Yantras or Mechanical Contrivances in Ancient India c2.159

c2.159

The *Samarāṅgaṇasūtradhāra* ascribed to Bhoja is, in many ways, a rare treatise in Sanskrit literature; besides the *Arthaśāstra*, it is the only theoretical text that has substantial information on our subject; its value, however, is greater than that of the *Arthaśāstra*, as Bhoja goes into the details of the construction of these yantras and explains at the beginning the principles underlying yantras.