Who Was Rishi Kanad? Father of Atomic Theory in Ancient India

Rishi Kanad was an ancient Indian sage, thinker, and early scientist who became known for his ideas about the smallest parts of matter. He believed that everything in the world is made up of tiny particles that cannot be broken down any further. His teachings explained the nature of matter and how this knowledge can help in spiritual growth. Rishi Kanad combined science and philosophy in ways that were far ahead of his time.

What is Philosophy? 

Philosophy is the study of deep questions about life (e.g., why are we here?), knowledge, truth (e.g., what is truth?), values (e.g., right and wrong) , and our place in the world. Indian philosophers like Rishi Kanad and Sage Patanjali explored these ideas through logic, nature, and spiritual wisdom.

Origin Story of Rishi Kanad

Although Rishi Kanad’s birth year is not known with certainty, he is believed to have lived around 600 BCE near Dwarka, in present-day Gujarat, India. His birth name was Kashyap, but his fascination with particles, or the smallest units of matter, earned him the name Kanad. This is because small particles are called कण  (kana) in Sanskrit. Rishi Kanad was also referred to as Kashyap, Kanabhakshak, and Kanabhuk. Bhakshak or bhuk mean the one who consumes, and thus along with the word kana, the names Kanabhuk and Kanabhakshaks mean "the one who eats particles". Many texts of the medieval period also refer to Kanad as Uluka and his doctrine as Aulukya Darshana (the system of Uluka).

Scholarly contribution of Rishi Kanad

1. Atomic theory

Atomic theory says that all matter—anything you can touch or see—is made up of very tiny building blocks called atoms. Rishi Kanad was one of the earliest scientists to develop an atomic theory of matter. 

From childhood, Kanad was deeply curious about the nature of the world. He often questioned how things worked and wanted to understand the smallest details of the physical world. One of the most famous stories about Rishi Kanad is how he arrived at the idea of the atom. While walking with a handful of rice, he kept breaking the grains into smaller and smaller pieces. Eventually, he observed a particle that could not be divided further. This led him to propose the idea of Parmanu, or the indivisible atom, as we would call it now.

What does Kanad’s atomic theory say? 

Rishi Kanad gave the theory that:

• All matter is made up of indivisible particles.

• Atoms combine to form dyads (binary molecules), and these in turn combine to form larger compounds.

• Atoms can combine in various ways to bring about chemical changes, especially in the presence of heat.

• Atoms exist in two states: motion and rest.

These ideas were detailed in his Vaisheshika Sutras, a foundational text of the Vaisheshika school of Indian philosophy, and Rishi Kanad is considered the founder of this school or system. Vaisheshika blends metaphysics with scientific inquiry and is known for being a non-theistic system that emphasizes logic, observation, and realism over belief, and distinct from scriptures-based or ritual authority. 

2. Scientific Enquiry vs. Metaphysics: what is the difference? 

Scientific inquiry means studying the physical world by asking questions, making observations, collecting evidence, and using logic to understand how things work. It focuses on what can be seen, measured, or tested, like motion, heat, or how substances change.

Metaphysics, on the other hand, refers to its ideas about deeper realities like the nature of the soul (atman), space, time, or the idea of "inherence" (samavaya), which are things we cannot directly see or test, but still important for understanding the universe. 

Here is an example of inherence: a quality like "sweetness" exists (is inherent) in sugar. You can't have sugar without its sweetness.

3. What can we know about our world? 

Kanad described six categories of knowable reality, known as Padarthas: (1) Dravya – Substance, (2) Guna – Quality, (3) Karma – Motion, (4) Samanya – Universality, (5) Vishesha – Particularity, and (6) Samavaya – Inherence. He proposed that there are nine types of substances (Dravya): earth, water, fire, air, ether (akasha), time, space, soul (atman), and mind (manas). Some of these are atomic, others non-atomic, and some all-pervading (atman).

Kanad linked his theory of atoms with the concept of the Atman (Self or Soul). He believed that understanding the natural world, including atoms and motion, could help one attain Moksha (liberation). This connection between the physical and the spiritual made his system both scientific and philosophical. He also defined Dharma as that which brings both material prosperity and the highest good, thus merging ethical and spiritual growth with scientific inquiry.

Legacy and recognition of Rishi Kanad

Kanad was among the first Indian thinkers to describe the relationship between cause and effect in a structured way. According to him, a cause is something that either contains the effect within it or is connected to the origin of the effect. This principle is central to Indian logic and metaphysics. His work showed early awareness of scientific concepts such as speed, heaviness (which we understand as gravity now), motion, and the relationship between force and motion. Despite there being no mathematical formulas in his texts, his logical approach to understanding natural laws was ahead of his time.

Rishi Kanad is sometimes referred to as the “Father of Physics” by people to honour his contributions. Kanad’s approach was scientific in nature. He used observation and reasoning to study the world. His approach, developed 2500 years ago, resembles an early version of the modern scientific method, and his work is often described as a naturalistic philosophy, which was rare for his time.