The book Vedic Mathematics was written by Jagadguru Swami Sri Bharati Krishna Tirthaji Maharaja

Jagadguru Swami Sri Bharati Krishna Tirthaji Maharaja

Jagadguru Swami Sri Bhārati Kṛṣṇa Tīrthaji Mahāraja was the Jagadguru of the Govardhana matha of Puri during 1925–1960. He was one of the most significant spiritual figures in Hinduism during the 20th century...

. It describes his Vedic mathematics, a system of mental calculation

Mental calculation

Mental calculation comprises arithmetical calculations using only the human brain, with no help from calculators, computers, or pen and paper. People use mental calculation when computing tools are not available, when it is faster than other means of calculation , or in a competition context...

. Bharati claimed he had found the basis of this system written in the form of sutra

Sutra

Sūtra is an aphorism or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual. Literally it means a thread or line that holds things together and is derived from the verbal root siv-, meaning to sew , as does the medical term...

s in an appendix of Atharvaveda

Atharvaveda

The Atharvaveda is a sacred text of Hinduism and one of the four Vedas, often called the "fourth Veda"....

which has now been lost. He developed the system further and wrote sixteen books about it. The manuscript of these books somehow got lost and Jagadguru then wrote the book Vedic Mathematics which was published in 1965, five years after his death.