Dec 22: Srinivasa Ramanujan Jayanti,National Mathematics Day.)
Mathematics is often a language of unfamiliar symbols and enigmas. It is a world of concepts, from the smallest to the most subtle, to the infinite universe. Srinivasa Ramanujan is the greatest genius of all time in this mathematical world. He was born on December 22, 1887 in Erode, Tamil Nadu to a poor family. On April 26, 1920, at the age of 32, he died of tuberculosis. Robert Canigel, one of Ramanujan’s most notable biographers, says that his biography cannot be told apart from mathematics. Yes, his life was full of maths and mysticism or spirituality. He describes Srinivasa Ramanujan as ‘man who knew infinity’. In connection with the 125th birth anniversary of Srinivasa Ramanujan, 2011 was celebrated all over the world as the Year of Mathematics. Subsequently, the Government of India declared December 22, his birthday, as National Mathematics Day. It provides an opportunity to delve deeper into the invaluable contributions that India that is Bharat has made to the world of mathematics since Vedic times.
According to David. E. Smith, a renowned mathematician and historian, there was no mathematical genius in Bharat after Bhaskaracharya (CE1114). Moreover, his History of Mathematics in 1925 states that Bharat would have been mathematically stagnant if it had not been for Western cultural influence in the 18th and 19th centuries (Vol 1, p. 435). This can only be seen as an example of their inability to recognize scientific achievements outside Europe as a result of the supremacy mindset that existed in Europe. John Warren in 1825 and Charles M. Wish in 1835 had introduced the unique significance of Indian mathematics to the Western world. Wish’s article was also a serious look at Kerala’s mathematical heritage. It is also true that no significant historical research has taken place for the next hundred years. However, despite the publication of B.B.Datta’s ‘History of Hindu Mathematics’ in 1927-35, it is surprising that even Jawaharlal Nehru in the 1940s sang the same melody of Smith in his ‘Discovery of India’ (p. 253).
Modern mathematics, including calculus, was based on mathematical ideas developed by prominent figures in the Kerala mathematical heritage from the 14th to the 16th century. The mathematical development that took place in Europe in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries may be a re-discovery or independent expression of the mathematical experiments that took place in Kerala two centuries ago. Ignoring this golden age of mathematical contributions in Bharat, is an injustice to history. Or it should be thought of as the sleeping mood of the ‘euro-centric attitude’ phenomenon.
The attitude of swallowing the European hegemonic prejudice due to mental slavery continues in our academic circles even today. This reinforces the notion that Greece was the cradle of knowledge and that it was passed on to Europe. The birthplace of Isaac Newton is sacred to us. At the same time, the birthplace of Sangamagrama Madhava, who invented the infinite series of trigonometric functions before Newton, is ruined without the knowledge of the natives and descendants, and even without the recognition of the authorities and academies. It seems strange that they survived the time and still exist in some way.
There is still much research to be done to unravel the characteristics of that mathematical tradition. In order to inspire young truth seekers, students need to be introduced to this golden age of mathematics in Kerala through the curriculum from the school level onwards. At the same time, the government, universities, and the Society at large must come forward to restore the founders of our Scientific tradition with due importance and to preserve the historical landmarks associated with their lives. There is a change in the perspective of the Western scholarly world today on the contribution of mathematics in India, it needs to be in our country as well. The transformation it would bring about would be astonishing if the new national education policy could be put into practice. The policy referred to Sangama Grama Madhavan along with Aryabhatt and Sushruta, and insistes to including the knowledge system of our tradition into the modern curriculum.
Vinod karuvarakundu is Secretary, Madhava Ganita Kendra is a mathematics teacher at ghss Karuvarakundu. He is also a member of National Monitoring Committee for Education of Govt of India.
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