Science of India

What is the basis of science? In simpler terms, Albert Einstein considers electrons which constitute 1 unit of charge as the basis of science. Stephen Hawking considers a wave of energy as the basis of science. And ancient Indians consider god as the basis of science. All of these are sciences: as the ultimate goal for each of them is to understand the world’s existence.

But there is a major cliché here. The two theories that vary at their basic level travel in the journey together nowhere else but in India. This happens only because people here accept that, there was definitely some amount of science discovered by their predecessors. For e.g.,  Modern Science, like the classical philosophies of India, recognizes the validity of sensory perception and reason as the main means at our ordinary disposal for gaining authentic knowledge about the world and about ourselves.

Yet modern science is not content with what the senses present us as reality, any more than the mystic or yogi is, though science builds upon rather than rejects what the senses show. Science has created a vast array of special instruments and equipment from microscopes and telescopes that can greatly increase the range of our physical senses. It has added other instruments like radio telescopes which bring in information about the universe from means that are related to but outside the scope of our ordinary senses. It has created special computers to extend the range of computation as well.

As such, the Vedas constitute what could be called a science in the modern sense of the word and much more .The Vedas address all aspects of existence through Dharma, the natural laws that uphold the universe, which reflect not only matter and energy but life, mind and consciousness. We can find among the Vedic approach a whole range of sciences from astronomy and chemistry to psychology and surgery, extending to astrology and to the science of Yoga itself. We can call this integral approach to both the spiritual and material sciences as ‘Vedic science.’

While Vedic science recognizes the importance of sensory perception and reason, it considers that there is another, more reliable and internal source of knowledge, particularly necessary for understanding the inner or spiritual world. This is the direct perception of the silent or meditative mind.

The other side of the coin is the modern science in a journey towards the destination in India. It believes in launching rockets to bringing agricultural reforms using biotechnology. The Indian scientific developments concentrate more on clearing their problems as in healthcare or poverty. They believe that once human mind is clear of the basic problems, it can start a search for destiny.  

Nevertheless, Indian scientists also concentrate on helping the world by stretching the limit a man can achieve. For e.g., the Mars Orbiter mission is a "technology demonstrator" project to develop the technologies for design, planning, management, and operations of an interplanetary mission.

Regardless of whom we are or what we do; every man on this planet has the right and the need to find a meaning for his or her existence. This quest called science has been growing and will forever grow up until the reason is found. Though divided we are on different paths, all of us are one for the mother earth. And that is the reason she always finds a way to increase our thirst in the journey which will only ultimately make the East meet the West!