The Scientific Method: 7 Stages From Observation to Theory — And the Ancient Indian Nyaya System That Got There First

This article examines the scientific method as a seven-stage framework — Observation, Hypothesis, Prediction, Experiment, Analysis, Peer Review and Replication, and Theory Building — and compares it with the ancient Indian Nyaya epistemological system as documented in Gautama's Nyaya Sutras (2nd century BCE). The article documents Karl Popper's falsifiability criterion as the boundary of science, Thomas Kuhn's paradigm shift model as the historical sociology of scientific revolution, and the replication crisis as the most significant contemporary challenge to scientific epistemology (only 39% of psychology studies and 62% of Nature/Science studies replicate, per the Open Science Collaboration and Serra-Garcia and Gneezy studies). The Nyaya Pramana framework is examined in detail: Pratyaksha (direct perception as direct observation), Anumana (inference as hypothesis and logical deduction, with the three-variety classification of past, present, and future inference), Upamana (comparison and analogy as analogical reasoning), and Shabda (reliable testimony as peer-reviewed published science). The Nyaya Pancha Avayava (five-part syllogism: Pratijna, Hetu, Udaharana, Upanaya, Nigamana) is compared with the modern scientific argument structure. Vaisheshika atomism (Kanada, 2nd century BCE) and Charaka Samhita's proto-clinical methodology are examined as practical applications of the Nyaya framework. The limits of scientific thought — what it can and cannot address — are examined as the final dimension.