New Perspectives in Indian Science and Civilization

Description

This book examines key aspects of the history, philosophy, and culture of science in India, especially as they may be comprehended in the larger idea of an Indian civilization. The authors, drawn from a range of disciplines, discuss a wide array of issues ― scientism and religious dogma, dialectics of faith and knowledge, science under colonial conditions, science and study of grammar, western science and classical systems of logic, metaphysics and methodology, and science and spirituality in the Mahabharata. This collection of essays aims to evolve a framework in which science, culture, and society in India may be studied fruitfully across disciplines and historical periods. With its diverse themes and original approaches, the book will be of interest to scholars and researchers in the fields of the history and philosophy of science, science and religion, cultural studies and colonial studies, philosophy and history, as well as India studies and South Asian studies. Cover Half Title Title Copyright Dedication Contents Notes on contributors Foreword Prologue Acknowledgements 1 Introduction 2 Science and spirituality: is there a common ground? 3 Dialectics of culture and science 4 Culture and science in twenty-first century India 5 Modern science in India and the emergence of a new worldview: challenges and opportunities 6 Knowledge and science in the context of Indian languages 7 Indian deductive system: the logical basis of Indian sciences 8 Motion interpreted: a bridge between science and spirituality 9 Indian science and semiotics: some reflections 10 Integral non-dualism and modern science: some reflections 11 Principles of plant taxonomy: a fresh insight into the ancient Indian methodology and philosophy of naming and classifying medicinal plants 12 A macro-micro systems approach to frame holistic studies on the culture and philosophy of science in India 13 Reconciling free will and determinism: an Indian appropriation of Benjamin Libet’s neuroscientific findings 14 Science and spirituality from the perspective of the Mahabharata 15 Revisiting concepts of health and disease: evolution, philosophy, and integration 16 A Connecticut Yankee in Indira’s court: a brief account of modern Indian science Index