The Beauty of Vedic Math

By: Chandrajeet jeet
Submitted: 2008-07-11 13:35:46
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How many times have we come across a situation in our daily lives where we are not able to make a calculation quickly, on our own? A lot of times, I guess. What we do require in these situations is the ability to calculate in our heads, with the help of shortcuts!

In fact, we don’t have to rack our brains and invent them. These methods are already available in Ancient Hindu Texts called The Vedas. Vedic Mathematics is the name given to the ancient system of Mathematics which was rediscovered from the Vedas between 1911 and 1918 by Sri Bharati Krishna Tirthaji (1884-1960). According to his research all of mathematics is based on sixteen Sutras or word-formulae.

The calculation strategies provided by Vedic mathematics are creative and useful, and can be applied in a number of ways to calculation methods in arithmetic and algebra, most notably within the education system. Vedic math has some similarities to the Trachtenberg system and many of the arithmetic computational strategies are based on the same concepts.

It is not difficult to understand and apply the Vedic mathematical strategies, as long as one does not rely on the sutras alone for mathematical insight. Those studying Vedic mathematics tend to strongly rely on the examples and explanations Tirthaji provides in his book.

The first sutra given is “Ekadhikena Purvena” translated as “By one more than the previous one”. The sutra can be used for multiplying as well as dividing algorithms. An interesting sub-application of this formula is in computing squares of numbers ending in five. Lets us see how we square 75, quickly.

   75² (Seventy five Squire) = 75 * 75

   75^{2 (Seventy} five Squire) = 56 * 25

The answer is in two parts 56 and 25.

The last part is got by 5² = 5 * 5 = 25.

The first part is got by the first number, multiplied by the “one more” than the first number, i.e in this case 7 * (7+1) = 7