prodigious energy was expended by ancient Indian Culture in ensuring that these texts were transmitted from generation to generation with inordinate fidelity. For example, memorization of the sacred VEDAS included upto 11 forms of recitation of the same text. The texts were subsequently proof read by comparing the different recited versions.
* Forms of recitation included the jata patha (literally mesh recitation) in which every two adjacent words in the text were first recited in their original order, then repeated in the reverse order, and finally repeated again in the original order. The recitation thus proceded as:
word 1 word 2, word 2 word1, word1 word2, word2 word3, word3 word2, word2 word3........
* In another form of recitation dhwaja patha (literally flag recitation) a sequence of N words were recited (and memorized) by paring the first two words and last two words and then proceding as:
word2 word2, word (N-1) wordN;word2 word3 word(N-3) word (N-2).... word (N-1) wordN, word 1 word2;
* the most complex form of recitation ghana patha (literally dense recitation) took the form:
word 1 word2, word 2word1, word1 word 2 word 3, word 3 word 2 word 1,word 1 word 2 word 3,:
word 2 word 3, word 3 word 2, word 2 word 3 word 4, word 4 word3 word2, word 2 word 3 word 4:
that these methods have been effective, is testified to by the preservation of the most ancient indian religious text the RIG VEDA as a single text without any variant readings
Similar methods were used for memorizing mathematical texts, whose transmission remained exclusively oral until the end of the vedic period 500 BCE
* Forms of recitation included the jata patha (literally mesh recitation) in which every two adjacent words in the text were first recited in their original order, then repeated in the reverse order, and finally repeated again in the original order. The recitation thus proceded as:
word 1 word 2, word 2 word1, word1 word2, word2 word3, word3 word2, word2 word3........
* In another form of recitation dhwaja patha (literally flag recitation) a sequence of N words were recited (and memorized) by paring the first two words and last two words and then proceding as:
word2 word2, word (N-1) wordN;word2 word3 word(N-3) word (N-2).... word (N-1) wordN, word 1 word2;
* the most complex form of recitation ghana patha (literally dense recitation) took the form:
word 1 word2, word 2word1, word1 word 2 word 3, word 3 word 2 word 1,word 1 word 2 word 3,:
word 2 word 3, word 3 word 2, word 2 word 3 word 4, word 4 word3 word2, word 2 word 3 word 4:
that these methods have been effective, is testified to by the preservation of the most ancient indian religious text the RIG VEDA as a single text without any variant readings
Similar methods were used for memorizing mathematical texts, whose transmission remained exclusively oral until the end of the vedic period 500 BCE
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