Imtiaz Mahmood@ImtiazMadmood
Indians had Algebra before the Muslim prophet & religion were even born. Here is the Bakhshali Manuscript, dating back to the 3rd century CE. It is an Algebraic treatise.
The Bakhshali manuscript, which has been carbon-dated to the 3rd century CE, is an ancient Hindu treatise on Arithmetic and Algebra. The Algebraic problems deal with simultaneous, quadratic, arithmetic, geometric progressions & quadratic indeterminate equations.
Early Algebra is found in Shulba Sutras dating back to 800 BC. Traditional Algebra reached its pinnacle in the works of Aryabhata & Bhaskara. What makes Bakhshali unique is it offers mathematical proof to its theories. It also contains the oldest known record of zero.
The earliest work of “Arabic Algebra” is the “Al-Kitāb Al-Jabr wal-muqābala” by Al Khwarizmi. The term “Algebra” comes from this book (“Al Jabr”). Before writing his treatise, Al Khwarizmi visited India. His book is plagiarism from Indian Mathematics, and an obvious one at that.
The fact that Indian mathematicians heavily plagiarised Khawarizmi has been known to Western scholars for 200 years. Henry Thomas Colebrooke was a historian and mathematician. In 1817, Colebrook concluded (page 4) that Khwarizmi owed his Algebra to the Hindus. After carefully examining the works of Khawarizmi and ancient Hindu mathematical texts, Colebrooke concludes: “The inevitable conclusion is that Khawarizmi, conversing with the sciences of Hindus, must have learned Algebra from Hindus”.
Another European Mathematician, Pietro Cossali, came to the same conclusion after diligent research. He says, “Khwarizmi was skilled in the Indian tongue and fond of Indian matters. He translated Indian works. He was the first instructor of Muslims in Algebra. Not having taken Algebra from the Greeks, Khwarizmi must have either invented it himself or taken it from the Indians. Of the two, the second appears to me the most probable.”
The Arabs were invading with nomadic armies from the Arabian deserts. They lacked the most basic education and literacy. Even after conquests, Arabs were living in tents. What made them take any interest in Indian Mathematics? What made Khwarizmi write his work? Who civilized illiterate desert nomads? The answers are below.
Until 770, almost 140 years after the prophet, there was no Arabic work on science, not one on Math, not one on medicine—absolutely nothing. There is no exception to this rule. Until 770, Arabs produced only religious works or simple poetry.
Even after Islamic conquests, most 7th century Arabs lived in tents. Even the caliph of the Arabs, their emperor, Muawiya, lived in a tiny shack constructed of only brick and timber. He had no proper roof, and birds were all over his ‘ceiling. This person was not just a desert chief but an emperor who conquered everything from Constantinople to Afghanistan. Needless to say, there was no knowledge of Algebra among these people.