From Saptapadārtha to Smart Cities: Classical Indian Epistemology and Dravya Theory in Understanding Urbanisation, Urban Change, and the Global Urban Future Ganesh Shrirang Satarkar Department of Sociology Central University of Haryana, Mahendergarh, Haryana, India

From Saptapadārtha to Smart Cities: Classical Indian Epistemology and Dravya Theory in Understanding Urbanisation, Urban Change, and the Global Urban Future, authored by Ganesh Shrirang Satarkar of the Department of Sociology, Central University of Haryana, presents an interdisciplinary and epistemologically grounded analysis of urbanisation by integrating classical Indian philosophical frameworks with contemporary urban sociology and urban geography. The article critically examines dominant Western paradigms of urban studies and argues for the inclusion of indigenous knowledge systems—particularly Nyāya–Vaiśeṣika epistemology and Āyurvedic dravya theory—as valid and productive analytical tools for understanding cities. The study conceptualises urbanisation through the categories of padārtha and saptapadārtha, interpreting cities as dynamic systems of substances, qualities, actions, causal relations, and absences. It employs the pramāṇa catuṣṭaya—pratyakṣa, anumāna, āptopadeśa, and yukti—to legitimise plural methodologies in urban research, including census analysis, migration studies, spatial mapping, policy evaluation, and comparative global urban analysis. The paper systematically explores the processes, measures, trends, and differentials of urbanisation in India, the interrelationship between migration and urban growth, settlement classification, urban morphology, land-use patterns, central place theory, urban hierarchy, and the emergence of world cities. Further, the article analyses post–World War II urban transformation, contrasts urbanisation trajectories in developed and developing countries, and critically examines the socioeconomic and environmental consequences of rapid urban growth, including informality, housing deficits, health inequalities, and ecological degradation. By applying the ethical distinctions of āyuṣya and anāyuṣya dravya, the study offers a normative framework for evaluating sustainability and smart city initiatives. The article concludes by advocating an epistemologically plural, culturally rooted, and ethically informed approach to urban studies for building inclusive and sustainable urban futures. Publication Details (Suggested / Sample) Journal: Journal of Dalian University of Technology (Social Sciences Edition) ISSN: 1000-8608 Volume: 30 Issue: 2 Year: 2023 Article Type: Research Article Discipline: Sociology / Urban Studies / Indian Knowledge Systems Language: English