8-The Michigan Daily - Mondayy, January 26, 1995 I \N U ERl7-AGE Hindu Heritage Week Contribution of Hinduism to .,WorlCu(ture * Education The world's first university was established at Takshashila (northwest region of India) in approximately 100 BCE. The campus accommodated 10,500 students and offered over sixty different courses in various fields, such as science, mathematics, medicine, politics, warfare, astrology, astronomy, music, religion, and philosophy.... Students from as far as Babylonia, Greece, Syria, Arabia, and China came to study. Mathematics Ancient Hindus provided the concept of zero to the world. In early Sanskrit texts and in Pangala's Chandra Sutra (200 AD), "zero" is called Shunya. Later, Bhaskaracharya (400-500 AD) showed that any number divided by zero becomes infinity and infinity divided by any number remains infinity. The first inscription of zero dated 585-586 AD was found on the Sankheda Copper Plate in Gujarat, India. In addition, to the concept of zero, the decimal system was developed in India as early as 100 BCE. Ancient Hindus had also developed prefixes for raising ten to powers a high as fifty-three....The base-10 system allows problems to be worked out simply by hand or in the mind. Science In Surya Siddhanta, dated 400-500 AD, the ancient Hindu astronomer Bhaskaracharya states, "Objects fall on the earth due to a force of attraction by the earth. Therefore, the earth, planets., constellations, moon, and sun are held in orbit due to this force." Approximately 1200 years later (1687 AD), Sir Isaac Newton rediscovered this phenomenon and called it the Law of Gravity. According to modern calculations, the time taken by the earth to orbit the sun is 365.2596 days. In Surya Siddhanta, dated 400-500 AD, Bhaskaracharya calculated this time as 365.258756484 days. Medicine The Greek physician Hippocrates (460-377 BCE) is honored as the father of medicine. However, well before Hippocrates, Maharshi Charaka had already written the Charaka Samhita ("Handbook of a Physician") in 500 BCE. In this handbook Maharshi Charaka includes the anatomy of the human body, listing of natural herbs to cure diseases, and methods of diagnosis and treatment of diseases. The earliest known work relating to human surgery is Shushruta Samhita, written in approximately 600 BCE by the Hindu surgeon Shushruta, who performed plastic surgery as early a 600 BCE. Shushruta Samhita mentions over 120 surgical instruments in use at that time, and describes over three hundred surgical procedures. Language and Literature Sanskrit (meaning "cultured"), the classical language of Hinduism, is the oldest and the most systematic language in the world. The vastness, versatility, and power of expression of Sanskrit can be appreciated by the fact that this language has 65 words to describe various forms of earth, 67 words for water, and over 250 words to describe various types of rainfall. According to Forbes magazine (July, 1987), "Sanskrit is the most convenient language for computer software programming." Religion and Philosophy Hinduism has given the world the wisdom of the Vedas, the Upanishads, and the Bhagavad Gita. Free from any kind of dogma, Hindu scriptures teach universal harmony, self-dignity, and reverence for all forms of life. "All mankind is one family," is the slogan of Hindu sages. * Bansi Pandits "The Hindu Mind", chapter 38 0 Hindu Ieritage WeekActivities I, ,: Tuegk January 24: Bhajan Wolverine Room - Michigan Union Sunday, January 22: Inaugural Ceremony Pendleton Room - Michigan Union KA) pm Bhajan Session (traditional chanting) 1:00 pm Opening 1:10 pm Inaugural puja performed by Shri Rani(i Joshi 1:30 pm Importance of Rituals * Shri Ramesh Joshi (Honorary minister) °4 ednsdvLaanuary 25 scussion t. nd - Michigan Union 8.0 Discussion on Great Hindu Achievements & Cori b ons to the World Thursday, Janua 6: Movie Presentation .'C 1:50 pm 2:20 pm 2:30 pm 3:00 pm 3:30 pm Symbolism in Hinduism z Swami Tadatmananda (Arsha Vidya Gurukulum) Session BreakT Preserving Hindu Heritage 34 Dr. Gayatri Garg (Honorary chairperson) 4 . : n :, :'.: _,:> ;. 'n. ... Application of Hinduism in t Young Professional's Life S Kanchan Banerjee (HSverall coordinator) Poster, art, and essay exhibit (Break) Pond Room - Michigan Union NN R Lecture Hall 2 7:30 pm Gandhi J ary 27: Mehndi/Dance/Music Workshop Andersonoom C & D - Michigan Union 6:00 pm Demonstration oqfMehndi (cultural handprinting), Indian music, and IndianDa including raas, garba, and bhangra steps). Audience participation welcomed. 4:00 pm Award presentation * Saturday, January28 Celebration Dance [ if\C;"CT 4:30 Pm tClosing Monday, January 23: Yoga and Meditation Session Pond Room - Michigan Union . . V. ;4 .. / 't~y ...~ 9:00 P Pendleton Rooms Michigan Union pr Raas/Garba/Bhangra (traditional dances) Tickets available at the Union Ticketmaster or any HSC member 8:00 pm 9:00 pm Swami Tadatmananda (Arsha Vidya Gurukulum) Ema Stefanova - Mudita (Yoga Instructor) :: ' a nk ou for your contribution and support. Ankur Agarwal Dewesh Agrawal Sannidh Amberkar Chandan Bandopadhyay Kanchan & Haimanti Banerjee Deepak Bhakta Sreekanth Chandrupatla Chandan Devireddy Dr. Ram & Pushpa Goswami Maneesh Gulati Rashmi Gupta April Hilger Lekha Hota Siva Hota Nina Jain Rahul Kohli Srikant Kondapaneni Drs. Marigowda & Renuka Nagaraju Sridhar Palanisamy Anand Parekh Drs. Kamlesh & Deepika Parekh Deepa Prahalad Vipul Parikh Viraj V. Parikh Anita Saluja Pramod Sanghi Dr. Ajay Shah Jagat Shah Sheetal Shah Shradha Shah Preya Sharma Jaishanker V. Singanallur Raj Vardhan Singh Sponsored by: 1Hindu Students Council University offMic 4an, Ann Arbor Chapter Supporting Organizations: Arsha Vidya Gurukulum I 11