History of Hindu Mathematics: A Source Book v1.c8.s15.20

v1.c8.s15.20

Mahâvîra’s statement that a number remains unchanged when divided by zero is obviously incorrect. The correct result of the operation was known to Brahmagupta who preceded him by more than two centuries. It is, therefore, strange to find Mahâvîra making such a statement. He probably thought that, so far as arithmetic was concerned, division by zero was no division at all.