When I first started learning microbiology, I believed its story began with microscopes, Petri dishes, and scientists like Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, Louis Pasteur, and Robert Koch. I thought microbiology was born the day humans first observed microorganisms.
But after learning about Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), I found myself looking at it differently.
Our ancestors couldn’t see bacteria or fungi. They didn’t know what Lactobacillus or yeast were. Yet they knew that if yesterday’s curd was added to warm milk, it would turn into fresh curd. They knew that leaving idli or dosa batter overnight would make it soft and fluffy. They knew that pickling food with salt and spices helped it last longer.
They may not have known why these things worked, but they carefully observed that they worked.
That made me realize something important.
Science often begins with observation. Before we explain a phenomenon, we first notice it, repeat it, and understand its patterns. That’s exactly what many traditional practices were built on.
Today, microbiology explains these age-old methods. We now know that beneficial microorganisms drive fermentation, improve digestibility, preserve food, and even influence gut health. What was once passed down through experience can now be understood through scientific evidence.
As a biotechnology student, I don’t see this as a competition between tradition and modern science. Instead, I see them as two chapters of the same story one rooted in observation and the other in scientific explanation.
Maybe microbiology didn’t begin in a laboratory.
Maybe the laboratory simply helped us understand what people had been observing for generations.
Has learning the science behind a traditional practice ever changed the way you looked at it?
MBH/PS