Vedic mathematics
Encyclopedia
Vedic mathematics is a system of mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...

 consisting of a list of 16 basic sūtra
Sutra
Sūtra is an aphorism or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual. Literally it means a thread or line that holds things together and is derived from the verbal root siv-, meaning to sew , as does the medical term...

s, or aphorism
Aphorism
An aphorism is an original thought, spoken or written in a laconic and memorable form.The term was first used in the Aphorisms of Hippocrates...

s. They were presented by a Hindu scholar and mathematician, Bharati Krishna Tirthaji Maharaja, during the early part of the 20th century.

Tirthaji claimed that he found the sūtras after years of studying the Vedas
Vedas
The Vedas are a large body of texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism....

, a set of sacred ancient Hindu texts. However, Vedas do not contain any of the "Vedic mathematics" sutras.

The calculation strategies provided by Vedic mathematics are said to be creative and useful, and can be applied in a number of ways to calculation methods in arithmetic and algebra, most notably within the education system. Some of its methods share similarities with the Trachtenberg system
Trachtenberg system
The Trachtenberg System is a system of rapid mental calculation. The system consists of a number of readily memorized operations that allow one to perform arithmetic computations very quickly. It was developed by the Jewish engineer Jakow Trachtenberg in order to keep his mind occupied while being...

.

Origin of the system

There has been much controversy among Indian scholars about Tirthaji’s claims that the mathematics is Vedic and that it encompasses all aspects of mathematics (Kansara, 2000).

First, Tirthaji’s description of the mathematics as Vedic is most commonly criticised on the basis that, thus far, none of the sūtras can be found in any extant Vedic literature (Williams, 2000). When challenged by Prof K.S. Shukla to point out the sutras in question in the Parishishta of the Atharvaveda
Atharvaveda
The Atharvaveda is a sacred text of Hinduism and one of the four Vedas, often called the "fourth Veda"....

, Shukla reported that the swamiji said that the sixteen sutras were not in the standard editions of the Parishishta, and that they occurred in his own Parishishta and not any other. Considering the lack of references to the sūtras, coupled with the fact that the language style does not seem Vedic, some propose that the sūtras were simply composed by Tirthaji himself

Critics have questioned whether this subject deserves the name Vedic or indeed mathematics. They point to the lack of evidence of any sutras from the Vedic period consistent with the system, the inconsistency between the topics addressed by the system (such as decimal fractions) and the known mathematics of early India, the substantial extrapolations from a few words of a sūtra to complex arithmetic strategies, and the restriction of applications to convenient, special cases. They further say that such arithmetic as is sped up by application of the sūtras can be performed on a computer or calculator anyway, making their knowledge rather irrelevant in the modern world.

In response to criticisms that the sūtras cannot be located within the texts, several people have explained how textual references should not be the basis for evaluating the Vedicity of the mathematics (Agrawala, 1992). Some propose that Vedic mathematics is different from other scientific work because it is not pragmatically worked out, but is based on a direct revelation, or an “intuitional visualisation” of fundamental mathematical truths (Agrawala, 1992; Pratyagatmananda, 1965). Tirthaji has been described as having the same “reverential approach” towards the Vedas as the ancient rishis that formed them. Thus, it seems as though some believe that Tirthaji may not have found the sūtras within the Vedas, but that he received them spiritually as the rishis did, which should validate them as Vedic. The controversy about the Vedicity of the mathematics is further confused by the double meaning of veda. Since veda can be translated to mean ‘knowledge’, it is also possible that Vedic mathematics simply refers to the fact that the sūtras are supposed to present all knowledge of mathematics. Tirthaji’s definition of veda does not clearly clarify whether he uses it to represent ‘all knowledge’ or the Vedic texts; rather, it seems that he uses it to refer to both. His more recent book titled 'Vedic Mathematics' can be purchased locally.

The sūtras (formulae or aphorisms)

Vedic mathematics is based on sixteen sūtras which serve as somewhat cryptic instructions for dealing with different mathematical problems. Below is a list of the sūtras, translated from Sanskrit into English:
  • "By one more than the previous one"
  • "All from 9 and the last from 10"
  • "Vertically and crosswise (multiplications)"
  • "Transpose and apply"
  • "Transpose and adjust (the coefficient)"
  • "If the Samuccaya is the same (on both sides of the equation, then) that Samuccaya is (equal to) zero"
  • By the Parāvartya rule
  • "If one is in ratio, the other one is zero."
  • "By addition and by subtraction."
  • By the completion or non-completion (of the square, the cube, the fourth power, etc.)
  • Differential calculus
  • By the deficiency
  • Specific and general
  • The remainders by the last digit
  • "The ultimate (binomial) and twice the penultimate (binomial) (equals zero),"
  • "Only the last terms,"
  • By one less than the one before
  • The product of the sum
  • All the multipliers

Subsūtras or corollaries

  • "Proportionately"
  • The remainder remains constant
  • "The first by the first and the last by the last"
  • For 7 the multiplicand is 143
  • By osculation
  • Lessen by the deficiency
  • "Whatever the extent of its deficiency, lessen it still further to that very extent; and also set up the square (of the deficiency)".
  • "By one more than the previous one"
  • "Last totaling ten"
  • The sum of the products
  • "By (alternative) elimination and retention (of the highest and lowest powers)"
  • By mere observation,
  • The product of the sum is the sum of the products
  • On the flag


Editor's list of 16 Sūtras and 13 Sub-sūtras or corollaries from the Vedas

To check the factorization of polynomial expressions: "The product of the sum of the coefficients (SC) in the factors is equal to the sum of the coefficients in the product." The SC of the product (the expression) = Product of the SC (in the factors). Additionally, this sub-sūtra helps to fill in the gaps when some factors are known.

Background information on the Vedas

The word “veda” has two basic meanings. The first, a literal translation of the Sanskrit word, is “knowledge” (Veda). The second, and most common meaning of the word, refers to the sacred ancient literature of Hinduism, the Vedas, a collection of hymns, poetry and Hindu ceremonial formulae (Veda). Believed to be one of the oldest human written records, the Vedas date back over 4000 years (Gaskell, 2000). Traditionally, they were passed down orally and adapted from generation to generation by sacred sages called rishis, before eventually emerging written in Vedic, an ancient form of Sanskrit.

The Vedas are divided into four main sections: the Rig-veda, Sama-veda, Yajur-veda and the Atharva-veda, known collectively as the Samhitas (Veda). The first three, the Rig-veda, Sama-veda, and Yajur-veda are basically ritual handbooks that were used by priests during the Vedic period (1500–500 BCE) (Veda). Vedic mathematics is apparently part of the fourth Veda, Atharva-veda, which is distinct from the others in several ways. First, unlike the religious focus of the other Vedas, the Atharva-veda contains hymns, spells and magical incantations for personal and domestic use (Veda). Also, the Atharva-veda, which was written later than the other Vedas, was not always considered authoritative, but only became so after being accepted by the Brahmans, the highest order of Hindu priests (Veda). Collectively, the Vedas include information about a huge range of subjects, spanning religion, medicine, architecture, astronomy, etc. (Gaskell, 2000).

Although there is controversy about whether the Vedas themselves actually include references to mathematics, the roots of sophisticated mathematics have actually been traced back to the Vedic era. Ancient Indian Vedic civilizations are known for being skilled in geometry, algebra and computational mathematics complex enough to incorporate things like irrational numbers (Dutta, 2002). Furthermore, all ancient Indian mathematics literature is composed completely in verse; there was a tradition of composing terse sūtras, like those of Vedic mathematics, to ensure that information would be preserved even if written records were damaged or lost (Dutta, 2002).

Methods described in the sūtras

It is not difficult to understand and apply the Vedic mathematical strategies, as long as one does not rely on the sūtras alone for mathematical insight. Those studying Vedic mathematics tend to strongly rely on the examples and explanations Tirthaji provides in his book.

All from nine and the last from ten

When subtracting from a large power of ten with many columns of zeros, it is not necessary to write the notation for "borrowing" from the column on the left. One can instead subtract the last (rightmost) digit from 10 and each other digit from 9. For example, when one is subtracting ten thousand minus 4,679, the leftmost three digits of 4,679—4, 6 and 7--are subtracted from 9, and the rightmost nonzero digit—that is, 9--is subtracted from 10, yielding the solution: 5,321. This method is also used when finding the deficit from the next larger power of ten when setting up a multiplication problem using the "cross-subtraction" method.

First corollary, when squaring numbers

"Whatever the extent of its deficiency, lessen it still further to that very extent; and also set up the square (of that deficiency)"

For instance, in computing the square of 9 we go through the following steps:
  1. The nearest power of 10 to 9 is 10. Therefore, let us take 10 as our base.
  2. Since 9 is 1 less than 10, decrease it by the deficiency (9 - 1 = 8). This is the leftmost digit of our answer.
  3. On the right hand side put the square of the deficiency, which is 1². Hence, the square of nine is 81.

Similarly, 8² = 64, 7² = 49, 6²=36.

For numbers above 10, instead of looking at the deficit we look at the surplus. For example:
and so on.

This method of squaring is based on the fact that where a is the number whose square is to be found and b is the deficit (or surplus) from nearest product of 10.

By one more than the one before

"Ekādhikena Pūrveṇa" is the Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...

 term for "[by] One more than the previous one". It provides a simple way of calculating values like 1/x9 (e.g.: 1/19, 1/29, etc.). The sūtra
Sutra
Sūtra is an aphorism or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual. Literally it means a thread or line that holds things together and is derived from the verbal root siv-, meaning to sew , as does the medical term...

 can be used for multiplying as well as dividing algorithm
Algorithm
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm is an effective method expressed as a finite list of well-defined instructions for calculating a function. Algorithms are used for calculation, data processing, and automated reasoning...

s.

For example, to calculate 1/19, x = 1 . For the multiplication algorithm (working from right to left), the method is to start by denoting the dividend, 1, as the first (rightmost) digit of the result. Then that digit is multiplied by 2 (i.e.: x + 1 ), and noted to that next digit to its left. If the result of this multiplication was greater than 10, (value – 10) is noted, and the "1" is noted as a carry which will be added to the next digit directly after multiplying.

The preposition "by" means the operations this formula concerns are either multiplication or division. [In case of addition/subtraction preposition "to" or "from" is used.] Thus this formula is used for either multiplication or division. It turns out that it is applicable in both operations.

Note: This sūtra can also be applied to multiplication of numbers with the same first digit and the sum of their last unit digits is 10.

An interesting sub-application of this formula is in computing squares of numbers ending in five. Examples:
35×35 = ((3×3)+3),25 = 12,25 and 125×125 = ((12×12)+12),25 = 156,25

or by the sūtra, multiply "by one more than the previous one."
35×35 = ((3×4),25 = 12,25 and 125×125 = ((12×13),25 = 156,25


The latter portion is multiplied by itself (5 by 5) and the previous portion is square of first digit or first two digit (3×3) or (12×12) and adding the same digit in that figure (3or12) resulting in the answer 1225.

(Proof) This is a simple application of when and , i.e.

It can also be applied in multiplications when the last digit is not 5 but the sum of the last digits is the base (10) and the previous parts are the same. Examples:
37 × 33 = (3 × 4),7 × 3 = 12,21
29 × 21 = (2 × 3),9 × 1 = 6,09 ?


This uses twice combined with the previous result to produce:.

We illustrate this sūtra by its application to conversion of fractions into their equivalent decimal form. Consider fraction 1/19. Using this formula, this can be converted into a decimal form in a single step. This can be done by applying the formula for either a multiplication or division operation, thus yielding two methods.

Method 1: example: using multiplication to calculate 1/19

For 1/19, since 19 is not divisible by 2 or 5, the fractional result is a purely circulating decimal. (If the denominator contains only factors 2 and 5, the result is a purely non-circulating decimal, else it is a mixture of the two: a short non-circulating sequence of digits, followed by an endless repetition.) Each factor of 2 or 5 or 10 in the denominator gives one fixed decimal digit.

So we start with the last digit of the result, being the dividend:

Multiply this by "one more", that is, 2 (this is the "key" digit from 'Ekādhikena')

Multiplying 2 by 2, followed by multiplying 4 by 2
421 → 8421


Now, multiplying 8 by 2, sixteen
68421
1 ← carry


multiplying 6 by 2 is 12 plus 1 carry gives 13
368421
1 ← carry


Continuing
7368421 → 47368421 → 947368421
                 1


Now we have 9 digits of the answer. There are a total of 18 digits (= denominator − 1) in the answer computed by complementing the lower half (with its complement from nine):
052631578
947368421


Thus the result is 1/19 = 0.052631578,947368421 repeating.


1
21
421
8421
68421 (carry 1) – we got 16, so we keep 6 and carry 1
368421 (carry 1) – we get 6*2 + carry 1 = 13, so we keep 3 and carry one

do this to eighteen digits (19–1. If you picked up 1/29,
you'll have to do it till 28 digits). You'll get the following
1/19 = 052631578947368421
10100111101011000

Run this on your favorite calculator and check the result!

Method 2: example: using division to calculate 1/19

The earlier process can also be done using division instead of multiplication. We start again with 1 (dividend of "1/x9"), dividing by 2 (" x + 1 "). We divide 1 by 2, answer is 0 with remainder 1
result .0


Next 10 divided by 2 is five
.05


Next 5 divided by 2 is 2 with remainder 1
.052


next 12 (remainder,2) divided by 2 is 6
.0526


and so on.

Other fractions can sometimes be converted into the format of "d/x9"; as another example, consider 1/7, this is the same as 7/49 which has 9 as the last digit of the denominator. The previous digit is 4, by one more is 5. So we multiply (or divide) by 5, that is:

…7 → 57 → 857 → 2857 → 42857 → 142857 → .142,857 (stop after 7 − 1 digits)
3 2 4 1 2

Multiplying by 11

11×35= 385 The five in the ones place of the answer is taken from the five in 35. The eight in the answer is the sum of 35 (3+5=8). The three in the hundreds place of the answer is taken from the three in 35.

However, if in step #2 the sum is greater than 9, the sum's left digit is added the first digit of the number multiplied by 11. For example:

11×59= 649 The nine in the ones place of the answer is taken from the nine in 59. The four in the answer is the right digit in the sum of 59 (5+9=14) The six in the hundreds place of the answer is taken from the sum of the five in 59 and the digit in the tens place from the sum of 59 (5+9=14) --> (5+1=6)

The steps for multiplying a three-digit number by 11 are as follows:

11×768= 8448 The 8 in the ones place of the answer is taken from the eight in 768. The 4 in the tens place of the answer is taken from the sum of 8, in the ones place of 768, and 6, in the tens place of 768 (8+6=14). As 14 is greater than 9, the 1 is carried over to step 3. The 4 in the hundreds place of the answer is taken from the sum of 6, in the tens place of 768, and 7, in the hundreds place of 768, plus the carried 1 from step 2 (6+7+1=14). As 14 is greater than 9, the 1 is carried over to step 4. The 8 in the thousandths place of the answer is taken from the sum of 7, in the hundreds place of 768, plus the carried 1 from step 3 (7+1=8).

Vertically and crosswise

This formula applies to all cases of multiplication and is very useful in division of one large number by another large number.

For example, to multiply 23 by 12:
2 3
| × |
1 2
2×1 2×2+3×1 3×2
2 7 6
So 23×12=276.

When any of these calculations exceeds 9 then a carry is required.

This is the equivalent of (10a+b)(10c+d)=100ac+10(ad+bc)+bd.

Transpose and apply

This formula complements "all from nine and the last from ten", which is useful in divisions by large numbers. This formula is useful in cases where the divisor consists of small digits. This formula can be used to derive the Horner's process of Synthetic Division.

When the samuccaya is the same, that samuccaya is zero

This formula is useful in solution of several special types of equations that can be solved visually. The word samuccaya has various meanings in different applications. For instance, it may mean a term which occurs as a common factor in all the terms concerned. A simple example is equation "12x + 3x = 4x + 5x". Since "x" occurs as a common factor in all the terms, therefore, x = 0 is a solution. Another meaning may be that samuccaya is a product of independent terms. For instance, in (x + 7) (x + 9) = (x + 3) (x + 21), the samuccaya is 7 × 9 = 3 × 21, therefore, x = 0 is a solution. Another meaning is the sum of the denominators of two fractions having the same numerical numerator, for example: 1/ (2x − 1) + 1/ (3x − 1) = 0 means we may set the denominators equal to zero, 5x – 2 = 0.

Yet another meaning is "combination" or total. This is commonly used. For instance, if the sum of the numerators and the sum of denominators are the same then that sum is zero. Therefore,

Therefore, 4x + 16 = 0 or x = −4.

This meaning ("total") can also be applied in solving quadratic equations. The total meaning can not only imply sum but also subtraction. For instance when given N1/D1 = N2/D2, if N1 + N2 = D1 + D2 (as shown earlier) then this sum is zero. Mental cross multiplication reveals that the resulting equation is quadratic (the coefficients of x² are different on the two sides). So, if N1 − D1 = N2 − D2 then that samuccaya is also zero. This yields the other root of a quadratic equation
Quadratic equation
In mathematics, a quadratic equation is a univariate polynomial equation of the second degree. A general quadratic equation can be written in the formax^2+bx+c=0,\,...

.

Yet interpretation of "total" is applied in multi-term RHS and LHS. For instance, consider

Here D1 + D2 = D3 + D4 = 2x − 16. Thus x = 8.

There are several other cases where samuccaya can be applied with great versatility. For instance "apparently cubic" or "biquadratic" equations can be easily solved as shown below:

Note that x − 3 + x − 9 = 2 (x − 6). Therefore (x − 6) = 0 or x = 6.

This would not work for the apparently quadratic , which has no real or complex solutions.

Consider

Observe: N1 + D1 = N2 + D2 = 2x + 8.
Therefore, x = −4.

This formula has been extended further.

If one is in ratio, the other one is zero

This formula is often used to solve simultaneous linear equations which may involve big numbers. But these equations in special cases can be visually solved because of a certain ratio between the coefficients. Consider the following example:
6x + 7y = 8
19x + 14y = 16


Here the ratio of coefficients of y is same as that of the constant terms.
Therefore, the "other" variable is zero, i.e., x = 0. Hence, mentally, the solution of the equations is x = 0 and y = 8/7.

(alternatively:
19x + 14y = 16 is equivalent to:x +7y = 8.


Thus it is obvious that x has to be zero, no ratio needed, just divide by 2!)

Note that it would not work if both had been "in ratio". For then we have the case of coinciding lines with an infinite number of solutions.:
6x + 7y = 8
12x + 14y = 16


This formula is easily applicable to more general cases with any number of variables. For instance
ax + by + cz = a
bx + cy + az = b
cx + ay + bz = c


which yields x = 1, y = 0, z = 0.

A corollary says solving "by addition and by subtraction." It is applicable in case of simultaneous linear equations where the x- and y-coefficients are interchanged. For instance:
45x − 23y = 113
23x − 45y = 91


By addition: 68x − 68 y = 204 → 68 (x − y) = 204 → x − y = 3.

By subtraction: 22x + 22y = 22 → 22 (x + y) = 22 → x + y = 1.

Again, by addition, we eliminate the y-terms: 2x = 4, so x = 2.

Or, by subtraction, we eliminate the x-terms: – 2y = 2, and so y = – 1.

The solution set is {2,-1}.
Examples of models which are complete extensions due to j.corcoran and mircea h.orasanu and mircea t.orasanu

Applications

  • In the UK, the method is used by teacher Satish Sharma with students in Slough
    Slough
    Slough is a borough and unitary authority within the ceremonial county of Royal Berkshire, England. The town straddles the A4 Bath Road and the Great Western Main Line, west of central London...

    , as well as by Kenneth Williams, teacher, author and spokesman for the Maharishi School in Skelmersdale
    Skelmersdale
    Skelmersdale is a town in West Lancashire, England. It lies on high-ground on the River Tawd, to the west of Wigan, to the northeast of Liverpool, south-southwest of Preston. As of 2006, Skelmersdale had a population of 38,813, down from 41,000 in 2004. The town is known locally as Skem.The...

    , Lancashire, both of whom claim that the methods offer significant results for their pupils.

  • Multiplier
    Binary multiplier
    A binary multiplier is an electronic circuit used in digital electronics, such as a computer, to multiply two binary numbers. It is built using binary adders....

     is an integral part of the processor
    Central processing unit
    The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...

    . Vedic multiplier is based on the Vedic mathematics. Vedic multiplier's architecture is based on the Sutra called "Urdhva Tiryakbhyam". Urdhva Tiryakbhyam (Vertically and Crosswise), deals with the multiplication of numbers. This Sutra has been traditionally used for the multiplication of two numbers in the decimal number system. By applying the algorithm to the binary number system, architecture for multiplier is designed. Other sutra used for Vedic multiplier is Nikhilam Sutra which literally means “all from 9 and last from 10”. Although it is applicable to all cases of multiplication, it is more efficient when the numbers involved are large. Compared with the other multipliers, Vedic multiplier has less delay time. Vedic multiplier is also used for computing Fast Fourier transform
    Fast Fourier transform
    A fast Fourier transform is an efficient algorithm to compute the discrete Fourier transform and its inverse. "The FFT has been called the most important numerical algorithm of our lifetime ." There are many distinct FFT algorithms involving a wide range of mathematics, from simple...

    .
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