Indo-Soviet Seminar on Scientific and Technological Exchanges Between India and Soviet Central Asia in Medieval Period (An Old and Rare Book)

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The Proceedings are the outcome of the first Indo-Soviet bilateral seminar in the area of History of Science. It was concerned with the scientific and technological exchanges between Soviet Central Asia and India in the medieval period. This geographical region produced many distinguished leaders of thought in diverse areas of religion and philosophy, and played a notable part in the growth and development of value systems and cultural milieu of that period.

It is, therefore, with a sense of pride and urgency that joint efforts have been made by many scholars to get an insight into the cultural and scientific heritage of this region. This joint venture is expected not only to enrich the literature on the history of science and culture but also to reveal the unity of purpose of the scholars of that period in creating a climate of mutual understanding and friendship among peoples. This climate needs urgent revival to combat forces of divisiveness so rampant in today's world. These historical studies will, we believe, throw some light for taking any meaningful action.

The papers presented in the seminar have clearly brought out the various facets of diffusion of ideas regarding the development of science. They will further bring home the important point that the development of science and culture is not the work of select nations, but is the result of integration and fusion of common human experience over a long span of time.

I am grateful to the Indian organisers and the Soviet collaborators for undertaking the important and distinctive task of bringing together, explaining and assessing the contributions made by the peoples of this socio-cultural region during the medieval period.

The Central Asia, by virtue of its geographical situation, has played a notable role in the history of human civilization. Comprising the large area now known as The Asian Republics of the Soviet Union, northern parts of India, Pakistan, Tibet, parts of Iran, Afghanistan and Mongolia, the Central Asia witnessed over a long period, the onward march of varied human endeavours and the dynamics of the associated material culture. Many savants, despite their different religio-philosophical persuasions and related traditional matrix, contributed in a significant manner to the evolution of several scientific ideas. The artisans and craftsmen developed from time to time ingenious skills for the ramification of several techniques. The scientific ideas and the techniques alike became inter-twined leading to an enriched living, at the same time fostering varied but integrated value systems basic to meaningful human existence.

A notable characteristic of this period was mutual exchange of scientific ideas and techniques almost without inhibition and in a spirit of assimilation and recognition of the endeavours of their compeers elsewhere. In fact, the cumulative intellectual as well as technical endeavours of the Central Asian people constituted a nutrient broth as it were, for the subsequent speculations and techniques in West Asia and later even in the medieval Latin Europe.

Realising the importance of the contributions of the peoples of Central Asia, UNESCO, about a decade ago, initiated studies in history, culture, arts and crafts, science and technology of Central Asia in the medieval period, in which Afghanistan, India, Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan and the USSR participated. Some seminars and conferences were organized under the UNESCO Project, which, however, for one reason or the other, did not sustain itself long enough.

About five years ago, the Indian National Science Academy and the USSR Academy of Sciences, which have a bilateral collaborative programme in science and technology, agreed to include the historical aspects of science and continuity and change in this area of human activity, being experienced in India and the Soviet Central Asia specially. Thus emerged an Indo-Soviet academic programme of the Scientific and Technological Exchanges between Soviet Central Asia and India in the Medieval Period.