Article
MSC:
01A32
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Summary:
The Śulba sūtras, or "Rules of the cord", are intended to lay down the rules of demarcation of various sacrificial altars, pandals and places for sacred fire. This part of Vedic culture contains unique, just about three thousand years old ritual geometry. Constructions, such as addition or subtraction of squares or area-preserving transformations of figures, are performed with the use of a rope and wooden poles. This article presents some of the geometric rules described in the mentioned texts and introduces them as interesting teaching tools for mathematics teachers.
References:
[1] Al Chvárizmí: Aritmetický a algebraický traktát. (2008). Nymburk: OPS.
[2] Staal, F.: Agni: The Vedic Ritual of the Fire Altar. (2010). (Set). Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass publishers.
[3] Ranade, H. G.: Illustrated Dictionary of Vedic Rituals. (2006). New Delhi: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts.
[4] Imhausen, A., Robson, E., Dauben, J. W., Plofker, K., Berggren, J. L.: The Mathematics of Egypt, Mesopotamia, China, India, and Islam: A Sourcebook. (2007). Edited by V. J. Katz. Princeton: Princeton University Press. MR 2368471
[5] Plofker, K.: Mathematics in India. (2009). Princeton: Princeton University Press. MR 2468443
[6] Datta, B.: Ancient Hindu geometry: the science of the Sulba. (1993). New Delhi: Cosmo Publications.
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