The mathematics problems posed by Bhaskara in The Beautiful offer hints about life in medieval India. Through them, we learn of avaricious kings on the march, of calculating silk merchants, and of lotus flower offerings to the gods. We also get a sense of the way in which Bhaskara viewed mathematics. An astronomer and astrologer as well as a mathematician, Bhaskara saw in mathematics a way to gain insight into the larger patterns of the universe, patterns that had both spiritual and physical dimensions. Kings might use numbers to gain an edge in battle and merchants to maximize their profits, but numbers could also be used to discover the links between the motions of the cosmos and the course of individual lives. Moreover, considered in their own right, separate from any worldly application, Bhaskara saw numbers as pure and perfect, a kind of divine truth unto themselves.

Bhaskara’s work, and Indian mathematics in general, did not, however, exist in isolation. Indian mathematics reflected Indian culture and beliefs, but it was also part of an intellectual conversation that stretched back centuries and included participants from many different societies. We can gain insight into this larger context by examining the work of another astronomer and mathematician, the Persian scholar Al-Biruni (d. 1048). Al-Biruni accompanied his patron Mahmud of Ghazna on his wars of conquest in northern India, and during the years he spent there gained a keen interest in Indian intellectual and religious life. His seminal work, India, an Accurate Description of All Categories of Hindu Thought, sought to present the essential elements of Indian thought and belief without comment or criticism. His was to be a “simple record of historic facts.” As you read excerpts from Al-Biruni’s work, ask yourself how successful he was in reaching this goal. What do we learn about Al-Biruni’s own ideas and beliefs from his description of Indian intellectual and religious life?