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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University

bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

GEOMETRICAL CONCEPTS IN EARLIER INDIAN WORKS

Talk by
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana
Acharya Nagarjuna University
Andhra Pradesh
Bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

Abstract: Some Geometrical Concepts in earlier Indian works will be discussed. This
talk includes a brief discussion on few topics including: the Sulba Sutras, Pythagorus
Theorem, Transfer a Square into a Circle, Square Root of 2, Some trigonometry in ancient
Indian works, the Vastu Shilpa Shastra, use of Geometry in Sulbha sutras to calculate the
roots of the quadratic equation.

Contents:

The Sulba sutras

Pythagorus Theorem
Transfer a Square into a Circle
Square Root of 2
Trigonometry in Ancient Indian Works
The Vastu Shilpa Shastra
"Sulbha sutras" – use of Geometry to calculate the roots of the
quadratic equation.
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

1. Dirghatama: The First Astronomer

✦ Vedic sages defined

– Lunar year 354 days

– Solar (Tropical) year 365 1/4 days

– Civil year 360 days

(21 days added every 4th year)

2. Some Great Mathematicians

✦ Medhatithi- Extended numerals to billions
✦ Aryabhata (476–550 AD) - laid foundations of Algebra
✦ Lagadha - Rationalised Astronomy
✦ Baudhayana (about 800 BC) - The first great Geometer
✦ Manava (about 750 BC – 650 BC),
✦ Apastamba (about 600 BC),
✦ Katyayana (about 200 BC).
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

3. Science of Geometry
✦ ‘Sulbha Sutras’ - Sulb means to measure

✦ Bodhyana’s sutras are 2800 years old

✦ Used in the construction of altars for yajna

✦ Discovered the Pythagorus theorem before Pythagorus

✦ Formula to draw a circle with same area of a square

✦ Computed square root of 2 = 1.414213

4. The Sulba sutras

The Sulba sutras are the only early sources of Hindu
mathematical knowledge and originally come from the Vedic
period.

The need to determine the correct times for Vedic ceremonies and the
accurate construction of altars led to the development of astronomy and
geometry………….. [RG2 (R Gupta), P 131]

The Sulba sutras are the instructions for constructing various

geometrical shapes to use in making/building 'fire-altars',
temple-bases or building-bases etc.

For such constructions, the sulba sutras used the "Peg and
Cord" (bolt and rope) technique.

Each 'fire-altar' was a different shape and associated with

unique gifts from the Gods.
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

The Vedic people knew how to find the cardinal directions

(NSEW).

The Sulba sutras gave procedures for the construction of the

altars by starting with a line marking the E-W direction (sun
rises in east and sinks in the west), thus the E-W direction
had special religious significance.

Peg and Cord" (bolt and rope) technique:

Firstly, a pole/peg/bolt is placed vertically at the middle of

the place (the construction site).
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

A radius of the height of the pole is then drawn on the

ground.

The shadow of the pole is plotted at sunrise and sunset to

give the East-West axis.

Following this, we draw the parallel and perpendicular lines

to obtain the directions (North, East, South, and West), just
by using simple geometry.

******************

There are several further works that contain mathematics,

including:
Taittiriya Samhita
Satapatha Brahmana and
Yajur and Atharva-Veda
Rg-Veda

Of these the Taittiriya Samhita and Rg-Veda are

considered the oldest and contain rules for the construction
of great fire altars.
Figure: First layer of a Vedic sacrificial altar (in the shape of
a falcon (a powerful bird)). [GJ, P 227]
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

Some mathematical rules and the concepts of geometry are

found in such Vedic works (like the construction of altars).
Use of geometric shapes including: triangles, rectangles,
squares, trapezia and circles can be found in the above
diagram of the Altrar.

5. Value of π in Satapatha Brahmana.

(π = The ratio between the circumference and diameter of

a circle).

d
r
Circle
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

In his works “S
S Kak”
Kak mentioned three values for π from
the Satapatha Brahmana.
Brahmana
π1 = 25/8 (3.125)
π2 = 900/289 (3.11418685...)
π3 = 1156/361 (3.202216...)
Astronomical calculations also leads to a further Vedic
approximation:

π4 = 339/108 (3.1389)

This is correct (when rounded) to 2 decimal places

places.

*************

6. Pythagorus (c 572 - 497 BC) Theorem

Baudhayana (c. 8th century BCE) composed

the Baudhayana Sulba Sutra
Sutra, the best-known
known Sulba
Sutra,, which contains examples of simple Pythagorean
triples, such as: , , , ,
and as well as
as a statement of the Pythagorean
theorem for the sides of a square: "The rope which is
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

stretched across the diagonal of a square produces an

area double the size of the original square
Pythagorus Theorem: The area of the square on the diagonal of a
rectangle is equal to the sum of the squares on the other two sides of
the rectangle.

b2 b c c2

a2

(diagonal)2 = (side-1)2 + (side-2)2

That is c2 = a2 + b2 (Observe the diagram above).

Meaning of Pythagorus Theorem in rectangle:

Consider the figure “rectangle” drawn

here. The two sides are b and c. The
Diagonal is equal to a.
With respect to this diagram, the formula
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

is a2 = b2 + c2

Examples of Pythagorean triples given as the sides of right

angled triangles:

Examples of Pythagorean triples

(the three sides of a right angled triangles)
3, 4, 5
5, 12, 13
7, 24, 25
8, 15, 17
12, 16, 20
12, 35, 37

Pythagorus Theorem in constructions

Walll-1 A 12

5
13

Wall-2
 10
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

Observe the diagram drawn here.

There are two walls (Wall-1, and Wall-2) to be constructed for a building.
The angle between these walls is to be 90 degrees.

Mark two lines on the land where the walls are to be constructed.

Mark a point (say A) at 12 units distance (on Wall-1 mark) from the
junction (of two lines) and mark a point (say B) at 5 units distance (on
Wall-2 mark).

If the distance between two points A and B is 13 units, then the angle
between two walls will be 90 degrees (otherwise, change the mark of one
of the walls).

Conclusion: In the construction of any building, temple, straight streets of

a Town (in particular), and in the construction of towns/cities (in general).

7. Transfer a Square into a Circle

“If you wish to circle a square, draw half its diagonal about its
centre towards the North-East line; then describe a circle together
with the one-third of that which lies outside the square”
- BS I-I-58
 11
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

8. Square Root of 2
“Increase the measure by its third part, and again by the fourth part less
by the thirty-fourth part of itself” - BS I-61-2

(Root of 2) = 1 + 1/3 + 1/(3x4) - 1/(3x4x34) = 1.4142 (approximate)

C Srinivasiengar stated:
...The credit of using irrational numbers for the first time must
go to the Indians. [CS (C Srinivaiengar), P 15]
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

9. TRIGONOMETRY IN ANCIENT INDIAN WORKS

The term "trigonometry" derives from

the Greek "τριγωνοµετρία" ("trigonometria"), meaning
"triangle measuring", from "τρίγωνο" (triangle) + "µετρεῖν"
(to measure).

Our modern word "sine" is derived from

the Latin word sinus, which means "bay", "bosom" or "fold",
translating Arabic jayb.

The Arabic term is in origin a corruption of Sanskrit jīvā, or

"chord".
Sanskrit jīvā in learned usage was a synonym of jyā "chord",
originally the term for "bow-string".

Indian Mathemattician and astronomer,

Aryabhata (476–550 AD), collected and expanded
upon the developments of the Siddhantas in an
important work called Aryabhatiya (499 AD).
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Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

The Siddhantas and the Aryabhatiya contain the earliest

surviving tables of sine values and versine (1 − cosine)
values, in 3.75° intervals from 0° to 90°, to an accuracy of 4
decimal places.

In the 7th century, Bhaskara-I

Bhaskara (c 600-680 AD) produced a
formula for calculating the sine of an acute angle (from 0° to
90°) without the use of a table.
Bhaskara I also gave the following approximation formula
for sin(x),
), which had a relative error of less than 1.9%:

Later in the 7th century, Brahmagupta (born. 598 AD)

redeveloped the formula
 14
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

(also derived earlier, as mentioned above) and

the Brahmagupta interpolation formula for computing sine
values.

Another, later Indian author,

author on trigonometry
was Bhaskaracharya
haskaracharya or Bhaskara II (Born. 1114 AD).

Bhaskara II developed trigonometry,, and discovered many

trigonometric results.

C Srinivasiengar claimed that Bhaskara II wrote Siddhanta

Siromani in 1150 AD, which contained four sections:

1) Lilavati (arithmetic)
2) Bijaganita (algebra)
3) Goladhyaya (sphere/celestial globe)
4) Grahaganita (mathematics of the planets)

Bhaskara II was the first to discover and

trigonometric results like:

•
•

Madhava (c. 1400) made early strides in the analysis of

trigonometric functions and their infinite series expansions.
He developed the concepts of the power series and Taylor
series,, and produced the power series expansions of sine,
cosine, tangent, and arctangent.
 15
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

Using the Taylor series approximations of sine and cosine,

he produced a sine table to 12 decimal places of accuracy
and a cosine table to 9 decimal places of accuracy.

Western discoverers of the

series
No. Series Name
and approximate dates of
discovery

sin x = x − x3 / 3! + x5 / 5! Madhava's sine Isaac Newton (1670) and

1
− x7 / 7! + ... series (1400) Wilhelm Leibniz (1676)

cos x = 1 − x2 / 2! + x4 / Madhava's cosine Isaac Newton (1670) and

2
4! − x6 / 6! + ... series (1400) Wilhelm Leibniz (1676)

Madhava's James Gregory (1671)

tan−1x = x − x3 / 3 + x5 /
3 arctangent and Wilhelm Leibniz
5 − x7 / 7 + ...
series (1400) (1676)

10. The Vastu Shilpa Shastra

Vastu Shilpa Shastra is a Hindu architectural text, a South Asian

architecture and planning theory in Sanskrit.
This theoretical literature (consisting of geometrical and
rectilinear concepts for building) plays a very essential role.
It guides the way and provides a skeletal framework on how the
buildings are located and built as they are believed to be based on
divine models, revealed by the Hindu architect of the gods,
Visvakarma.
 16
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

It is the main vehicle to project and carry-on the tradition and

literature of the Hindu culture. Thus its contents are regarded sacred,
important not only to Kings and sages, but also to the common
people.
Vastu, meaning “dwelling”, was once believed to be the residing
places of both god and man.
In modern times, however, its meaning has come to refer to all
types of buildings regardless of function.
Viewed as a science, the Vastu Shastras has most probably gone
through many stages of being refined and edited through a process of
trial and error.

It is also the medium of Hindu tradition.

It soon evolved to become linked to fields of astrology and the
magnetism of the Earth, although its principles are still based on
architecture and engineering.
The origins of the Vastu Shilpa Shastra can be traced back to as
early as the Early Vedic Period.
The Atharvaveda, the fourth book encompasses the Vastu
Shastras.

Fundamental Architectural Tenets/principles

According to the rules of the Vastu, a building erected must be situated in such a
way that it benefits from both solar and cosmic (celestial / space) energies.
 17
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

Indian architecture mainly depends on

Diknirnaya – Principles of orientation,
Vastupada vinyasa – Site planning,
Maana –Proportions,
Aayadi Sadvarga – 6 principles and
Pataakaadi Sadchandas – Aesthetic of the building.

For constructing a house, as per Vastu Pada Vinyasa (site planning), a square
plot would be the best (since it connects all the four points: North, East, South,
and West).

Used Peg and Cord Technique will be used to find NESW directions.

Peg and Cord" (bolt and rope) technique:

 18
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

Firstly, a pole/peg/bolt is placed vertically at the middle of

the place (the construction site).

A radius of the height of the pole is then drawn on the

ground.

The shadow of the pole is plotted at sunrise and sunset to

give the East-West axis.

Following this, we draw the parallel and perpendicular lines

to obtain the directions (North, East, South, and West), just
by using simple geometry.

On the other hand, if plot of land (the place) for building is a rectangular, the
ratio of its length to its breadth would be most ideal if it’s 1:1.5 (approximately,
today notation: the Golden ratio).

Every thing built is based on the five basic elements of air (Vayu), water (Jal),
earth (Bhumi) and space (Aakasha) collectively known as Panchabhutas.

The rules formulated for the Vastu is called “Vastu Shastra”.

There are several Vedas.

Atharvaveda Veda - revealing the statecraft,

Ayur Veda - deals with health and medicine,

Dhanur Veda - a military science that is derived from Yajur Veda,

Gandharva Veda - a science, which aids the music and arts and

finally the Sthapatya that laid the basic rules of architecture.

Mystical Component of the Shilpa Shastra

 19
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

Ancient mythology believed that the Vastu Purusha (a cosmic

man) is present in every plot organism.
According to myth, he was a giant who was captured and
conquered by the deities by sitting on his back.
Desperate to be set free, he prayed to the god who was then
facing him in the northeast corner.
The giant blessed him and told him that he will give his
protection to those who do not endanger him.
The northeast of the plot of land is hence kept empty since his
head was placed in that position.
Purusha resides in the Vastu Purusha Mandala (the planned site
for construction) that symbolizes any polygon

11. "Sulbha sutras" – use of Geometry to

calculate the roots of the quadratic equation.
Procedure: Suppose the given quadratic equation is
ax^2+bx +c = 0

Step-1: The constant was shifted to the right side of the equation
ax^2+bx = - c

Step-2: Complete the square on the left side by adding a term.

Add the same term on the right side.

Step-3: Take the square root on both sides .

 20
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

Step-4: Deduce two values for x.

This is the method to find the roots of a quadratic equation.

EXAMPLE
Problem: Find the roots of the following quadratic equation.

x^2 + 12x -64 =0

Solution: The given quadratic equation is x^2 + 12x -64 =0

Step-1: If the constant 64 was shifted to the right side of the

equation, then we get that

x^2 + 12x = 64.

This is same as x^2 + 2 (x) (6) = 64

Step-2: To complete the square on the left side, we have to add 36

on both sides. Then we get that

x^2 + 2 (x) (6) + 36 = 64 + 36 = 100

Now (x+6)^2 = x^2 + 2 (x) (6) + 6^2

(x+6)
= x^2 + 2 (x) (6) + 36
= 100.
Square

(x+6) (x+6)

(x+6)

Step-3: By taking the square root on both sides, we get that

 21
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

(x+6) =root of 100.

= (10) or (-10)

Step-4: Now we deduce two values for x.

Case-1: Suppose (x+6) = 10

Then x = 10 – 6 = 4.

Case-2: Suppose (x+6) = -10

Then x = -10 – 6 = - 16.

Present day method of solving is as follows:

Formula: If the given quadratic equation is a.x^2 + bx + c = 0, then

gives two roots of the given equation.

Example: Solve the following quadratic equation x^2-2x-13 = 0.

Solution: In the given equation, a = 1, b = -2, and c = -13.

By substituting these values in the formula, we get the following

values for x.

b^2-4ac= 4 + 52 = 56.
 22
Prof. Bhavanari Satyanarayana, AP Scientist Awardee 2009, Acharya Nagarjuna University
bhavanari2002@yahoo.co.in

Root of 56 is 7.48 (approximately, as 7.48 x 7.48 = 55.95).

According to the formula

The solutions are

x1=( 2 + 7.48 )/ 2 = 4.74

x2 =( 2 - 7.48 )/ 2 = - 5.48 / 2 = 2.74
Therefore, the roots are (4.74,-2.74)

REFERENCES
http://www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/Projects/Pearce/Chapters/Ch4_1.html

http://www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/Projects/Pearce/index.html

http://www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/Projects/Pearce/Chapters/Ch8_3.html

http://www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/Projects/Pearce/Chapters/Ch6.html

B Ms Bakhshali manuscript
BS Bodhyana’s sutras
MBh Maha Bharatha
RG R Guptha

THANKS TO THE ORGANIZERS

THANKS TO ALL