Comment on the significance of Rasarnava in studying the history of Indian Chemistry.
Rasarnava, or Treatise on Metallic preparations contains wealth of information about Tantrics, Medical and Chemical knowledge. Written in 11th-12th century, the text basically describes a large number of equipment or apparatus, crucibles, furnaces, etc, for processing of minerals and metals.
Rasarnava and Dakarnava traditions are work of early medieval period related to Buddhist Tantric work. Rasarnava deals with Rasas (mercury and other important minerals), Uparasas (inferior minerals), metals, etc and various means of processing and re-processing.
Procedures were described for making metal from maksika, vimala, sasyaka, etc, the first two being pyrites, the second bearing copper, and the third copper sulphate, and the wonderful observation was made that all the three red products seemed to be identical: Cantra or copper. In Rasarnava there is an arrangement of six metals: gold, silver, copper, iron, tin and lead in the order of increasing rate of corrosion and poetically described high reactivity of sulphur with most of the metals.
Rasarnava, or Treatise on Metallic preparations contains wealth of information about Tantrics, Medical and Chemical knowledge. Written in 11th-12th century, the text basically describes a large number of equipment or apparatus, crucibles, furnaces, etc, for processing of minerals and metals.
Rasarnava and Dakarnava traditions are work of early medieval period related to Buddhist Tantric work. Rasarnava deals with Rasas (mercury and other important minerals), Uparasas (inferior minerals), metals, etc and various means of processing and re-processing.
Procedures were described for making metal from maksika, vimala, sasyaka, etc, the first two being pyrites, the second bearing copper, and the third copper sulphate, and the wonderful observation was made that all the three red products seemed to be identical: Cantra or copper. In Rasarnava there is an arrangement of six metals: gold, silver, copper, iron, tin and lead in the order of increasing rate of corrosion and poetically described high reactivity of sulphur with most of the metals.