and moistened saw dust. Spread Zinc powder and cover it with mercury. Due to chemical reaction, positive and negative charges and consequent current is produced” (Agasthya Samhita). Surprisingly, this produces a voltage (1.1 Volt) almost equal to that of the modern day dry cell (1.5 Volt) Shape of the Earth:- “As the Earth is round, every person considers himself at the top of the Earth where he is standing. So, downward direction is towards the center of the earth for everyone” Bhugoladhyayaha, of Arya Bhatta. “Earth is situated suspended in space st the center of the Bhugola (), surrounded by the orbits of the planets. The Earth is made up of water, soil, fire and air and is circular on all sides, spherical in shape” (Aryabhattiya, IV, 6) Arya Bhatta, for the first time, emphatically pronounced that the earth is spherical and that it rotates around the Sun and all other stars are relatively stationary. It is to be prominently observed that Nicholas Copernicus had postulated his ‘Helio- centrictheory’, condemning Ptolemy’s established ‘Geo-centrictheory’, only after 1000 years. Durationof Day:- Arya Bhatta in 476 A.D. has derived the duration of one sidereal day on Earth to be 23 Hours 56 Minutes 4 Seconds and 0.1 Fractions, without any substantial sophisticated astronomical equipment and not even looking at the sky literally. The modern value is 23 Hours 56 Minutes 4 Seconds 0.091 Fractions. The comparison between these two values speaks volumes about the accuracy of ancient Indian science. Velocity of Light:- Saayanacharya (1315 – 1387 A.D) is the brother of Vidyaranya who was the guru of Hari Hara Raya and Bukka Raya, on whose initiation; they founded the famous Vijaya Nagara Empire in 1336 AD. Saayana wrote one of the most authoritative Some Scintillat4ing Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 15 commentaries on (Saayana Bhaashyam). In his commentary on the Rigveda, a straightforward reference to the velocity of light (originally in the Rigveda) can be found, which reads: “Thus it is remembered: [0 Sun!] bow to you, you who traverse 2,202 yojanas in half a nimisha” (Saayanacharya’s commentary on 4th verse of the hymn of Rigveda, I.50). If the value of one yojana is taken to be 9.06625 mile and half a nimisha equals to 8/75 seconds (as specified in the 231st verse in Shaanti Parvam of the MahaBhaarata), then, the velocity of light comes out to be 186, 413.22 mile/second. One would be stunned to find this value in extreme congruence with the contemporary popular scientific figure put at 186, 300 mile/second. Atomic Size:- “The tip of a human hair is divided into 100 parts and each part is in turn divided into 100 parts” (Swetasvaropanishad, 5.9).This shows that our learned ancestors attempted to arrive at some plausible estimation of highly microscopic atomic sizes by employing scales pertaining to known and familiar objects around them. This is approximately about 10-8 cm. In Atomic Physics, the atomic sizes and distances are measured in terms of Angstrom units (1 A0 = 10-8 cm) The VIBGYOR:- The concept of ‘Seven-coloured’ visible solar spectrum is not of Newtonian origin, but, dates back to the primeval . The first and the foremost of the Vedas, Rigveda, the most ancient text known to mankind, describes the colours embedded in the pure white light of the Sun as Violet, Indigo, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange and Red. Another verse in Rigveda goes thus:”(Where) the seven rays of the Sun are incident, there, I may live with my family” (Rigveda, 8-72-16). Further, in the traditional ‘Suryaashtakam’, we have a slokam (verse) like this: “Saptaashwa Radhamaarudham Prachandam Kasyapaatmajam Swetha Padmadharam Devam Tam Suryam Pranamaamyaham” (Suryaashtakam, slokam 2) “O Sun (Surya)! I offer my salutations to You (pranamaamyaham), who is seated on the chariot driven by seven horses (Saptaashwa Radhamaarudham), He who is the Son of Kasyapa (Kasyapaatmajam) and fierce (Prachanda) and the God (Deva) who adorns a white lotus in his hand” (Swetha Padmadharam) (Vanadeep, 2012). 16 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Capillary Action in Roots:- The Shaanti Parva of the Maha Bhaarata has this following reference to the capillary action of the roots, while drawing water from the soil through suction. “Just as water may be drawn up by sucking the lotus petiole with the mouth, so also plants drink water (from the soil), assisted by the air (pressure gradient)” The uniqueness of Indian epics and classics is that even though the central theme of the work revolves around a social, political or family drama, several meritorious concepts of science, spirituality and ethics have been inserted and incorporated, wherever, there is the minutest and remotest of probabilities.The modern theory of capillary suction force was proposed by Dickson and Jolly in 1984, while Maha Bhaarata dealt with it easily as a commonplace concept and example, at least 5000 years ago. This proves that how advanced the know-how of various sciences at that time was, in India. Rationalistic approach to Eclipses:- Varaaha Mihira in Chapter V, Raahu Chaaraha of the Brihat Samhita, humbly as well as vehemently condemns the antiquated and futile notions about the prevalent notions pertaining to eclipses as they are of no avail and take us nowhere if we get entangled in those versions. He opines that certain symbolism is vested in such descriptions (Vanadeep et al, 2012), which seem to be preposterous superficiallyand this ought to be deciphered and understood in correlation to the actual astronomical phenomenon on scientific lines. (Vanadeep et al, 2012). Besides, the following verse from the Rigveda also points to this: “O Sun! When the demon Svarbhaanu (Raahu) engulfed you by his shadow, the people of the whole world were stunned and have forgotten their position. Then, the Sage Atri could locate the Sun covered by the darkness, caused by Svarbhaanu. Nobody else (other than Sage Atri) could do that” (Rigveda, 5/40) Gravitation:- Aadi Shankaracharya, in his commentary on the Prasnopanishad, states categorically that “If the famous Goddess of the Earth (Bhoo Devi) would not hold on this body by supporting Apaana (Apaana Vaayuis a kind of vital and life-sustaining wind circulating in the body), this body would have floated anywhere in the space or might have fallen down relatively” (Shankarabhaashya on Prasnopanishad).One should retain in mind that this was written almost 1,500 years prior to the birth of Isaac Newton. Some Scintillat4ing Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 17 Relative Motion:- Many wild theories have cropped up in the West and elsewhere that the Earth was flat, stationary and was situated at the center of the universe, making all heavenly and celestial bodies like the Sun, the Planets and the Stars revolve around it. All the darkness of such ignorance would be put to permanent rest when the Sun of knowledge in the form of Arya Bhatta’s treasured treatises rises. In his Arya- Bhattiyam, he unambiguously states thus: “Just as a man moving forward in a boat sees the objects (on his side) as moving backward, it is exactly so when the people of Lanka (Equatorial regions) perceive the movement of the other-wise stationary stars towards the West” (Arya Bhattiyam, Chapter 4, slokam 3). It was lately recognized by the modern science that it is the Earth that moves from West towards the East, that makes the Sun, Planets and the Stars appear to move from East towards the West. Metallurgy:- The following are the living examples of India’s mastery over metallurgy: a. The known history of metallurgy in India dates back to 2500 B.C. and lasted till 13th Century A. b. Techniques of Iron production and utilization were in practice from about 400 BC. c. The massive statue of GautamaBuddha discovered in Sultanganj, Uttar Pradesh, belonging to the Gupta era measuring 2 meter and weighing about 1 ton, shows that Indian craftsmen were well-versed with metal casting and molding. d. The most titanic testimonial to Indian metallurgical skills is the spectacular iron victory pillar at Delhi, located near the famous monument Qutb Minar. It was erected during the Gupta period around 5th Century AD. One is left to marvel in dumb founded state about the most outstandingly extraordinary feature of this pillar that, being a massive iron pillar and keeping in view the great affinity of iron to moisture as well as the colossal time period, it had remained corrosion-resistant and rust-proof for almost a staggering 1600 years. One could only say ‘kudos to Indian skills!’.

The Indian know-how regarding the physical and chemical properties of metals is matchless. The following examples testify this assertion: 18 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 “Gold, Silver, Copper, Iron, Lead, Zinc are the six types of metals, whose resistance towards corrosion/weathering due to oxidation is in the order that is reverse of the above sequence” – Rasaarnavam, 12th century AD. “When strongly heated in the fire, the loss of weight for Gold is nil, for Silver 2%, Tin 8%; for Lead and Copper 5% and for Iron, it is 10%” – Yaagnyavalkya Smriti The Time Scales, from the Tiny to the Titanic:- Indian seers have dealt with times that were tinier than the tiny and enormous than the enormous. First, we shall examine the macro time scales as envisaged in Hindu Cosmology. The fraternities of the eternities have been presented below, just like the ‘tip of an ice berg’ This period of four is known as a ‘MahaYuga’, which has time duration of almost 43, 20,000 sidereal years of the Earth’s revolution around the Sun.Moving further, we encounter astounding time scales as follows: One MahaYuga = 43,20,000 sidereal years One Manvantaram = 71 MahaYugas = 3,06,720,000 sidereal years + 1 KritaYuga = 17,28,000 sidereal years = 30,84,48,000 sidereal years One Kalpa = 14 Manvantarams = 4,31,82,72,000 sidereal years + 1 KritaYuga = 17,28,000 sidereal years = 4,32,00,00,000 sidereal years One Manvantaram (308 million years) is in proximity to the time taken by the Sun to complete one revolution around the center of the Milky Way. Modern Astronomy estimates it to be around 230 Million years. This period of time is known as a ‘Cosmic year’. It is believed that the orbital velocity of the Sun around the center of the Milky way is about 220km/s and at this speed, it is presumed that the Sun might have completed about 20 revolutions in a time of about 5 billion years and he is likely to complete another 20 by the end of his life time, in another 5 billion years. This kalpa period, concurs with the age of the earth and to some extent, with the age of the universe as well. The entire lifespan the Creator of the universe Lord Brahma has been estimated in the following manner: Day of Brahma = 4,32,00,00,000 sidereal years Night of Brahma = 4,32,00,00,000 sidereal years Some Scintillat4ing Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 19 One full Day of Brahma = 8,64,00,00,000 sidereal years × 360 days in a year = 3,110,400,000,000 sidereal years × 100 years = 311,040,000,000,000 sidereal years = Total life span of Lord Brahma Actually, this is an unimaginable number in terms of modern mathematics. However, our ancestors dealt with such mammoth numbers quite easily and fluently. Indian astronomers like Arya Bhatta were able to calculate even the number of revolutions of a planet around the Sun in a MahaYuga, i.e. 43, 20,000 years, very precisely. On the other hand, they divided the time in its micro aspect as well as shown below: 2 trutis = 1 lava. 2 lavas = 1 nimesha. (16/75 second = 0.2 second approximately) 5 nimeshas = 1 kaashtha 30 kaashthas = 1 kala. 40 kalas = 1 naalika, or the time during which one aadhaka of water passes out of a pot through an aperture of the same diameter. 2 naalikas = 1 muhoorta. 15 muhoortas = 1 day or 1 night. Thus, Indians proved themselves to be ‘timeless’ and tireless travelers, in pursuit of the knowledge and wisdom of the truth. Astronomical Statistics:- Arya Bhatta provided an exemplary account of the planetary motion in this following verse: “All the planets, whether they are moving in their orbits or in eccentric circles, do exhibit an anti-clockwise motion from their apogees (farthest points) and clockwise motion from their perigees (nearest points)” (Arya Bhattiyam – Chapter 3, slokam 17). Johannes Kepler promulgated his planetary laws from 1609 AD onwards, almost after 12 centuries from the period of Arya Bhatta. 20 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017

Table 1. Distance of planets from the Sun in terms of Astronomical Unit (Au)

Name of the Planet Distance from the Sun in Distance from the Sun in Terms of Astronomical Terms of Astronomical Unit as postulated by Unit as observed by Arya Bhatta Modern astronomers Mercury 0.375 0.387 Venus 0.725 0.723 Mars 1.538 1.523 Jupiter 5.16 5.20 Saturn 9.41 9.54

The distance between the Earth and the Sun is about 1.5x 108 km. This is technically called ‘Astronomical Unit’. Generally, it has been a convention to measures the distance between Sun and other planets of the solar system in terms of ‘Astronomical Unit’, proportional to the distance between the Sun and the Earth, which is taken to be 1.000 (One Astronomical Unit), as shown in table 1.The sidereal period of the Earth is 24 hours and its one revolution around the Sun takes around 365.25 days. Bhaskaracharya had envisaged this value to be 365.2578756484 days, correct to 10 decimal places in his famous treatise named ‘Siddhaanta Siromani’, around 1150 A.D.

Table 2: Sidereal Periods of planets compared with ancient Indian values Name of the Planet Sidereal Period of the Sidereal Period of the planet as per Arya Bhatta planet as per Modern Astronomym Moon 27.322 Days 27.322 Days Mars 687 Days 687 Days Jupiter 4332.29 Days 4331.94 Days Saturn 10,766.10 Days 10, 760.44 Days Some Scintillat4ing Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 21 Venus 224.70 Days 224.70 Days Mercury 87.97 days 87.97 Days Earth 365.26 days (approx.) 365.26 days (approx.)

Moon is the only natural satellite of Earth. It takes about 27 days to execute one revolution of the Earth, whereas, one revolution of the Moon around the Sun also takes about 27 days. The sidereal periods of some planets, compared with the ancient values are given in table 2. In his Arya Bhattiyam, Arya Bhatta calculates the maximum declination of the Sun to be 24 degrees, while the modern value places it at 23 degrees 30 minutes (230 301). Further, the declinations of other planets are also given by Arya Bhatta (AryaBhattiyam, Chapter 1, Slokam 8), which are compared with the contemporary values in table 3.

Table 3: Declinations of various planets compared with the values propounded by Arya Bhatta Name of the Planet Value propounded by Value propounded by Arya Bhatta Modern Astronomy Sun 24 deg. 0 min. 23 deg. 30 min. Moon 4 deg. 30 min. 5 deg. 0 min. Saturn 2 deg. 0 min 2 deg. 30 min Jupiter 1 deg. 0 min. 1 deg. 30 min. Mars 1 deg. 30 min. 1 deg. 51 min. Venus 2 deg. 0 min. 3 deg. 23 min. Mercury 2 deg. 0 min. 7 deg. 0 min.

At a time when the whole world was swirling in the whirl winds of wild and bizarre theories pertaining to various aspects of science, ancient Indian scholars devised many brilliant and fool-proof predictions, theories and applications, which were congruous to the most sophisticated experimental results of the present day. 22 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Mathematics:- Mathematics was a field that received utmost attention of ancient Indians, right from the beginning. The Vedas are replete with treasurable concepts of Mathematics, which make the Mathematicians all over the world salute Indian prowess in this field. Vedaanga Jyotisham speaks volumes on the place of Mathematics among all Indian or Vedic sciences, with a slokam that reads thus: “Yathaa Shikha Mayuraanaam, Naagaanaam manayo yatha Tadvadvedaanga Saastraanaam Ganitam Moordha Nistam” (Vedaanga Jyotisham, 4) “Like the crests on the heads of peacocks, like the gems on the hoods of the cobras, Mathematics is adorned at the top of the VedaangaSaastras (Sciences)” (Balachandra Rao, 1994) Significant Landmarks in the Journey of Indian Mathematics:- a) It is not an exaggeration to say that the invention of zero by Indian mathematicians is the one innovation that has drastically changed the very course of our perception of mathematics and philosophy. Subsequently, this forayed into all other sciences as well. “…..The importance of the creation of the zero mark can never be exaggerated. No single mathematical creation has been more potent for the general, on go of intelligence and power” - George Bruce Halsted, American Mathematician who introduced ‘Non-Euclidean Geometry into the United States. b) Bodhayana, the most reputed Geometric genius of India formulated and introduced the ‘Sulba Sutras’, used extensively for constructing the sacrificial altars with pin-pointed preciseness. His ‘Sulba Sutras’ proved to be a potential tool to solve the general linear equations of the form: Ax + By + C = 0 This dates back to almost 2000 years prior to the period when western mathematicians solved it. Bodhayana lived in India 2600 years ago. One more remarkable achievement of Bodhayana using his ‘Sulba Sutras’ lies in finding the accurate value of square-root of 2, correct to seven places of decimal. Square-root of 2 = 1 + 1/3 + 1/ (3 X 4) – 1/ (3 X 4 X 34) = 1.4142156…. Some Scintillat4ing Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 23 The modern calculator (model: casio-fx-300w) gives it as: 1.4142135….. (Sen & Beg, 1983) The Sulba Sutras also contain the following invaluable information on various aspects of mathematics: “The areas (of the squares) produced separately by the length and breadth of a rectangle, together equals to the area of the square produced by the diagonal” (SulvaSutras, 1.12)” (Sen & Beg, 1983) “Multiply the length of a right-angled triangle by the same length and breadth by the same breadth; the square-root of the sum of these two results gives the hypotenuse” (-Sulba Sutra, 10.10) (Sen & Beg, 1983) AB2 + BC2 = AC2 (Hypotenuse) This is nothing but the famous Pythagoras theorem. “The diagonal of a square (of side ‘a’) produces double the area of the square” (Bodhayana Sulba Sutra, 1.9) (Sen & Beg, 1983) (Diagonal) 2 = a2 + a2 = 2a2 = 2 (Area of the square) (Using the Pythagoras theorem as the diagonal of a square divides it into two equal right-angled triangles) c) The Value of II Today, we simply know that the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter is constant, denoted by ð. Arya Bhatta gives the value of this constant in the following fashion: “Add 4 to 100, multiply by 8 and add to 62,000. This approximately (aasanna) is the circumference of the circle, whose diameter is 20,000”. (Arya Bhattiyam, Ganita Paadam, 10) This means a circle whose diameter is 20,000 units has its circumference approximately equal to (100+4) x 8 + 62000 = 62, 832 units Since, the ratio of circumference of a circle to its diameter is a constant, it follows that: 62832 ÷ 20000 = 3.1416 The importance of the word Aasanna (approximate) used by Arya Bhatta is that he knew that this was an irrational constant, which cannot be expressed exactly as a ratio of two integers. Arya Bhatta was well aware of this fact, way back in 5th century AD itself. Later, in 1761, after a yawning time span of 13 centuries, Lambert 24 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 proved that ð is irrational and further in 1882, Lindermann established that ð is transcendental. (Balachandra Rao, 1994). d) Indian Trigonometry Indian trigonometry is based on the arc of a circle (jya), rather than on an angle. Hence, Indian trigonometry was named ‘Jyotpatti (Jya + Utpatti) Ganitam’, meaning the mathematics of generation (utpatti) or construction of ‘Sines’, or simply ‘Jya Ganitam’ (Balachandra Rao, 1994). But, based on the western nomenclature of Trigonometry, emphasizing on a triangle, now- a –days, we are calling this branch of Mathematics by the name ‘Trikonamiti’, meaning measurement of a triangle (Trikonam stands for triangle; konam in Sanskrit means ‘angle’) and moreover, we started calling Geometry by the name ‘jyaamiti’ (measurement of chords of a circle). The word jya in Sanskrit means a ‘bow string’, which resembles in shape to the bow string and the circle’s arc looks like a bow. Origin of the word ‘Sine’:- Arya Bhatta used the word Jya or Jeeva, to give the sense of ‘a chord’ in 499 AD. The Arabs interpolated this Sanskrit word and read it as gib, which means ‘fold’. Using this meaning, gib was translated into Latin as ‘Sinus’, which is again synonymous to ‘fold’. Later, this ‘Sinus’ was transformed into the present-day ‘Sine’. (Venkatesha Murthy, 2005). The word ‘Geo’ (as in Geometry, Geography, Geology, etc.) must have been derived definitely from the Sanskrit word ‘Jya’. e) Radian Measure Surya Deva Yajvan (b.1191 A.D), mathematician of the 12th century and the commentator of ‘Arya Bhattiyam’ states thus: “When the diameter of a circle is multiplied by the central angle made by the circumference in minutes and the resultant product is divided by the circumference, then, it gives the circumdiameter. Half of this circumdiameter is the basis for all scientific calculations” That is, from above, we have, 20000 (Diameter)x21600(Central angle made by the circumference) ÷ 62832 (Circumference) = 6875.47746= 6876 (approx.) Half of 6876 = 6876/2 = 3438 Some Scintillat4ing Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 25 This number has been used by Arya Bhatta in many of his scientific, astronomical and astrological calculations. (Venkatesha Murthy, 2005) As per the principles of Mathematics, One radian = 1800 ÷ ð = 1800/ 3.1416 = 57.30 If we convert this into minutes, we have, 57.30 x 60 minutes = 3438 minutes This is an astonishing result that proves uncompromisingly that Indian Mathematics was well-developed and sophisticated even in those remote times. f) Power Series of II In the annals of the history of Mathematics, the power series of ð have been attributed to Gottfried Wilhelm Leibnitz (1646 – 1716 AD). But, the famous Indian Mathematician Madhava (1350 – 1410 AD) envisioned this series and formulated it in the following slokam, which can be translated as: “Multiply the diameter (of a circle) by four. Subtract from it and add to it alternativelythe quotients obtained while dividing four times the diameter (4d) by the odd integers three, five and so on (to get the circumference of the circle)” Therefore, Circumference of a circle (C) = ð d = 4d – 4d/3 + 4d/5 – 4d/7 +…… (Madhava Series) Dividing this throughout by 4d, we have, ðd/4d = 1/4d [4d – 4d/3 + 4d/5 – 4d/7 +….] Hence, this becomes, ð/4 = 1 – 1/3 + 1/5 – 1/7 +………… (Leibnitz Series) Madhava arrived at this result at least 300 years before Leibnitz. Hence, Madhava should be given credit for inventing this series before Leibnitz and the series should be named ‘Madhava – Leibnitz Power Series’ (Venkatesha Murthy, 2005) g) The Decimal Notation and The Place Value System The decimal point notation accompanied by the ‘place value system’ is seen as the most profound ingenious contribution of India to Mathematics, which changed the entire course of this branch of knowledge. “In the units place, the digit has the same value, in the tens place, 10 times the value and in 100th place, 100 times the value, as woman is called mother, daughter and sister” (Vyaasa Bhaashya to Sutras) 26 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Laplace had this to say regarding Indian proficiency in Mathematics:- “It is India that gave us the ingenious method of expressing all numbers by ten symbols, each symbol receiving a value of position, as well as an absolute value. We shall appreciate the grandeur of this achievement when we remember that it escaped the genius of Archimedes and Apollonius” – Pierre Simon De Laplace, a famous 18th century French Mathematician and Astronomer. Medicine and Surgery:- The pursuit of excellence in India began with the conception of the ‘Ayurveda’, which even today is the most sought-after alternative system of medicine in the entire world. This system of Ayurveda formed the basis for many other systems of medicine that developed during the later period, like the Siddha, Unani, etc. Sushruta, who belonged to 4th century B.C., is proudly acclaimed in the world of surgery, to be the first surgeon in the world to perform a plastic surgery and administer anesthesia. He is believed to have performed a plastic surgery on a man’s disfigured nose. The ever-lasting contribution of Sushruta to medicine is his ‘Sushruta Samhita’. The Sushruta Samhita contains 184 chapters and description of 1,120 illnesses, 700 medicinal plants, a detailed study on Anatomy, 64 preparations from mineral sources and 57 preparations based on animal sources. It is one of the most revered reference texts for Ayurvedic surgeons. In this treatise, Sushruta enlists some 101 types of surgical instruments, which were assigned nomenclature after the animals or birds they resemble. The modern day names like Crocodile forceps and Hawk- bill forceps in surgery are the result of such classification made by Sushruta. Sushruta learnt this art of surgery from his mentor Divodasa Dhanvantari in Varanasi. The following are some of the primary surgical techniques explained in the SushrutaSamhita: 1. Chhedya (Excision) 2. Bhedya (Incision) 3. Lekhya (Scarification) 4. Vedhya (Puncturing) 5. Ecya (Exploration) 6. Arhya (Extraction) 7. Sraavana (Blood-letting/Evacuation) 8. Sivya (Suturing) Some Scintillat4ing Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 27 Charaka was the first Physician to demonstrate the concept of digestion, metabolism and immunity. His period extended from 3rd century to 2nd century B.C. Charaka was the court-physician of the great king of Kushaana dynasty, Kanishka. His magnumopus ‘Charaka Samhita’ has not lost its efficacy and relevance even a bit, in Ayurvedic medicine till date. This treatise is believed to be a modified revision of the original work of his GuruAgnivesha. Charaka is ascribed to be the first principal exponent of a system of medicine, popularly known as ‘Kaaya Chikitsa’, wherein he opines and firmly asserts that any Physician must first try to enter the body (Kaayam) of the patient with the light of his medical and physiological knowledge and then start the treatment (Chikitsa) only after studying other endemic factors like the environment, surroundings, etc. He is the first proponent of the concept ‘Prevention is always better than cure’, which is so widely held now-a-days.

According to Charaka’s Anatomy, the human body comprises 360 bones (he had divided the bones more subtly, as the modern medicine tells us that it is only 206). He reiterated that any defect, whatsoever, in the body is a result of the imbalance among the three primary entities (tattvas), namely, bile (pittha), phleghm (kapha) and wind/gas (vaata). Charaka’s medicines were targeted at restoring this balance. He did not pay much attention towards Pathology, as he believed germs/pathogens could only attack the body if its immunity is weak, which resulted from an imbalance among the fore stated three tattvas ultimately. He was also proficient in Genetics and his work ‘CharakaSamhita’ establishes his knowledge on various plant, mineral and animal resources to treat a plethora of dis-‘eases’.

There were three great universities in India in the olden days (1500 B.C. to 200 A.D.), where Astronomy, Mathematics, Yoga, Philosophy, Economics, Political Science, including Moral Education, Geometry, Vaastu Saastra, Ayurveda, Medicine and Surgery were taught. One was at Banaras (Varanasi) on the bank of river Ganga in the East, where head of medicine was Sushruta, followed by Nagarjuna. Here, surgical techniques and principles were taught. The other was at Takshashila in the West, on the bank of Jhelum river, where medicine, physiology and human anatomy were taught under the mentorship of Atreya, succeeded by Agnivesha and then, followed by Charaka. One other great university was Nalanda where Kashyapa was the head of medicine. Pediatrics, Gynecology and Obstetrics were the principle specialisations. A lot of references are available, which clearly indicate that the students from many other regions of the world also came here for learning and gaining proficiency in medicine and surgery. 28 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Besides these two, many other luminaries like Vagbhata, Nagarjuna, Atreya, Agnivesha, Dhanvantari, Kashyapa, Chyawana (the product Chyawanprash is believed to be his preparation), etc. have been the torch-bearers of this ‘life-line’ science of human existence, which was passed over from Lord Brahma to Aswini Kumaras, from them to Indra and from him to Sage Bharadwaja and to the sacred lineage of Sages and doctors up to the present day, continuing unabated. This is proof par excellence that India flourished as the ‘World Head Quarters of Medicine and Surgery’ for so many centuries. Nuclear Physics:- Today, at a time when we still continue to call that entity (Atom) by the name which it is known today (‘A - Tomio’ means ‘the indivisible entity’), even when the atom has been divided and sub-divided infinitesimally and investigative search for more and more and subtler divisions is on, one would really remain dumb-struck when he goes through the ‘Vaiseshika Sutras’ of Sage Kanaada, formulated way back in the 6th century B.C, about 2,600 years ago. Kanaada propounded the famous and masterful theory of ‘Vaiseshika Sutras’ (The Peculiarity Aphorisms), wherein Kanaada became the first expounder of atomic concept all-prevalent in the entire universe. He was also the pioneer promulgator of the existence of binary molecules and atoms. The stunning profound observation of Kanaada was that of the presence of Paramaanu at the core of each and every atom. When matter is divided and sub-divided until any further division is impossible, the only remaining indivisible entity is called ‘Paramaanu’. Paramaanus are eternal and indestructible and do not exist in a free state and nor can they be sensed through any human organ (Chinmaya Mission, 2003).The original sense of the word ‘Kashyapa’ is ‘Pasyaka’, which means ‘the one through which everything could be seen’ or ‘the one that shows everything’. This feature can be attributed to light. Hence, here, in this case, the light (rays of knowledge) of Kashyapa penetrated the substance and reached the nucleus (Paramaanu). In other words, this Kashyapa had seen that entity and had shown it to all of us. Hence, Sage Kanaada is truly a ‘Kashyapa’. These Paramaanus can be equated to modern-day Nucleus or may be even to more miniscule sub-atomic or elementary particles in the atom. The concept of the most powerful and deadly weapons found in our Epics and Puranas, like the Brahmaastam, Narayanaastram, Paasupataastram, etc. may be the prototypes of modern day atomic bombs and Hydrogen bombs or some chemical/bio-chemical weapons as well. India possessed nukes, before most of the world was dormant like an infant that Some Scintillat4ing Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 29 did not even open its eyes to the bright light of culture and civilization (Certainly, this was much before the 1974 Pokhran test!!!). Atmosphere: The Utmost Sphere of Influence in India, right from the Vedic Times:- The concept of Environmental Conservation:- It is our pristine and heralded duty to gift a pure and pollution-free nature to our future generations. Hence, our learned predecessors envisioned this dire necessity and showcased their keen intent on this iconic issue, as can be perceived from the verses that ensue: Invocation for the pollution free earth:- “Let the aspects of Truth (Satya) and the universal order (rta), severe austerity, penance, The Ultimate Reality and Sacrifice hold the Earth. Let the Earth, abode of all potencies and herbs, may strengthen us and bring us prosperity and brilliance. The earth is the Mother and I am her son. I wish that She should always be free from all pollutions”. (Bhumi Suktam, AtharvanaVeda, 12.1) .This is the spirit of this Bhumi Suktam in support of conservation (Rani Sadasiva Murty, 2009). Water pollution and purification:- The genius chemist of India ‘Vaagbhata’ has provided us with several methods of purifying stale, foul, stinking and unfit water to make it potable for human consumption: To summarize the views of Vaagbhata in this context, the excretal release of insects and reptiles, formation of aquatic moss layers over the surface, the gut, the fall of dry leaves in plenty and the state of being in dark shades away from the contact of the rays of Sun and Moon are some causes of water pollution. Such polluted water will forego its taste. Some unacceptable smell will also be added. It is suggested that it is better to avoid drinking such water. If one has to inevitably drink such water the ancient masters of Ayurveda recommended some purification methods such as boiling the water, dropping the seeds of Kataka in the vessels, filtering with four- time folded cloth, keeping the lotus stalks or Patala and Karavira flowers or red hot iron balls in the vessels for some time and also by using the gems such as Gomeda and Pearls. These methods have been approved by modern scientific generations. The Taittiriya Aranyakam strictly prohibits the attitude of releasing excreta, spitting and taking bath with uncovered/ naked body in the flowing waters. (Rani Sadasiva Murty, 2009) 30 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Invocation for a pollution-free Atmosphere:- The well- known Pavamaana Sooktam in the Atharvana edaV enlists all the advantages purifying the air. Thus, for the better progress of a region and on the whole a nation, a clean, pollution-free and hygienic living surroundings are primarily required as they are directly related to both human health and economic productivity prospects. (Vanadeep and Krishnaiah, 2011) According to the Vedic seers Pavamaana is not just the wavy breeze or breezes but it is the entire enclosure of the Air and gasses surrounding the biosphere. Hence they emphasized on its purity for the purity of all the regions of universe, earth, rivers, mountains, galaxies, activity of all living beings and of the sacrificial performances. (Rani Sadasiva Murty, 2009) This can be summarized as follows:- “May the air that purifies the Earth and the sky, day and night, directions and sub-directions, Sun, Moon and Stars, all beings, seasons and years, trees and herbs, the snowy mountains, Vaicvaanara fires, rivers, seas and oceans, atmospheric environment, Order, Righteousness (Ztam), Truth, Penance, Perseverance/Dedication and austerity purify us from within. May this Pavamaana, that holds or is in possession of every entity and which purifies all these, and purifies everything manifested and non-manifested and everything concrete as well as abstract, purify us from within”– (Atharvana Veda, Paippalaada Samhita, 9 – 23) The ‘Pavamaana Suktam’ mentioned above, may look only like an exaltation of Pavamaana (Wind). But, a deeper analysis may provide considerable insights into the encrypted atmospheric awareness of our scholarly forerunners. Conclusion:- Our hearts would be replete with reverence when we find that these spectacular and monumental observations were made some thousands of years ago, even before the western infant opened its eyes that was when all other regions were just at the verge of commencing their own civilisations, evolving from their erstwhile barbarous and nomadic cultures and life-styles. I end this article with these benign and genuine peace invocation hymns from the Vedas: “Sarve Janaaha Sukhino Bhavantu Samasta Sanmangalaani Santu” Some Scintillat4ing Jewels of Sagacious Science Crafted in Ancient Bharata Varsha 31 References:- 1. AadityaHrudayam; Published by RamaKrishna Math, Hyderabad, XIV-6M- 2-2009, 2009. 2. Balachandra Rao S (1994), Indian Mathematics and Astronomy, Revised Second Edition, Jnana Deep Publications. 3. ChinmayaYuva Kendra (2003), Awakening Indians to India, Central Chinmaya Mission Trust, p.417. 4. Georges Ifra (1985): From one to zero – A Universal History of Numbers, Viking Penguin Inc. New York, p.481. 5. Kota Venkatachalam, (1954): The Plot in Indian Chronology, Arya Vignyana Publication, Vijayawada. 6. National Institute of Hydrology, Roorkee (1990); Hydrology in Ancient India– India’s Contribution to International Hydrology Programme, pp. 1 – 73. 7. Ramachandran, V.G. (1998); ‘Date of AdiSankara in Ancient India’, Mahalingam, N., (Ed), International Society for the Investigation of Ancient Civilization, Chennai, pp.261-304. 8. Rani Sadasiva Murty (2009), Environmental Awareness in Sanskrit Vedic and Sastra Literature, Mahasvini, Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha Publication, Tirupati, Volume 2, pp. 72 -80. 9. Sengupta, P.C., (1947), Ancient Indian Chronology, University of Calcutta, Calcutta. 10. Sircar, D.C., (1969), “The Myth of the Great Bharata War” in The Bharata War and the Puranic Geneologies, University of Calcutta, pp. 11 – 27. 11. Vanadeep K (2012); India: The Sense, Essence and Quintessence of Science From Every Conscience – An Introduction, Indian Journal of Innovations and Developments, Vol. 1, No.5, pp. 331 – 389. 12. Vanadeep K and Krishnaiah M (2011); Air quality monitoring at residential areas in and around Tirupati- a well-known pilgrimage site in India, Indian Journal of Science and Technology, Vol.4, No.11, pp. 1517 – 1531. 13. Vanadeep K and Krishnaiah M (2011), Variation of Ambient Noise Quality At Residential Areas with Different Living Environs in and around Tirupati, Indian Journal of Environment &Ecoplanning, 18 (2-3), 192 – 209. 32 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 14. Vanadeep K, Sada Siva Murty R and Krishnaiah M (2012), Meteorological predictions preserved in the Panchangam versus real-time observations – a case study over Tirupati region – a semi-arid tropical site in India, Indian Journal of Science and Technology, Vol.5, Issue 4, pp. 2491 – 2509. 15. Vanadeep K, Sada Siva Murty R and Krishnaiah M (2012); Meticulous and Meritorious Meteorology Enshrined in the BrihatSamhita – A Comparative Case Study over Four Indian Regions Situated in Diverse Climatic Zones, Indian Journal of Innovations and Developments, Vol. 1, No.4, pp. 229 – 290. 16. Venkatesha Murthy (2005), Indian Mathematics in Sanskrit: Concepts and Achievements, Sanskrit – Science Series - 9 (Bharatiya Ganita Vidhanam – 5), Publication of Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha, Tirupati. ***** Ayurveda and Human Resource Management I.V.N.S. Raju* Human Resource Function is the oldest function that existed from the time Human Settlements started forming. The name that was given to this function varied from to time but the focal point remains Individual or group of Individuals. Predicting human behavior is also as old as the HR Function. Rather it is apt to say that the nature of prediction of human behavior altered the focus of the HR Function over the years. It is not new to the human race to get branded, rated, categorized and classified based on caste, creed, educational and financial standard; and on many accounts. The participation of the individual in the process of above classification is critical to establish the credibility. Various psychometric tests are being used to find out the compatibility of the individual with the job, role, situation, etc. Internally so much data is being collected about an individual’s performance, competencies and preferences. This data coupled with the assessment of personality traits provides a relatively objective data for taking various HR decisions. The quality of HR decisions depends upon the quality of the data based on which such decisions are made. In this information technology era we all deal with knowledge workers. The more natural, comprehensive and objective the data the more effective the HR decisions would be. Keeping this in view this research study was conducted using the Mind-Body Type Indicator as a research tool to establish the linkage between the Basic Principles of Ayurveda and HR Function in particular and leveraging the Human Potential in general in any organization. Hope that this research would serve as a useful and unique addition to the body of knowledge gained so far in the HR area. This theory is based on the fact that each soul is a unique spiritual entity and retains its individuality forever. Each soul has its own unique karmic history and the difference among the souls is fundamental and permanent. A bound soul (not liberated) may ‘move towards God from birth to birth and eventually be liberated by their goodness (sattvic ) or may be condemned to eternal damnation due to their pursuit of evil and vice (tamasic ) or forever rotate in the cycle of births and deaths due to their mediocrity (rajasic). These three virtues become operational based on the influence of the three doshaas viz., Vaata, Pitta and Kapha. It is interesting to

* General Manager - Corporate HR, RenewSys India Pvt. Ltd. 34 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 note the research finding recently released by the CCMB, Hyderabad “It’s official. The ancient Indian knowledge of Ayurveda medicine has molecular basis.” Words fail to explain the power of our Seers in documenting the Ayurvedic knowledge. Our Ancient knowledge never blow off our brain but makes us wonder- struck!! The more we dig in Ayurvedic Texts the more wisdom we can unearth. Varaha Purana offers and excellent categorization of individuals. The base for this categorization is the Ayurvedic Profile of an individual. Vaata, Pitta and Kapha are doshas (imbalanced status of five elements that exists in Individuals). However they do reflect one of the three positive energies (Gunaas) in their balanced stated viz., 1. Satva Guna 2. Rajo Guna 3. Thamo Guna What is a Guna? Guna is both a root and a word in Sanskrit language. Its different context-driven meanings are derived from either the root or the word. In verse VI.36 of Nirukta by Yaska, a 1st millennium BC text on Sanskrit grammar and language that preceded Panini, Guna is declared to be derived from the another root Gana, which means “to count, enumerate”. This meaning has led to its use in speciation, subdivision, classification of anything by peculiarity, attribute or property. This meaning has also led to its use with prefixes such as Dviguna (twofold), Triguna (threefold) and so on. What are these three Gunas? “In Vedic philosophy, sattva (Sanskrit sattva / gËd “purity”, literally “existence, reality”; adjectival sattvika “pure”, anglicised sattvic) is the most rarefied of the three gunas in Samkhya, sattvika “pure”, rajasika “excitable”, and tamasika “indifferent”.” * Sattva is the quality of balance, harmony, goodness, purity, universalizing, holistic, constructive, creative, building, positive, peaceful, virtuous. * Rajas is the quality of passion, activity, neither good nor bad and sometimes either, self centeredness, egoistic, individualizing, driven, moving, dynamic. * Tamas is the quality of imbalance, disorder, chaos, anxiety, impure, destructive, delusion, negative, dull or inactive, apathy, inertia or lethargy, violent, vicious, ignorant. Ayurveda and Human Resource Management 35 The combination and permutation of these Three Gunaas further classify individuals in to the following 9 categories. 1. Satva - Satva 2. Rajo - Satva 3. Thamo - Satva 4. Satva - Rajo 5. Rajo - Rajo 6. Thamo - Rajo 7. Satva - Thamo 8. Rajo - Thamo 9. Thamo - Thamo Crores of Demi Gods - Identified and understood only by the Indian Seers and Sages - that administer this Universe under the Supreme Command of Lord Vishnu do fall under these categories. Satva - Satva is the combination that is the Nature of the Supreme God Head (Lord Vishnu) as declared by Maha Rudra in Varaaha Purana. While I leave the to the choice of the reader to believe this or not, I had to quote this classification as this is the finest way of classifying individuals eventually and there is no need to reinvent the wheel. What shall a soul (the human being) do to achieve the best of the above combination. To understand this question we shall refer to Bhagavad Gita which says that our Svabhava (difference in identity) shall remain eternally the same. We only need use this swabhava as a base and strive for prefixing Satvik to that swabhava which is easier said than done! Dr. BNK Sharma in his “Philosophy of Madhvacharya” talked extensively about the difference in identity. Readers may like to peruse these links for original English version and its Telugu translation by this author. Predicting behavior - an age old requirement / practice:- Behaviour according to the Ayurveda is a product of mind-body interaction that happens at a subtle level in each living organism in general and human beings in particular. Profiling individuals based on the Mind - Body Type is the most natural way of predicting the behavior, though the same is not 100% accurate at any given time. The following unique realities support the above statement. 36 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 * Organizations are essentially the several bundles of creative energy manifested in the form of Human Beings. * We create the organizations and hence we only can create our own experiences of earning profits or loosing markets. * Organizations incur losses because they have forgotten to renew their work processes that continuously generate profits – in a better sense create wealth. * Organizations perceive threat because they have learned to do so, if they train themselves to perceive opportunities they become automatically fit to survive. * Those organizations that recognize and use the impulses of intelligence that are visible among their people will learn at ease to cope with market realities. * Those organizations that can collaborate with others who express - one way or other - similar patterns of intelligence can create more wealth. * The concept of timing the implementation of any business plan stems from the perception of time as an absolute one, but in reality it is eternal. The reason is simple. We cannot time a creative response. * Organizations are essentially expressions of human energy. Hence it is those organizations that have the wisdom to canalize this unique energy can continue to live and become immune to the so-called ups and downs in the market. * The so-called obvious division – the management and the managed – is nothing but our individual experience of being guided, lead and directed or the experience of being in-charge of our own actions. The best way to unleash creativity in organizations is to nurture a work culture that just ignores this division and allow its people to enjoy as much operational freedom as possible. Each reality has the potential to become a subject of a separate study. Dealing with such potential realities is not a simple job. But, Ayurveda offers the greatest and the simplest tool to deal with these realities by helping us creating business organizations that reflect the intelligence of Unique Organization that exists in each one of us! This study is an effort to present one of the significant aspects of this Unique Organization in terms of Mind-Body interactions along with the basic understanding of the knowledge hidden in Ayurveda and its relevance to the contemporary HRD and OD processes in business organizations. An organization that ensures channelization of creativity is certain to gain the competitive advantage Ayurveda and Human Resource Management 37 in the Market Place. Because by merely dong this it allows the new possibilities to emerge and eventually use them optimally. The Roots Questions are the roots of creativity. The more questions we have on any aspect of life the more significant it is for us to explore. When this study was taken up it raised the following questions: * By introducing an Ayurvedic perspective to the HRD/OD processes what value can be added? * Does any change take place in an individual independent of her/his body? * Well, when we have a compulsory subject called “Organizational Behavior” in all the Management Courses worldwide, what is wrong in studying about the Mind-Body interplay as a natural perspective to understand the basic human behavior? * While the “defense mechanisms of the self” help us understand how we respond to an unpleasant situation, there exists a gap in the body of knowledge developed so far in the field of HRD/OD as to how our mind-body system reacts to an unpleasant situation. Does this study help bridge this gap? * What is wrong in having another individual profiling system called Mind- Body Type Inventory, in addition to the existing ones? * As a part of the course in HR we know how the human brain functions, what is a synoptic cleft and how our actions are converted into commands and executed meticulously at our neurological level. Then is it not necessary to understand how the inputs that we give to ourselves influence our mind-body system that actually responds to our subtle commands? * When Ayurveda is the most Ancient Science of Life, as a HR Professional living in India, is it not natural for me to study the Ayurvedic perspective of an individual serving the business organization? * When we consider Human Being as a Resource with a unique characteristic of “the more you explore the more you get” as against the natural resource that gets exhausted, should we not have some basic knowledge about the Human Being that is aptly captured by Ayurveda? The answers to these questions encouraged to conduct this study. 21+ years of serving the HR Function helped gain several insights into the Human Behaviour 38 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 with the Mind-Body Type Indicator – now in a relatively better position to explain their natural basis by answering the above questions through this study. ***** Bio-diversity - Ancient Indian Wisdom C. Raghothama Rao* Introduction:- Biologists most often define biodiversity as the “totality of genes, species, and ecosystems of a region”. Of late, all over the world and more particularly in India, several discussions, seminars and conferences are being conducted on bio-diversity which is closely linked with the other ecological issues like pollution, global warming, deforestation etc. Contemporary scientists, agencies and governments are collectively striving towards the preservation of the sensitive balance between various flora and fauna. Several resolutions were passed in various conventions held by the governments and United Nations as well. Stricter laws are in offing to prevent the further damage to this docile equilibrium from the greedy offenders. All the great civilizations both ancient and medieval times have flourished only in the lap of Mother Nature. Let it be Egyptian civilization or Roman or Greek or Mesapotimian, Persian and the most ancient ones like Harappa and Mohenjodaro, all of them have laid their foundations on the shores of great rivers, surrounded by dense forests and fertile lands. They lived very closely with all types of species of flora and fauna and undoubtedly revered them by offering their prayers. This has been called as Nature worship, wherein, the natural elements like the sky, air, fire, water, thunder etc have been greatly feared and worshipped. Apart from these elements certain movable and immovable entities like animals, trees, mountains etc. also have gained the status of ‘deities’ and were held in high esteem by the ancestors. As the scientific explorations gained momentum, all these old customs started looking funny and were being discarded as ‘superstitious’. The rapid industrialization, which spread like viral fever, has quickly started liquidating the natural habitats of the wild life. Exploitation of natural resources has been treated as a ‘progressive culture’. Whilst, the people were highly mesmerized by the instants comforts offered by the industrialization, Newton’s third law has started taking its effect. Fast paced deforestation, mining, oil exploration etc. have resulted into an unsolicited attack by humans on Mother Nature.

* Writer, HR Trainer, Founder Editor of www.newaavakaaya.com & www.madhvahiatory.com 40 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 When the realization has donned on the mankind, considerable damage has been done to the environment. As the saying goes ‘better late than never’, intellectuals got into a swift job of assessing the damage and finding the remedial measures. In light of the above present day efforts to retain the bio-diversity, it will not be out-of-the-box to think as to what the ancestors thought about this subject. Though their fear of natural forces and their reverence towards them have been discarded as gullible, we can give a wholehearted effort to reexamine their words and deeds from a different perspective which I can call as ‘reverse engineering’. Whenever I have given an attempt to understand the verses, hymns, salutations of Vedas, which are the knowledge treasures created by Indian philosophers, they always perplex me with their depth and sincerity. Each word of them is so pure and simple to understand and encourages you to read more of them. After spending considerable years in trying to understand them under the able- guidance of scholars, I can say that there is an urgent need for every intellectual in the world to given an attempt to read the Vedas as much as their time permits. I can also vouchsafe that they will not be left with anguish but can cherish the complexity of simple things! This article tries to present the ancient Indian thought process on bio-diversity. How did the ancient Indians approach towards such a vital natural activity? What were the contributions made towards their involvement in this mega event of the creation? There is a lot to say but valuing the time of the readers that they need to spend on other useful activities, this presentation has been limited to a single natural force i.e. the Sun. Through this presentation, an attempt has been made to give the essential sayings of Vedas about the Sun along with the inner meanings and etymological inferences of certain critical words. I trust that the said presentation shall serve the purpose of the intellectuals who wish to know about , albeit in a concise write-up The Sun in Vedas:-

“gy¶© AmË‘m OJVñVñWwfíM”& “Sun is the soul for both animate and inanimate entities” (Rigveda) I feel that no scientific definition can describe the Sun as aptly and as gracefully as the above ancient saying by the great Rishis of ancient India. Bio-diversity - Ancient Indian Wisdom 41 Sages of ancient India concluded that It is due to this Sun that the living entities, both animate and inanimate, can come out of the darkness and get a fresh lease of life, filled with light. It is due to the warmth of the Sun’s rays that all the plants are able to release oxygen into the atmosphere through the photosynthesis activity. It is due to the Sun that the animate beings are able to find their food and remember their paths to reach back to their resting places without fear. Sun is helping Mother Earth through vapourising the sea water and kick-starting the process of “rains”. The Sun is performing all these life-saving activities like a yajna (sacrificial fire). Lord Sri Krishna thus stated in Bhagavad Gita that “the clouds are being formed due to yajna (sacrificial fire) and these clouds create anna (the food)”. Thus, the Sun has been praised as the “soul of the universe”. It so said in Puranas (Hindu mythological works) that the living entities born in Kaliyuga (the 4th aeon of Hindu time table) are called as the beings that are “contained in food”. As referred to in the previous paragraph, this food is being generated due to the warmth of the Sun and hence He is being proclaimed as the soul of the universe. As per the Hindu scriptures, the Sun is the savior of the creation as he strikes a balance between all living objects. Rigveda, the most ancient literature of the world, makes a curious mention about the peculiar activity of trees i.e. photosynthesis in the following verse: “AWmo hm[aÐdofw‘o h[a‘mU§ {ZXÜ‘{g”& The above Sanskrit verse says - “Hence the greenish fluid of the trees put up” (by the Sun). With this, we can understand that the Vedas have definitely spoken about the sciences albeit in a very subtle way. As we explore the inner meanings of these metaphorical statements we will only be left with amusement of their profundity and gravity. The power of Vedic verses lie in their brevity. It is well known to the literary experts that the intensity of the short sentences which are formed with essential words is very difficult to think through. Similarly, the Vedic hymns and verses are loaded with such literary brevity which is still remains as an alluring task for the modern readers & thinkers. Now, let us go back to the Sun and understand what more is being told about Him in Hindu scriptures! The power of Sun lies in his rays (called as apí‘ – ). These rays are promulgating all the life-supporting activities on earth. This word has been derived from the two root words i.e. a{V (rati) + e‘² (sham)+. ‘mZ (mana). Rati means ‘affection’, 42 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Sham means ‘delight’ and Mana means ‘sporty.’1 Thus we can derive at a complex meaning of the word ‘Rashmi’ as the ‘affectionate and delightful and sporty’. Our modern days researches are unabatedly carrying out their inquiries into the secrets of natural phenomena are arriving at the similar findings which were already noted by the ancient Indian sages. I wish to present one such modern outlook at the Sun - “Since life evolved under the influence of , it is not surprising that many animals, including man, have developed a variety of physiological responses to the spectral characteristics of solar radiation and to its daily and seasonal variations.”2 To signify this relationship between the living objects and the Sun, Vedas praised Him as “the affectionate”. As we all know that Vitamin D is very important for the metabolic activities. To hint this, ancient Hindu scriptures attributed “delightedness’ to the Sun god. On the whole, Sun god makes life a “sporting” event. Long before the scientists could find these attributes of Sun’s effects on living objects, the ancient sages of India, have vividly and aptly described them in metaphoric and mystic verses. Ancient Indian thinkers have emphasized that the Mother Earth is not only the homeland for humans but also for many other species too. The Sun is gracing all the species alike and thus ensuring the bio-diversity is maintained all along. It is worth noting here that no animal ever attempts to destablise the equilibrium of bio-diversity. But the humans, in their exuberance to explore and exploit the natural resources, have always attempted to upset this sensitive balance and most of the time they did achieve the undesirable disturbance. Vedas, the words spoken by the Almighty, have wisely advised the humans by saying - Tranquility and goodwill:- Ancient seers of India have laid out such an elaborate processes whose final goal is to achieve tranquility, goodwill and brotherhood amongst all living beings. They have always insisted up on imparting a fair treatment of the other living objects by the humans. Hence, they have created customs like Go-puja (Cow-worshipping), Tirtha Yatra (Piligrimage), Yajna (Sacrificial fire & oblations), Vana-bhojana (Having meal in forests)3 etc. While Go-puja (Cow worshipping) and Yajna are the daily rituals, Vana-bhojana is an annual event during which a great congregation of people occurs. Amidst these periodical activities, there are the events like Tirtha yatra which can be taken-up by an individual or by a group at their convenience. Annual celebrations and car festivals Bio-diversity - Ancient Indian Wisdom 43 at temples are also part of the Hindus’ life wherein they would travel across the length and breadth of the country by crossing different terrains, environment, cultures etc. From the above customs, it is evident that the ancient thinkers were strongly advocating the humans to get involved with surroundings in particular and the ecosystem at large, not with a ‘master-slave’ mind-set but with mutual respect and veneration. Let me put forward couple of verses which will further substantiate the above. “ñdpñV‘m©Zwfo䶅”& “D$Üdª {OJmVw ^ofO‘²”& “e§ Zmo AñVw {ÛnXo& e§ MVwînXo”& sham no astu dvipade sham chatushpade (Peace invocation hymn) The above is a frequently used peace invocation prayer of Hindus. It says – “Let the humans be blessed. Let all medicinal herbs grow in potency. Let all the two legged creatures be joyous. Let the four legged creatures too be joyous.” Such was the tenderness of love expressed by the ancient thinkers towards one and all. This invocation verse gives us an opportunity to take these ancient thinkers seriously and fathom their intellectual inquisitions. They genially wished that not only the humans but also the plants and other living entities must live in peace, tranquility and in harmony. They have longed that a good sense shall prevail over the ‘two-legged’ (humans) to maintain a peaceful relationship with all other participants of this wondrous creation. Even today, any religious discourse by Hindu scholars concludes with an another invocation: “bmoH$mñg‘ñVmñgw{IZmo ^dÝVw& “gd} OZm… gw{IZmo ^dÝVw” While the first invocation means “Worlds, they all shall be at comfort”, the second one says “People, each one of this universe, shall be at comfort”. 44 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Though the above two invocations are pretty simple in their syntax, they have much deeper and much vast meanings. So, we can hereby understand that though they were discarded by the modern thinkers as ‘superstitious’, the ancient sayings are far more rational than the contemporary ones. Our ancestors, who lived much closer with the nature, know it far better than us. As we are trying to rollback on our methodology in approaching the natural elements, it will not be a far cry to get back to the roots and start from the scratch to know about Mother Nature. Our ancestors, not just in India but across the have definitely left us with worthwhile to be explored anew. “Better late than never” is the wise saying which shall be followed by the mankind in true letter and spirit.

References:-

1. As per Indian etymological science called Nirukta 2. “The Effects of Light on Human body” by Mr. Richard J. Wurtman. (http:/ /web.mit.edu/dick/www/pdf/286.pdf) 3. Vana bhoajana is an annual event for Hindus which occurs during Karthika Masa (month of Karthi) which roughly correspondents to November- December months of Julian calendar. ***** Social Aspects of Kitava Sukta in Rigveda V.S. Neethu* Sanskrit is a language that was spoken by the seers. Without any doubt we can say that in our olden days our great sages and seers are expressed their knowledge, wisdom and thoughts in that medium. It is rather a difficult task to fix, with any amount of correctness, the dates of ancient Indian authors and works particularly the Vedas, which are believed to have been revealed to the great sages of old. The history of Sanskrit literature can divided in to two main periods based on its age. The Vedic period, the classical period. The Vedic period which perhaps began as early as four thousands or three thousands B.C. The second period, which had its beginning at about six hundred B.C. he period calculation of both stagers are a matter of dispute. Some scholars are believed there is also an another stage of development called Sutra period. The period between Vedic and classical period (800 and 200B.C) is distinct class of literature. So the distribution of history of Sanskrit can listed like 1. The vedic period (3000 B.C-600 B.C) 2. Sutra period (800 B.C- 200 B.C) 3. Classical period (600 B.C- 1100 A.D) On going through the information of those period, the style of literature is also different from one to another so on the basis of such different, we can also divided it into two groups. 1. The vedic Sanskrit 2. The classical Sanskrit After undergoing several changes, the Vedic Sanskrit finally merged itself into the classical Sanskrit. When we discussed about the different between both classes, can noticing something. Such as some words have changed their meaning and new derivations have been introduced. In addition, the grammatical forms different from one to another. This article says about the social aspects of Kitava sukta, which is belonged into the first form of literature. The Rig-Veda is the oldest literary monument of the Indo- European languages. It is not a not only a single representatives of literature but also which represents a historical and social background of a society completely. In addition, this provides the adequate knowledge about the faith,

* Lecturer, Dept of Sanskrit General, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady, Kerala. 46 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 activities, myths and complete actions of a human being in that Vedic period. The worship of Gods is the main duty of the people in those Vedic periods. The Gods are usually stated in Rig-Veda to be the thirty- three in numbers. In addition, each of them again classified into three other groups namely Earth, Air, and Heaven. This classification is purely based on their nature. The prayers can see in Vedas can called as Hymns. Each vedic hymns has its own concerned rsi. Madhucanda is a rsi of agni sukta, Gartsammata considered as the composer of savitr sukta. Grtsammata called as the composer of Indra sukta and Rudra sukta. Kanva called as the composer of the soma sukta. But there is a matter of dispute on the ownership of Kitava sukts. There is no wonder because the authorship of various Hymns is attributed to great seers like Atri, Baradvaja, and seers that discussed above. Orthodox Hindus believed that the Hymns are Anadi and apourasesya . That means the mantras are not composed by a human being and no one can fix its correct periods. Each Vedic Gods has different Vedic Hymns. Hymns of Agni, Indra, Are two among them. Among these, the most prominent is power, for they are constantly describe as great and mighty. They regulate the order of nature and vanquish the potent powers of evil. They hold sway over all creatures; no one can thwart their ordinance or live beyond the time they appoint. They are benevolent beings who bestow prosperity on humankind. On going through the detailed studies of the nature and characteristics of Vedic- Gods we can says that The Hymns of Gambler or Kitava is entirely different from the others. The nature of the Kitava sukta is visualising an extremely different character. This pointed out that the Gambler or Kitava is only a subject matter of the Hymns of Kitava. The Rsi reveals some fact through the medium that is Kitava in Rig-Veda. Kitava belonged in the samhitha portion of the Rig-veda. The vedic literature is distinguished by refinement and beauty of thought and the skill in the handling of language and metre. It consist mostly the religious content. Lyric poetry attained a high stage of changes even in early period of the vedic literature. The Rig- veda is an excellent example of lyric poetry. The samhitha portion of the Vedas mostly consist mantras. In Kitava sukta rsi communicate his ideas with us. His words and prayers has a special nature. When we discuss about the ideas of rsi in Kitava sukta,There we can see the pathetic conditions of a person who is trap by Gambling. Here the Social issue “Gambling” is well discussed by the Rsi, the word gam joined with the bled, baling, bless respectively. The word Gambling reveals ‘to get on an uncertain outcome as a contest or to play a game or gambled their lives in a dangerous rescue mission’ Social Aspects of Kitava Sukta in Rigveda 47 are the different definitions of Gambling and Gambler “IS A PERSON WHO WAGERS MONEY ON THE OUTCOME OF GAME OR SPORTING EVENTS”. We can read this definition with the modern situations of our world. Different from other hymns Kitava sukta is only one Hymn, which closely connected to our modern situations. The words and requests of Rsi reveal the fact that the human minds are easily addicted and trapped. The consumption of drugs, alcohol, and gambling are easily capture the minds of human beings. Hymns of the Gambler are one, among the secular hymns, of a group of four, which have a special character. It is a lament of a Gambler who, unable to resist the fascination of the Dice, deplores the ruin he has brought on himself and his family. The dice, consisted of the nuts of a large tree called Vibhidaka (Terminalia bellerica), which is still utilized for this purpose in India. First four lines deal the magical power of the dice-board. Which is compare with Soma juice? The soma juice has a special power to capture the both mind and body of person. And rsi does not forget to visualise Aksas as his Yajmanas or the owner of Kitava. If once they trapped by such magical power, they cannot never be recover. Then within the heart broken mind Kitava think about the family of him. His wife, she does not scold him, and she never is angry with him. She behaves kind to his friends. It is a very lucky to having a wife like her. However, for the sake of a dice Kitava driven away his devoted wife. As usual in Vedic times our new generation also tried their level best for the adjustments with his/her life partner. Small consumption of alcohol never destroyed anyone’s life. And every normal partners are always respects the friends of their husbands/wives. According to the survey of alcoholic addicts in our society, the number of males alcoholic addicts are ten times more than female is alcoholic addicts. As defined by the Rsi in Kitava Sukta, all addicts like Gambling and alcoholics usages are make a beautiful life like a hell. The word love and caring are meaningless with the presence of bad habits of human beings. If we look around the world we can see many family relations shattered by the over usages of liquids. And the third stanza of Kitava sukta also says about the attitudes of his other family members towards him. His mother hates him and one cannot ready to help him. This also can connected us with our modern world. Now our present society we can noticed many victims of Alcoholics liver disease. We know our Government provide an insurance scheme for us namely RSBY. Through this scheme we get economic secure. Many hospitals provide such facilities but in the case of a patient who is suffering from Alcoholics liver disease, which is due to the over consumption of alcohol. Rsi in that Rig vedic period, visualise the same thing through a different styles. If he is in a really pathetic condition, he will be 48 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 alone. In our great epic Mahabharata we can see the helpless conditions of pandavas and they keep silence even Droupadi was hesitated by Kouravas. The attitudes of mother-in-law towards reflect how much a society hates a Gambler. In addition, considered him as an aged horse that is for sale. Same as in our modern society treated a man who addicted by Gambling. Comparing with the others, always mother in laws are respects their sun-in- laws very much. However, in the case of such addicts even the attitudes of mother in laws are same as the hymns. Then the hymns says to us others embrace the wife of him for possessions the victorious die has been eager. Father, mother, brothers says of him” we know him not, lead him away bound’. The next lines express the helpless situation of a Gambler. When he think about himself, I will not go with them; I shall be left behind by my friends as they depart (to play), and the brown once, thrown down, have raised their voices, then the Gambler go straight, like a courtesan, to their place of assignation. Same as in our modern society reported that the de-addiction centres are increased day-by-day. That shows the interest of a bad habitual has a great wish for the escape of themselves from the trap like Gambling. However, the treatment of de-addiction centres is very hard. Doctors and spiritual leader’s yoga parishioners are played a vital role here. Through their hard work they can slowly recovered from their habits like over alcoholic consumption and sporting like Gambling. However, in Vedic period there are no such centres and persons who work hard for the recovery of victim. The social problems faced by Gambler actually pointed out the major social issue of our society. Even now the words of Rsi is reflected the fact that the condition of his family pains the Gambler and he feels pity when sees a woman, the wife of others, and their well versed home. Since he yokes the brown horses in the morning, he falls down (in the evening) near the fire, a beggar. Same as an alcoholic man thinks like it and when he saw a bottle or smells such things, he went back. The position and economical condition cannot be save anyone from the trap like it. People depend on Vedas as a solution for their depressions. Every problem can solve through the obedience of the Vedas. Kitava hymns also visualise remedy for a good life. Aj¡‘m©Xr춅 H¥${f{‘ËH¥$fñd {dÎmo a‘ñd ~hþ‘ݶ‘mZ…& VÌ Jmd… {H$Vd VÌ Om¶m VÝ‘o {dMï>o g{dVm¶‘¶©…&& Social Aspects of Kitava Sukta in Rigveda 49 {‘̧ H¥$UwÜd§ Ibw ‘¥iVmo Zmo ‘m Zmo KmoaoU MaVm{^ Y¥îUw& {d dmo Zw ‘ݶw{d©eVm‘am{V… Aݶmo ~^¥¥Um§ à{gVm¡ ÝdñVw&& And which requested to addicts like “play not with dice; play thy tillage; rejoice in thy property, thinking much of it; there are thy cattle, o gambler; there thy wife’ this savithr here, the noble, reveals to me. This humble request is enough to be a solution for this addiction. This words can also its own relevance in our present society. If we are obedient the words of the Rsi there will be single problem around us. When we going through the hymns of Indra and other deities we cannot connect words of Rsi like ¶… n¥{Wdt ì¶W‘mZm‘ѧhX² ¶… nd©VmZ² àHw${nVm± AaåUmV²& But each words of Kitava sukta closely connected to our modern world. So we can concluded that the social relevance of the Kitava Sukta is high than other Hymns of the Rig-Veda. As its introductory parts of this article says the language this vedic hymns are very difficult to new comers. But each words of him represents conditions of Gambler in both modern and ancient periods. We the people having complete responsibility to learned and teach the vedic hymns. In the vedic literature we cannot see such an apt topic to our new generation who is easily trapped by the addictions. Kitava sukta consist fourteen Hymns. Rsi in this Hymns is not well discussed by any vedic texts. And many vedic texts are omitted the name of Kitava or Gambler from the list of Vedic Gods. The text namely Vedic reader for students is an authentic work written by Macdonell, listed the name Kitava as one among the thirty three vedic Gods in Vedic periods. And the work written by DICTIONARY OF WORLD AND GODS AND GODDESS by Dr. T. Rajendran well discussed about the names and character of every Gods of the world especially the Gods seen in Vedic texts. Even a minute point also clearly visualised by him, the names of Gods and Goddess are listed on the basis of its Alphabetic order. So it is very easy for everyone to search the name of a God. But unfortunately the authentic works of him also keep silence in the case of Kitava. All these shows the role of Kitava or Gambler is should be a matter discussion. And it is very need to think about the position of Kitava among the vedic Gods. 50 V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January, 2017 Let we conclude this topic with the sayings of Rsi in Kitava sukta once again “play not with dice; play thy tillage; rejoice in thy property, thinking much of it; there are thy cattle, o gambler; there thy wife’ this savithr here, the noble, reveals to me” References:- 1. Play not with dice; ply thy tillage; rejoice in thy property, thinking much of it; there are thy cattle, O gambler, there thy wife’; this Savitr here, the noble, reveals to me, Gambler, 13. 2. Pray make friendship, be gracious to us. Do not forcibly bewitch us with magic power. Let your wrath, your enmity now come to rest. Let another now be in the toils of the brown ones. Gambler, !4. 3. Who made firm the quaking earth, who set at rest the agitated mountains; who measures out the air more widely, who supported the heaven; he O men, is Indra, Indrasukta, II Bibliography:-

1. Hymns of the Rig-Veda, Vol. I, Ralph T.H. Griffth 2. Dictionary of world and Gods and Goddess, Dr. T Rajendran, 3. Studies on Rigveidc Deities, Astronomical and Meteorological, Ekendranadh Ghosh. 4. A Vedic Reader for Students, Arthur Anthony Macdonell. ***** V®da Dar¿in¢ - An International Refereed Monthly Research Journal, Issue - IV : January - 2017 51

Contributors

1. Prof G.S.R.Krishna Murthy Professor, Dept. of Sahitya R.S.Vidyapeetha, Tirupati Email - [email protected]

2. Dr K.Vanadeep Lecturer & Researcher Tirupati Email - [email protected]

3. Dr I.V.N.S. Raju General Manager - Corporate HR Renew Sys India Pvt. Ltd. Email - [email protected]

4.C.Raghothama Rao Writer, HR Trainer, Founder Editor of www.newaavakaaya.com & www.madhvahiatory.com Email - [email protected]

5. V.S. Neetu Lecturer Dept. of Sanskrit General Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit Kalady, Kerala Email - [email protected]

*****