The ancient Indian electric battery

Introduction

Agastya Samhita written during era of God Ram sometimes more than 170,000 years ago by sage 

This very ancient text of Agastya Samhita describes the method of making electric battery, and that water can be split into oxygen and hydrogen.

Modern battery cell resembles Agastya’s method of generating electricity.

Prototype of battery by Agastya

For electricity, he used the following material:

• One earthen pot
• Copper plate
• Copper sulphate
• Wet saw dust
• Zinc amalgam

Agasthya’s Samhita(book) says :

संस्थाप्यमृण्मयेपात्रेताम्रपत्रंसुसंस्कृतम्‌।

छादयेच्छिखिग्रीवेनचार्दाभि: काष्ठापांसुभि:॥

दस्तालोष्टोनिधात्वय: पारदाच्छादितस्तत:।

संयोगाज्जायतेतेजोमित्रावरुणसंज्ञितम्‌॥

“Sansthapya Mrinmaya Patre

Tamrapatram Susanskritam

Chhadyechhikhigriven Chardrarbhih

Kashthpamsubhih.

Dastaloshto Nidhatavyah

Pardachhaditastah

Sanyogajjayte Tejo

Mitravarunsangyitam”

संस्था प्ये (Take ) मृन्मये (soil) पत्रे ( patra= container) “तम्रपात्र्न” ( cleaned copper plate) सुसांकरतम

च्छाड्येत ( cover with ) शिखी ( Morchud = Copper sulphate)ग्रिवेनड्रारभिही कस्थाप

Which means, “Place a well-cleaned copper plate in an earthenware vessel. Cover it first by copper sulfate and then by moist sawdust. After that, put a mercury-amalgamated zinc sheet on top of the sawdust to avoid polarization. The contact will produce an energy known by the twin name of Mitra-Varuna. Water will be split by this current into Pranavayu and Udanavayu. A chain of one hundred jars is said to give a very effective force. ”

When a cell was prepared according to Agastya Samhita and measured, it gives open circuit voltage as 1.138 volts, and short circuit current as 23 mA.

Agasthya, the ancient vedic technologists produced six kinds of electricity according to 'Agasthya Samahita'

• Tadit—the one produced by friction from leather or silk,
• Saudamini—that produced by friction from gems or glass,
• Vidyut—produced from clouds or steam,
• Shatakoti alias Shatakumbhi—that produced from a battery of hundreds of cells
• Hradini—that obtained from storage cells
• Ashani—the one emanating from a magnetic rod. 

A real evidence of ancient battery

“In the temple of Trivandrum, Travancore, the Reverned S. Mateer of the London Protestant Mission saw ‘a great lamp which was lit over one hundred and twenty years ago’, in a deep well inside the temple. On the background of the Agastya Samhita text’s giving precise directions for constructing electrical batteries, this speculation is not extravagant.”

Reverse engineering of the battery

Rao Saheb Krishnaji Vajhe had passed the engineering exam in 1891 from Pune. While looking for scriptures related to science, he found a few pages of the Agastya Samhita with Damodar Tryambak Joshi of Ujjain. These belonged to around Shaka Samvat 1550. Later on, after reading the said description in the pages of the Samhita, Dr. M.C. Sahastrabuddhe, the Head of the Sanskrit Department in Nagpur felt that the description was very similar to that of Daniel Cell. So he gave it to P.P. Hole, the Professor of Engineering at Nagpur, with a request to investigate.

When Mr. Hole an his friend started preparing the apparatus on the basis of the above description, they could understand all the things except shikhigreeva. On checking the Sanskrit dictionary, they understood that it meant the neck of a peacock. So, he and his friend went to Maharaj Bagh and asked the chief when a peacock would die in his zoo. This angered the gentleman. Then they told him that they needed its neck for an experiment. The gentleman asked them to give in an application. Later, when during a conversation, they narrated this to an Ayurveda expert, he burst out laughing and said that here it did not mean the neck of a peacock, but a substance of that colour, that is copper sulphate. This solved the problem. Thus, a cell was formed and measured with a digital multimeter. It had an open circuit voltage of 1.38 volts and short circuit current of 23 milli amperes.

The information that the experiment was successful was conveyed to Dr. M.C. Sahastryabuddhe. This cell was exhibited on August 7, 1990 before the scholars of the fourth general meeting at the Swadeshi Vigyan Sanshodhan Sanstha, Nagpur. It was then realised that the description was of the electric cell.

They investigated as to what the context was and it was realized that Sage Agastya had said many things before this

Other invention by Agastya

Sage Agastya, courtesy Wikipedia

Agastya Samhita also contains an account of using electricity for electroplating ages back when west were residing in caves. He also discovered a way to polish gold, silver, and copper with a battery. Due to past history as discussed above, Rishi Agastya is also called one who is `Battery Born’.

Process of electroplating is explained in simplified manner, however not just these but there are multiple processes and sources with the help of which electricity and energy is generated.

Moreover, he says

संस्थाप्य मृण्मये पात्रे ताम्रपत्रं सुसंस्कृतम्‌।

छादयेच्छिखिग्रीवेन चार्दाभि: काष्ठापांसुभि:॥

दस्तालोष्टो निधात्वय: पारदाच्छादितस्तत:।

संयोगाज्जायते तेजो मित्रावरुणसंज्ञितम्‌॥

"Place a well-cleaned copper plate in an earthenware vessel. Cover it first by copper sulfate and then by moist sawdust. After that, put a mercury-amalgamated zinc sheet on top of the sawdust to avoid polarization. The contact will produce an energy known by the twin name of Mitra-Varuna. Water will be split by this current into Pranavayu and Udanavayu. A chain of one hundred jars is said to give a very effective force"

अनेन जलभंगोस्ति प्राणो दानेषु वायुषु।

एवं शतानां कुंभानांसंयोगकार्यकृत्स्मृत:॥

Which means, if we use the power of 100 earthen pots on water, then water will change its form into life-giving oxygen and floating hydrogen.

Conclusion

From above , we can't deny the fact that ancient Indian people did knew about electricity, electroplating, hydrogen, light weight property of hydrogen.

 Where these all knowledge went then?

Why we had to learn these all again from the westerners ?

Whatever it might be, we have lots and lots of evidences of an advanced civilization in our past but with the "westernisation" of Indian minds we have lost lots we had and we still are  losing lots we have.