Although Chemistry has come to be known as an exact science within a comparatively recent period, yet its origin dates back to the earliest times of philosophical study. The word ‘Chemistry’ is closely associated with that of Alchemy. In a book on "Chemistry is Modern Life", from the pen of the renowned Swedish Chemist named Svante Auguste, the author has done ample justice to the claims of India as the land in which the beginnings of Chemistry as a Science can first be traced in the history of human civilization.
In India, Chemistry had been know as a science auxiliary to Medicine which was practised openly after the beginning of the Chemistry era in the Buddhistic monasteries where the priests were found engaged in curing all sorts of diseases; and they believed not only in a specific compound but also in the utterance of a specific religious formula considered necessary for the physician’s healing power; and it is thus that chemistry took a religious impress.
Chemistry as defined now, means the science which relates to the peculiar properties of matter an of the elementary substances, the proportions in which the elements combine, the ways and means of their separation, the laws which govern and affect them and all the connected and allied phenomina; but the simpler definition is-it is the Anatomy of natural bodies by fire.
In the Siddha System, Chemistry had been found developed into a Science auxiliary to medicine and Alchemy. It was found useful in the preparation of medicines for curing all sorts of suffering, spiritual as well as corporeal and also in transmutation of baser metals into gold. The knowledge of plants and minerals was of a very high order. Siddhar's presentation of Chemistry is masterly so far as it has gone, but unfortunately it is fragmentary, If one really wants to gather knowledge and collect materials for research in the field of ancient chemistry, he can find all that he wants only in the works of Tamil Siddhars; and no such treatises on the subject could be found elsewhere dealing so exhaustively as found therein; and moreover the Siddhars were the greatest scientists both almost all the branches of science.
It is necessary here to allude to the address of Dr. P. C. Ray at the Madras Medical College on 02-12-1926 on Ancient Hindu Chemistry.
"In the economic interests of the country, it would be will to develop such a simple and cheap system as in the ancient past and find supplemental counter parts on Indian economic scale instead of on the western luxuriant scale. India cannot stand any longer expenditure on a large scale on buildings and costly apparatuses and the like; and so we must adopt ourselves to methods and measures having regard to the financial possibilities of the country."
Several were the minerals known to and made use of by the siddha physicians in their medicines; and a list of them will be found in this volume under the heading (natural substance). The siddha physicians were also well acquainted with the process of obtaining metals from their ores.
When at long intervals, by merely turning over the abstruse and moth eaten pages of some of the Siddha works, one is sure to be struck with awe and admiration to find therein mention of processes like calcination of metals, preparation of quint essences, extracts and essences from minerals and other natural bodies or substances preparations of mercury such as animated mercury, pills for flying in the air, calcinated powders such as red-oxide and Chunnam with the marvellous property of transmuting metals, preparation of caustic alkali from the ashes of plants and several other preparations of medicine with high potency and power, some of them even capable of rejuvenating the human system, Do not all these go to signify the fact that the knowledge of Siddhars in Chemistry taken together with that of Alchemy(infra) should have been for superior to and in advance of the so called scientific knowledge dominant at the present day? One who has made a special study of the Siddhars Science will naturally come to the conclusion that it is the fountain head of all knowledge and sciences.
We also find application in Medicine of so many chemical products of their times proving that they were of course the first to prepare valuable medicines by chemical or other extraordinary methods unknown to the present day. The process of preparing Seynir and distilling several kinds of acids were not unknown to them since the distilled products had been to them of much help in using as solvents. Unfortunately, the Siddhars Science Terminology is difficult and highly technical in character and what is even deplorable, they are not fully expressive.