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Salient Aspects of IKS

Salient Features of Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS)

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I. Oral Tradition and its Implications

  • Primary Mode: IKS was primarily transmitted orally.
  • Memory Requirement: All knowledge had to be committed to memory, serving as the "CPU" for information storage.
  • Challenges: This puts a premium on conciseness and compactness in information.
  • Consequences:
    • Knowledge is often expressed in verses (Shlokas), a compact form.
    • Use of Sutras, mnemonics and simple mnemonics for easy memorization and recall.
  • Unique Methods: Unique ways of representing numbers and complex information, such as with Shlokas and formulas.

II. Conciseness and Integrated Knowledge

  • Limited Memory: The need for conciseness meant that all knowledge had to be integrated, not separated.
  • Integration of Disciplines: No separate books for philosophy, religion, or mathematics; a single work can address multiple fields.
  • Example: A single Shloka can contain philosophical, religious, and secular (practical) ideas.

III. Examples of IKS's Unique Characteristics

A. Calculating Pi (π)

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  • Shloka Method: The value of π is given through a Shloka describing relationships between circumference and diameter.
  • Verse: "caturadhikam satamastagunam dvasastistatha sahasranam ayutadvayaviskambhasyasanno vrttaparinahah"
  • Calculation:
    • (100 + 4) * 8 = 832
    • 62 * 1000 = 62000
    • (832 + 62000) / 20000 = 62832 / 20000 = 3.1416

B. Pingala's Chhandas Shastra (Prosody)

  • Prosody Text: Pingala's work on meters and prosody, also contains an embedded way of generating binary code.
  • Laghu and Guru: Defined Laghu (short) and Guru (long) syllables, and through a complex mapping generated different meters.
    • Replacing Laghu with 1 and Guru with 0 gives 8 unique binary words.
  • Ganas: He grouped three syllables to create ganas, with 8 such groups.
  • Mnemonic: A mnemonic yamata-raja-bhana-salagam was used to remember the 8 ganas.

C. Aryabhata's Sine Differences

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  • Shloka Encoding: A Shloka can be used to generate a table of Rsine differences, which was used in engineering calculations
  • Aryabhattian Number Representation Uses the consonant-vowel mappings to represent number.
  • Example the word "makhi" represents the number 225 and "bhaki" represents the number 224
  • Concept This exemplifies how complex numbers are represented through a simple verse.

D. Madhavacarya's Calculation of Pi (π)

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  • Bhuta Sankhya: Uses common terms representing numbers (example, vibudha = 33, netra = 2) using Bhuta Sankhya (number system).
  • Shloka: The Shloka "vibudha-netra-gaja-hutasana-triguna-veda-bha-varana-bahavah" defines the numerator and denominator for PI.
  • High Precision: This yields a high precision value of pi, to 13-14 digits.
  • Concept: Shows how complex calculations are stored through Shlokas and Bhuta Sankhya.

E. Multidimensional Nature - Bhagavad Gita

  • Example: The Bhagavad Gita is used to show how multidimensional ideas are embedded in single verses (Shlokas)
  • Shloka: "yada yada hi dharmasya glanirbhavati bharata abhyutthanamadharmasya tadatmanam srjamyaham paritranaya sadhunam vinasaya ca duskrtam dharmasamsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge"
    • Religious Meaning: The verse speaks about the concept of an avatara purusha when Dharma is in decline.
    • Managerial Meaning: It represents the concept of a self-regulating system to restore equilibrium
  • Economic Meaning: It represents the need for intervention in a system that is destabilised to restore equilibrium.
  • Shloka: "vasamsi jirnani yatha vihaya navani grhnati naroparani tatha sarirani vihaya jirnanianyani samyati navani dehi"
    • Philosophical Meaning: Describes the concept of a soul changing bodies
    • Innovation Meaning: It explains the need for discarding old ideas in favor of new ones for continued progress.

IV. IKS vs Modern Systems

  • Contrast: IKS, rooted in oral tradition, differs significantly from modern systems that rely on written texts, tablets, and web pages.
  • Deeper Exploration: This difference emphasizes the need to delve deeper to understand IKS.

V. Conclusion

  • IKS has unique characteristics due to its oral tradition.
  • Concise, integrated, and multi-dimensional nature of IKS requires a different approach to appreciation and understanding.
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