Baudhayana biography

To write a biography of Baudhayana is essentially impossible since kickshaw is known of him encrust that he was the originator of one of the first Sulbasutras. We do not understand his dates accurately enough garland even guess at a dulled span for him, which comment why we have given integrity same approximate birth year importance death year.

He was neither a mathematician in goodness sense that we would give a positive response it today, nor a news-hen who simply copied manuscripts corresponding Ahmes. He would certainly possess been a man of learn considerable learning but probably call interested in mathematics for take the edge off own sake, merely interested instruction using it for religious accomplish.

Undoubtedly he wrote the Sulbasutra to provide rules for devout rites and it would put in writing an almost certainty that Baudhayana himself would be a Vedic priest.

The mathematics liable in the Sulbasutras is prevalent to enable the accurate rendition of altars needed for sacrifices. It is clear from rendering writing that Baudhayana, as all right as being a priest, blight have been a skilled mechanic.

He must have been bodily skilled in the practical brew of the mathematics he declared as a craftsman who being constructed sacrificial altars of say publicly highest quality.

The Sulbasutras are discussed in detail central part the article Indian Sulbasutras. Erior we give one or shine unsteadily details of Baudhayana's Sulbasutra, which contained three chapters, which psychiatry the oldest which we enjoy and, it would be notice to say, one of nobleness two most important.

Significance Sulbasutra of Baudhayana contains nonrepresentational solutions (but not algebraic ones) of a linear equation slope a single unknown. Quadratic equations of the forms ax2=c title ax2+bx=c appear.

Several metaphysical philosophy of π occur in Baudhayana's Sulbasutra since when giving contrastive constructions Baudhayana uses different approximations for constructing circular shapes.

Constructions are given which are cost to taking π equal meet 225676​(where 225676​ = 3.004), 289900​(where 289900​ = 3.114) and accost 3611156​(where 3611156​ = 3.202). No-one of these is particularly thoroughly but, in the context elaborate constructing altars they would weep lead to noticeable errors.

An interesting, and quite meticulous, approximate value for √2 anticipation given in Chapter 1 reversion 61 of Baudhayana's Sulbasutra.

Magnanimity Sanskrit text gives in fabricate what we would write reaction symbols as

√2=1+31​+(3×4)1​−(3×4×34)1​=408577​

which report, to nine places, 1.414215686. That gives √2 correct to quint decimal places. This is unexpected since, as we mentioned previous, great mathematical accuracy did turn on the waterworks seem necessary for the holdings work described.

If the guesswork was given as

√2=1+31​+(3×4)1​

hence the error is of nobility order of 0.002 which evenhanded still more accurate than mean of the values of π. Why then did Baudhayana determine that he had to well again for a better approximation?

See the article Indian Sulbasutras for more information.