Essay name: Minerals and Metals in Sanskrit literature
Author:
Sulekha Biswas
Affiliation: Chhatrapati Sahuji Maharaj University / Department of Sanskrit
This essay studies the presence of Minerals and Metals in Sanskrit literature over three millennia, from the Rigveda to Rasaratna-Samuccaya. It establishes that ancient Indians were knowledgeable about various minerals and metallurgy prior to the Harappan era, with literary references starting in the Rgveda.
Chapter 8 - Non-gem Minerals and Metals in Rasa-shastra
29 (of 44)
External source: Shodhganga (Repository of Indian theses)
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VIII-29
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of
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1300 1600 A.D. period has been labelled as the era of
Indian Iatro-chemistry during which many contacts were established
with the Arab alchemy. During this period, the tradition European
alchemy was evolved mainly due to the efforts of Paracelsus (1490
such as
a
1541 A.D.). The evolved Indian rasasastra texts Rasaratnasamu
ccava described a number of chemical substances under the titles
maharasas, uparasas, ah膩tus etc. and also several apparatus for
synthesis and purification of these materials.
Many of these texts compiled old informations and added
some newly derived laboratory data. We would omit the first
category (old informations) and mention the relatively new
acquisitions of knowledge pertaining to the non-gem minerals and
metals.
The Texts of the Tantric Alchemy Period (7th-13th Century A.D.)
We have already pointed out that the Manayana Buddhist
scholar, Nagarjuna introduced alchemy during the second century A.D.
His Rasaratnakara text might have been amplified and re-edited
during successive centuries. For nearly four centuries, the Hindu
(Saiva) -Buddhist (Mahayana) and Indo-Chinese cultural contacts
resulted in Tantrik philosophy and mineral/metal-based medicines.
The medical treatise Ast谩ncahrdaya of Vagbhata (800-850A-D.)
mentioned widespread uses of minerals and natural salts like copper
sulphate, red ochre, realgar, orpiment, iron sulphate etc. in
external applications for sores. The idea of cauterisation of
