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Mathematics in Ancient and Medieval India c4.s3.t4: Bhāskara I (c. 600 A.D.)

Mathematics in Ancient and Medieval India c4.s3.t4

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English

Bhāskara I (c. 600 A.D.)

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We do not get sufficient evidence to say anything definitely about the place of his birth. In his *Āryabhaṭīyabhāṣya*, while giving problems on time and distance, he used the name of places like, Valabhi, Harukaccha and Sivabhagapura. He gave the equinoxial shadow of Sthāneśvara. It partly indicates that he belonged to the part of India near Valabhi. It is known that he imbibed his knowledge of astronomy from his father. Modern researches have shown that Bhāskara I was not a direct pupil of Āryabhaṭa I, but was undoubtedly the most competent exponent of Āryabhaṭa I's school of Astronomy³. Kuppanna Sastri¹ has concluded from external sources that Bhāskara I flourished in c. 600 A.D.

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³ *IHQ*, 6, p. 927-36, 1930.

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¹ Vide his edition of *Mahābhāskarīya*, Introduction, p. XII.

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Three works were written by him in the following chronological order: ( i ) *Mahābhāskarīya*², an astronomical work complete in eight chapters, ( ii ) *Āryabhaṭīyabhāṣya*³, a commentary on the *Āryabhaṭīya* of Āryabhaṭa and ( iii ) *Laghubhāskarīya*⁴, an abridged and simplified version of *Mahābhāskarīya* in eight chapters. Bhāskara I was mainly an astronomer but made commendable progress in the solution of the indeterminate equation of the first degree, the method of whose solution is given in his *Mahābhāskarīya*⁵ for use in the solution of astronomical problems⁶. Brahmagupta and others simply adopted the methods of Āryabhaṭa I and Bhāskara I. The method was however improved at a later period by Āryabhaṭa II (c. 950 A.D.) by abridging the operations in certain cases.

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² Ed. by Balavantaraya Apte with the commentary *Karmadīpikā* by Parameśvara, *Ānandāśrama Sanskrit Series* no. 126, Poona, 1945; Ed. with introduction and appendices by T. S. Kupanna Sastri, *Madras Govt. Oriental Series* no. 130, Madras 1957; Ed. with English translation and notes by Kripa Shankar Shukla, Lucknow University, 1960.

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³ Ms; For Mss. vide *A Bibliography of Sanskrit Works on Astronomy and Mathematics*, by S. N. Sen, A. K. Bag and S. R. Sarma, National Institute of Sciences of India, New Delhi, p. 19, 1966. From now on, this bibliography will be abbreviated as our *Bibliography*.

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⁴ Ed. with the commentary *Vivaraṇa* of Śaṅkaranārāyaṇa, Trivandrum Sanskrit Series no. 162, Trivandrum, 1949; Ed. and translated into English by Kripa Shankar Shukla, Lucknow Univ. 1963.

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⁵ Ch. 1, verses 41-52.

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⁶ Examples are given in his *Mahābhāskarīya* (Ch. 8, verses 13, 19, 20, 23), *Āryabhaṭīyabhāṣya* (Ch. 2, verses 32-33), and *Laghubhāṣkrīya* (Ch. 8, verse 17).

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