Thangavur:
Andhra Pradesh governor, ESL Narasimhan, on Friday called for restoring India’s mathematical glory by deriving inspiration from legendary mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan.
Addressing a gathering at the national conference on Vedas – the treasure house of mathematics, at the SASTRA University in Thanjavur, Narasimhan said, “It is high time we sketch an action plan for renaissance. The intelligentsia should remember that we are the heirs of the infinite mathematical wealth left behind by our ancestors.”
Admiring Ramanujan, he said despite living only for 33 years, he rose to the level of Fellow of Royal Society (FRS), Cambridge, in 1918. Had he lived for some more years, he would have won the highest order of awards such as the Nobel for the country.
Narasimhan reiterated that the Vedas were the treasure-house of knowledge and this was an established fact. While jyotisha (astrology) was needed to find out Vedic rituals, jyotisha also required knowledge of Ganita (mathematics) that occupied the top most position among the Indian sciences. Jyotisha was a science based on movements of planetary bodies. A study of it was possible when the scale of time and direction were applied. The application of time, direction and distance involved mathematical calculations.
Thus either astrology or astronomy could not survive without mathematics while the science of Vedanta was the back-bone of all Vedangas.”Like the crest of a peacock and the shining gem on the hood of the cobra, Ganita is the supreme of the Vedangasastras,” he said.
Referring to ancient Indian scientists such as Lagadha, Aryabhatta and Brahmagupta, he said they measured time and distance. The measurement of time started with Nimesa and ended with Brahma Kalpa. But Nimesa was wrongly translated as minute. “The Indian Nimesa is just the time taken to close or open the eyelid. It’s not the duration of 60 seconds.”
At the conclusion of his speech, he suggested a few points to restore the glory of mathematics, saying Vedic mathematics should be introduced in Vedapathasalas from 5th standard onwards, universities should think of introducing Vedic mathematics at the postgraduate level and that special incentives may be offered to scholars pursuing research in Vedic maths.
Narasimhan appealed to the audience to come forward to save the country from the deficit of mathematical knowledge and the scarcity of mathematicians. Besides, he urged everyone to learn Sanskrit, which was the gateway to understanding ancient Indian wisdom.
source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / City> Madurai / Home> Collections> Vedas / TNN/ February 18th, 2012