Zero Before the Symbol: Aryabhata and Mathematics of Nothingness

What is zero? A symbol, a number, or something far more profound?Zero Before the Symbol: Aryabhata and the Mathematics of Nothingness offers a rigorous re-examination of the origin of zero, shifting the focus from symbolic invention to structural emergence. Through a detailed analysis of the Aryabhatiya, the book demonstrates that Aryabhata's positional system encodes a functional notion of absence without the use of an explicit symbol. It further interprets Brahmagupta's work as the formalization of an already existing concept. Integrating primary Sanskrit sources with mathematical reconstruction, the monograph presents zero as a unified entity-structure, concept, and number-while offering a balanced historiographical perspective on its global development.