History of Chemistry in Ancient and Medieval India, Incorporating the History of Hindu Chemistry by Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray c14.6

c14.6

The Rigveda is regarded as a genuine document of the period when the Aryans first established their settlement in India, i.e. of the 15th to 12th centuries B.C. and possibly of an even earlier period. From an examination of the material culture of the period as can be extracted from the hymns of the Rigveda combined with their interpretation in the light of archæological evidences, we can arrive at certain conclusions about their scientific ideas and practices. The Aryans, when they first came to India were mostly pastoral communities and, compared to the earlier Indus Valley people, much less advanced in cultural achievements. The Indus Valley Culture, based on complicated urban organization, constituted, so to say, a landmark in the annals of the early Bronze Age Civilization of the 3rd millenium B.C. In the Rigveda, we find the mention of only gold, silver, copper and bronze among metals or metallic objects. A hymn (1, 162) gives an account of the bronze cauldron slung over the fire by pot-hooks for the cooking of meat. Gold was used for ornaments like anklets, rings, etc. Mention of metal vessels, tools and armour, made mainly of bronze, affords evidence of the knowledge of metal-working. Some writers (including Neogi) believe that iron was known during the time of the Rigveda. For, according to them, the word *ayas*, which occurs in many hymns of the Rigveda, definitely refers to iron in certain instances. We cannot, however, subscribe to this view. Because we should not lose sight of the fact that *ayas* was used as a generic name for metals in the Vedic age, and sometimes also for gold. Then again in the Brahmanas and Upanishads, which were of later date than the Vedas (800 B.C.—500 B.C.), we find that the word *ayas* has been differentiated into *lohitayas* or red-metal and *krishnayas* or black metal, representing copper and iron respectively without any doubt. The very fact that this necessity was not felt during the time of the Rigveda is a strong evidence against the view that iron was known in those days. Besides, we have already seen that no article of iron has been found in the excavation at Harappa or Mohenjo-daro. So, the Aryans when they first entered India as nomadic tribes and agricultural communities could not have been unacquainted with copper and bronze. That they were acquainted with iron and not with copper and bronze in the beginning is, therefore, a view that has little justification in its favour.