Recently, the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), introduced a mandatory course on the Indian Knowledge System (IKS) while revising the Engineering and Management Curricula in 2018. This is meant to help students gain awareness of their rich heritage and the wealth of knowledge produced by the Ancient Indians. This textbook responds to the growing need felt by Indian society at large for the Indians’ vast knowledge system to be included in the educational curriculum.

This book is a great resource for students since it features detailed coverage of IKS topics. It contains a balance of explanations of concepts and their applications. The text also contains several endnotes in each chapter. These point towards the extensive authentic research undertaken to write this book. The text features Chapter Summaries before each chapter. These ensure the reader is informed of the learning outcomes to be expected from the chapter. They also shape the concept of the various IKS topics in the readers’ minds prior to further details. The text also features review questions for practice at the end of each chapter. These help keep track of important details as readers progress through the text.

Another great feature of this book is the “learning outcomes” section in each chapter. This summarises the concepts readers can expect to learn about at the start of the chapter. The text contains illustrative diagrams and charts alongside many informative images and “fun fact” boxes. The “Discover IKS exercises” at the end of each chapter are noteworthy. These help students experientially discover the multi-faceted nature of IKS.

This post aims to provide all those who are interested in knowing more with a small preview of what to expect from this book. We have written a detailed review of the first introductory chapter to help interested students and learners get a glimpse of what is in store for them.

The chapter begins by explaining why it is important to improve our knowledge of IKS. This is done with the help of an ‘IKS in Action’ fact box. In this, the author discusses patents on products made with native Indian plants. The “fact box” provides the example of neem leaves that have been used as a pesticide in India for centuries. However, this great idea of using neem leaves has been utilised and patented by a US company.

Another example provided is of two US researchers who had previously secured a patent. This was for the use of powdered turmeric for healing wounds. India’s Council of Scientific Research has successfully forced the US Patent and Trademark Office to revoke this patent. This is since Turmeric is a native Indian plant and India has been using it for centuries for wound healing and various other purposes. The Turmeric patent case makes it evident that our indigenous knowledge and the value of our culture are often easily neglected.

Further, the author explains that India is a country with a long civilizational history. The author goes on to provide some historical background on IKS. In section “1.1 Importance of Ancient Knowledge,” the author discusses the practical and meaningful impact of IKS. The section contains a list of four prime factors which add to the importance of IKS which are:

1. Identity: Knowing about IKS helps young Indians feel connected to their heritage. This, in turn, helps strengthen our sense of identity.
2. Culture: From a social perspective, culture is important as it is a set of ideas and customs. The prevailing knowledge and literary traditions play a significant role in shaping our culture. If the underlying knowledge systems are abruptly withdrawn from society, the cultural practices will be rudely jolted.
3. Received Wisdom: Ancient knowledge plays a valuable role in ‘received wisdom’. This is the continuity of thoughts and ideas passed down by previous generations. It also consists of ideas formed as a result of studying our history, heritage, and the culture of the past. This knowledge encourages the creation of new ideas and innovation. This is since modern cultures build upon the knowledge that is passed down to them.
4. Economic value: The current global economy puts greater emphasis on knowledge. The economic value of knowledge is evident from the global intellectual property rights regulations and patent laws. Therefore, the ancient knowledge system will be beneficial to a country like India where we have a wealth of ancient scientific knowledge.

Section “1.2 Defining Indian Knowledge System” is also noteworthy. The author breaks down the term “Indian Knowledge System”. This section clarifies for the reader what a knowledge system even means. It also comments on how India’s knowledge system is unique. The author explains each word within the term – Indian, Knowledge, and System. This is done to help students have a deep understanding of the term which is the subject of the book.

This chapter also features a chart which neatly classifies literary and non-literary traditions in IKS. The table is compact and interconnected and illustrates the various sub-categories in IKS. The author also expands upon each category in an informative and concise way. This section is a particularly interesting read. There are several such tables paired with explanations of each category throughout the text. The chapter closes with some historical information on IKS to help place the concept within a context.

Overall, this overview chapter can be commended for systematically elaborating upon the meaning, significance, and historicity of IKS.

About the Authors

B. MAHADEVAN, PhD (IIT Madras), is Professor at IIM Bangalore. As founding Vice-Chancellor of Chinmaya Vishwa Vidyapeeth (University for Sanskrit and Indic Traditions), he created a new generation of academic programs in the higher education space that seamlessly blends Ancient Indian Knowledge traditions with Contemporary Knowledge Systems.

Besides being on the advisory boards of several business schools and management journals in India, Professor Mahadevan has been playing a very significant role in the field of Sanskrit and Samskriti for the past 20 years. These include:

• Visioning and execution of Sanskrit promotion activities in India and abroad through a variety of roles in Samskrita Bharti, including being the President of Samskrita Bharati trust

• Shaping the trajectory of Sanskrit educational space in the country by providing thought leadership initiatives involving Sanskrit University Vice Chancellors

• Helping the Government in policy decision making through membership in Central Sanskrit Board and invited membership in Rashtriya Sanskrit Parishad

• Introducing Sanskrit and Samskriti to mainstream audiences such as the Top Management of Corporate and Management graduates at IIMB through seminars, elective courses and lectures

• Professor Mahadevan was conferred the ‘ICFAI Best Teacher Award’ by the Association of Indian Management Schools in 2005. He was one among the 40 nominated globally for the ‘Economic Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) Business Professor of the Year Award’, 2012.

VINAYAK RAJAT BHAT, PhD, is Associate Professor in Chanakya University, Bengaluru. Earlier he has worked as an Assistant Professor and held the position of Head of the School of Vedic Knowledge Systems at Chinmaya Vishwa Vidyapeeth from the year 2017 to 2022. He has been teaching courses in Indic Knowledge Systems, Vyākarana, Āyurveda, Arthaśāstra for more than 11 years now. Dr. Bhat has been honoured with Abhijña, Kovida and Chūdamani in Vyākarana. He was trained under the guidance of the great scholars like Late Prof. R. Devanathan, Prof. B. Mahadevan, IIM Bangalore and Dr. Chandrashekhar Bhat, CSU.

He was appointed as Specialist Sanskrit Advisor for a project on ‘Ayurvedic Man: Encounters with Indian Medicine’ by Welcome Collections, London. He has written many articles in different areas of Indian Knowledge Systems.

NAGENDRA PAVANA R.N., PhD, is with the School of Vedic Knowledge Systems at Chinmaya Vishwa Vidyapeeth. Dr. Pavana has been teaching major works of Vyākaraṇa śāstra and allied subjects for more than fifteen years. He has also worked with Vyoma Linguistic Labs and contributed to developing e-learning tools for various topics of Sanskrit.

Besides Sanskrit grammar, his other areas of interest are Sanskrit literature, aesthetics in Sanskrit Poetry, Indian philosophical systems, the Vedas and the Vedāṅgas.

The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) hosted a book lauch event for PHI Learning’s new title Introduction to Indian Knowledge System on Monday, May 16 at the AICTE Auditorium, Delhi.

The Union Minister of Education, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan launched the textbook at the event which hosted several senior dignitaries of AICTE and the Ministry of Education including Dr. Subhas Sarkar, Union Minister of State for Education. Our Chairman Mr. Asoke K. Ghosh and Managing Director Ms. Pushpita Ghosh were also present at the event. The program included a welcome address by Prof. A.D. Sahasrabudhe, Chairman, AICTE and Author, Dr. B. Mahadevan, IIM, Bangalore among others. A vote of thanks was provided by Prof. M P Poonia, Vice Chairman, AICTE. AICTE also nominated faculty members and students from their colleges to participate in the launch program.

The AICTE has included a mandatory course on IKS to help students learn about their heritage. Currently, there are no textbooks available on the subject. Our latest title responds to the growing need felt by Indian society at large for Indian heritage to be included in the educational curriculum. The book is authored by B Mahadevan, IIM Bangalore professor in association with SVYASA, Bangalore, and Chinmaya Vishwavidyapeeth, Ernakulam. The text aims to meet the requirements of the curriculum in the new mandatory course on IKS. It also aims to align with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

Although the book was initially developed for engineering institutions, the contents easily address the requirement for such a book in other University systems (Liberal Arts, Medicine, Science and Management). The text is categorised into four parts. The first part is an introduction to IKS. The second part deals with concepts applicable to various domains of science and engineering. The third part is on science, engineering, and technology in IKS. The fourth deals with humanities and social sciences in IKS. Some unique features of this book include: “fun fact” boxes showing practical uses of IKS, rich illustrations, opening vignettes, preemptive summaries defining learning outcomes, endnotes which establish research authenticity, suggested readings and videos, chapter summaries, and end-of-chapter review questions.

India’s sciences are based on fundamental principles, axioms, logical inferences, and empirical observations. The historical accounts of science in India are inadequate and need to grow beyond the colonial lens. This newly released IKS textbook aims to provide students with an opportunity to reconnect with the past and enable them to carry out multidisciplinary research.

Addressing the event, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan was saying that he was thrilled that the Indian Knowledge System has been placed within an academic framework with the help of this new textbook by PHI Learning. Shri Pradhan was speaking about the global footprint of Indian knowledge, culture, philosophy and spirituality. He was saying that our ancient heritage is full of valuable knowledge which is still relevant in the modern world and must be preserved and documented. The Minister said that solutions to many of the world’s problems lie in the Indian Knowledge System.

Dr. Subhas Sarkar spoke about the educational value of the ancient Indian Knowledge Systems. He was discussing examples from Ayurveda, construction of ships in ancient times, aircraft knowledge, architecture of Indus Valley Cities, and political science which existed in ancient India. He was expressing his appreciation for the book which contains discussions on all these topics. Shri Sarkar also spoke about how conserving and strengthening one’s roots and knowing about one’s heritage is vital for the upliftment of any individual.

Watch the full video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ik6SUxX6Ts

Recently, the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), introduced a mandatory course on Indian Knowledge System (IKS) while revising the Engineering and Management Curricula in 2018. This course is meant to help students gain awareness of the wealth of knowledge produced by the Ancient Indians. Our latest publication, Introduction to Indian Knowledge System responds to this decision by the AICTE. Currently, there are no textbooks available to help students understand the various components of IKS. Hence, this textbook is a timely and valuable contribution to the education system in the country.

Our new title responds to the growing need felt by Indian society at large for Indian heritage and the Ancient Indians’ knowledge system to be included in the educational curriculum. The text is primarily intended to facilitate offering a one-semester or two-semester course on IKS to undergraduate and graduate-level students.

India’s sciences are based on fundamental principles, axioms, logical inferences, and empirical observations. Our sciences are steeped in India’s rich history and the vast knowledge of Ancient Indians. The historical accounts of science in India are inadequate and need to grow beyond the colonial lens. This book will help place the heritage of our country into perspective for the benefit of Indian students.

Professor Anil Sahasrabudhe, chairman of AICTE, in his foreword, has beautifully explained the need for a textbook on this subject.

Also, Professor S. Sadagopan applauds the book, opening his message with the line “I have gone through this book in detail and it has been an enriching, fulfilling, and satisfying experience.” He feels the authors have done an outstanding job at covering the vast number of topics related to the Indian Knowledge system. He states that the authors describe the various concepts in IKS in sufficient depth and avoid superficial surveys.

One approach taken in this book is to lay clear emphasis merely on the content of IKS. Therefore, efforts are made to present the ‘what’ of IKS rather than the ‘why’ or ‘how’ of IKS. The application, implications, and practical relevance of IKS are often left for self-introspection. The book has taken a middle path and has made special efforts to present IKS in a contextually relevant fashion. This has been done by delicately balancing the ‘why’ or ‘how’ of IKS with the ‘what’.

Some unique features of the book include:

IKS In Action Fact Boxes: This feature enables the students to develop an early appreciation of the subject matter. It provides a context where the ideas discussed in the chapter can be appreciated.

Rich Illustrations: The chapters are dotted with several illustrations by way of figures and tables. These help concisely summarise complex concepts and facilitate easy understanding.

Discover IKS: Every chapter has an end-of-chapter feature that points to useful videos on some of the concepts discussed in the chapter.

Opening Vignette: The beginning of every chapter has an opening vignette called “learning outcomes”. This helps develop a clear set of expectations with respect to the topics discussed in the chapter.

Endnotes: Material for the textbook has been drawn from extensive original sources and research papers. To establish authenticity and enable readers to access the original sources, these have been listed at the end of each chapter.

Suggested Readings: A list of additional readings has been provided at the end of every chapter. These will help students pursue further studies in the topics covered in the chapter.

This text introduces readers to new terminologies from the Indian Knowledge System. Readers may never have come across some of these terms prior to reading the book. Some of the explanations of terms from IKS will be eye-opening for many Indians. Examples of such terms which readers can expect to learn about in detail include: “Nyāya Darśana”, an integral part of the Nyāya school of philosophy and the “Vaiśeṣika” school of philosophy.

The chapter on Philosophical Systems lists a  number of Ancient Indian philosophical texts. These have never been included in the modern-day, westernised image of philosophy we have. For example, the explanation of “Yoga-darsana” is truly an informative read. The authors have explained that ‘yoga’ is a school of philosophy. It serves as a methodology for the realisation of the difference between ‘Prakriti’ and ‘Purusa’. Commonly heard terms such as ‘yoga’, ‘vedas’, ‘puranas’, etc are elaborated upon in detail. This clarifies their true meaning and makes sure their significance becomes clear. For example, in “Wisdom through the Ages”, the author provides several fun facts on the Puranas such as:

• The five key characteristics of Puranas
• Issues of interest in the Puranas
• Topics discussed in them

Such facts not only help educate students regarding the topics on IKS in the updated syllabus but also serve as an enjoyable read. Readers will learn about their heritage through a well-written and well-organised text. The book is peppered with fun facts. For example, the chapter on Number System and Units of Measurement features riveting facts such as:

• The decimal number system originated in India much before the 12th – 11th century BCE.
• The ancient Indians were interested in studying the origins of the universe. This was a study in which the concept of time is very relevant. Table 6.6 in the text elucidates Ancient Indian Measures of Time in which the smallest measure of time is 1.3133 × 10⁻⁵ seconds and the largest is 4,32,00,00,00,000 human years.

Professor Anil Sahasrabudhe says the chapter in Metal Working will be a true eye-opener for young engineering students. The chapter provides a history of Iron and Steel in India. The author states that: “With the advent of the carburization of iron, a special type of high carbon steel was produced in India from as early as the fourth century BCE”. This chapter also provides information on various artefacts created in India. These artefacts evidence the mediaeval Indian blacksmith’s skill in the design, engineering, and construction of large forge-welded iron objects.

Towards the end of the book, the author also informs readers of distinctive aspects of Indian Psychology in “Health, Wellness, and Psychology” which includes an explanation of “Constructs of a Human Being”, “Constraints in Life”, and the “Tri-Guna System”. For example, the last of the terms is a system which provides an overarching framework to understand the physical infrastructure of a human being. The book closes with a chapter on Governance and Public Administration which informs students about the Ancient Indians’ culture and society.

Overall, this text is a must-read for all those who are interested in learning about India’s Heritage, Culture, and the ancient Knowledge System. The book not only responds to the new syllabus as per the changes made by the AICTE but also educates Indian students about their heritage.

About the Authors

B. MAHADEVAN, PhD (IIT Madras), is Professor at IIM Bangalore. As founding Vice-Chancellor of Chinmaya Vishwa Vidyapeeth (University for Sanskrit and Indic Traditions), he created a new generation of academic programs in the higher education space that seamlessly blends Ancient Indian Knowledge traditions with Contemporary Knowledge Systems.

Besides being on the advisory boards of several business schools and management journals in India, Professor Mahadevan has been playing a very significant role in the field of Sanskrit and Samskriti for the past 20 years. These include:

• Visioning and execution of Sanskrit promotion activities in India and abroad through a variety of roles in Samskrita Bharti, including being the President of Samskrita Bharati trust

• Shaping the trajectory of Sanskrit educational space in the country by providing thought leadership initiatives involving Sanskrit University Vice Chancellors

• Helping the Government in policy decision making through membership in Central Sanskrit Board and invited membership in Rashtriya Sanskrit Parishad

• Introducing Sanskrit and Samskriti to mainstream audiences such as the Top Management of Corporate and Management graduates at IIMB through seminars, elective courses and lectures

• Professor Mahadevan was conferred the ‘ICFAI Best Teacher Award’ by the Association of Indian Management Schools in 2005. He was one among the 40 nominated globally for the ‘Economic Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) Business Professor of the Year Award’, 2012.

VINAYAK RAJAT BHAT, PhD, is Associate Professor in Chanakya University, Bengaluru. Earlier he has worked as an Assistant Professor and held the position of Head of the School of Vedic Knowledge Systems at Chinmaya Vishwa Vidyapeeth from the year 2017 to 2022. He has been teaching courses in Indic Knowledge Systems, Vyākarana, Āyurveda, Arthaśāstra for more than 11 years now. Dr. Bhat has been honoured with Abhijña, Kovida and Chūdamani in Vyākarana. He was trained under the guidance of the great scholars like Late Prof. R. Devanathan, Prof. B. Mahadevan, IIM Bangalore and Dr. Chandrashekhar Bhat, CSU.

He was appointed as Specialist Sanskrit Advisor for a project on ‘Ayurvedic Man: Encounters with Indian Medicine’ by Welcome Collections, London. He has written many articles in different areas of Indian Knowledge Systems.

NAGENDRA PAVANA R.N., PhD, is with the School of Vedic Knowledge Systems at Chinmaya Vishwa Vidyapeeth. Dr. Pavana has been teaching major works of Vyākaraṇa śāstra and allied subjects for more than fifteen years. He has also worked with Vyoma Linguistic Labs and contributed to developing e-learning tools for various topics of Sanskrit.

Besides Sanskrit grammar, his other areas of interest are Sanskrit literature, aesthetics in Sanskrit Poetry, Indian philosophical systems, the Vedas and the Vedāṅgas.

In the Indian tradition the purāṇas are supposed to discuss certain mandatory themes. These form the five characteristics (Lakṣaṇas) of a Purāṇa. One of them is to elaborately describe the origin of the Universe. Obviously notion of time becomes important to discuss origin of the Universe. Also we need use of large numbers to measure time. In book three, chapter 11 of Bhāgavata-purāṇa there is an elaborate discussion of time. The time units describes in this chapter covers an astonishingly wide range. These descriptions form part of the discussions on the origin of the Universe.

It is always the practice to first define a unit and create additional units by establishing its linkage with it. For example, in the modern parlance we define a metre. Further we define a centimetre to be 1/100th of a metre, a kilometre to be 1,000 metres and so on. In chapter 11 of Bhāgavata-purāṇa we see a similar approach to define time. See below the table for details (Although the chapter has all contiguous measures of time, I have skipped the measures in between Prahara and Masa (Month):

We shall see how the first unit of measure for time has been defined. The definition is by way of the following verse:

द्वादशार्धपलोन्मानं चतुर्भिश्चतुरङ्गुलैः ।

स्वर्णमाषैः कृतच्छिद्रं यावत् प्रस्थजलप्लुतम् ॥

dvādaśārdha palonmānam caturbhiś-caturangulaiḥ

svarna-māshaiḥ kṛtac-chidram yāvat prastha jala-plutam

This verse in a way sets up an experiment described as follows. Take a copper pot weighing six palas (1 pala = 48 gms), which can hold water of one prastha (1 prastha = 640 gms; in the case of water it is 640 ml). The vessel shall be bored at the bottom with a golden needle weighing four maṣas (1 māśa = 1 gm) and of length four aṅgulas. (Interestingly, from modern physics we know that if the weight, length and the type of material is known, then it is possible to compute the diameter of the rod!) Leave the pot in water and start a stopwatch. Wait until the vessel is filled fully with water and it just submerges in the water. Stop the watch and record the time. This elapsed time is nāḍika.

Once we have this measurement, then we can get all other measures of time from the table above. Is it not interesting?

Reproduced with permission from Prof. Mahadevan B.

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More in our book Introduction to Indian Knowledge System by Prof. B. Mahadevan, Vinayak Rajat Bhat and Nagendra Pavana R. N.