CLAIM
A few news reports have been published which claim that Vedic mathematics helped ISRO’s Chandrayaan-2 mission.
- DNA reported that scientists from ISRO had sought the advice of Swami Shankaracharya Nischalananda Saraswati for his expertise in Vedic Maths. The Daily quoted Shankaryacharya as saying that there were some Vedic calculations “that the scientists hoped to incorporate into the lunar mission.” The report had been published on 5 August.
- Zee News had also published a report claiming the same thing on 4 August, saying, “It has been learnt that ISRO scientists consulted Swami Nischalananda Saraswati Puri Shankaracharya of Govardhana Matha before the July launch of Chandrayaan-2. This was done to dispel some of the doubts that the scientists had at the time.”
- On 6 August, India.com published a report based on DNA’s report, while Mashable India published one on 12 August, based on the same.
- A Medium post titled ‘How Ancient Indian Cosmology Helped Launch ISRO’s Chandrayaan-2’ also quoted from the DNA report, saying that Maths invented in the Vedic Age (c 1500- 500 BCE) helped ISRO scientists launch the Chandrayaan-2.
The DNA news report claimed that ISRO scientists had taken the help of Vedic maths.
(Photo: Screenshot/DNA)
Shankaracharya Nischalananda Saraswati is the Shankaracharya of Govardhan matha, a Hindu monastery in Odisha’s Puri.
WHAT IS THE TRUTH?
The claim is completely false and there is no truth to the news that ISRO took the help of Vedic Maths for the Chandrayaan-2 mission.
WHAT WE FOUND
The Quint reached out to ISRO, which denied any such consultation of the Puri Shankaracharya with regard to the Chandrayaan-2 mission.
“This is pure gossip and we also found about this through the newspapers. There is no truth to the claim,” an ISRO member in the know of the Chandrayaan-2 mission told The Quint on condition of anonymity.
The ISRO member also added that only ISRO scientists were involved in the mission and the scientists were themselves amazed when they came across reports such as those.
In view of this denial by ISRO, The Quint also reached out to Govardhan matha in Puri to get their version of events. Speaking to us, a member of the matha said that there is no truth to the news reports, adding that the Shankaracharya was being falsely quoted.
“While many people and scientists from across India come to consult and take the advice of the Shankaracharya, no such consultation with regard to Chandrayaan-2 has taken place.”A Member of the Matha told The Quint
He further clarified that the Shankaracharya had paid a visit to ISRO Ahmedabad in 2016, when he had delivered a speech about the importance of Vedic Mathematics and how ISRO scientists can benefit by having some knowledge of the same. He had also spoken about how Vedic mathematics can help scientific inventions.
According to Govardhan Matha, this speech by the Shankaracharya has been manipulated to make it seem that ISRO scientists consulted him ahead of the launch of Chandrayaan-2. The same member of the matha also told The Quint that such fake news should not be shared as it hurts the institution’s reputation.
Therefore, the news reports by DNA and Zee News are based on false quotes, taken out of context, from the Puri Shankaracharya.
(This story was flagged to us by a group called Scientifreak.)
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