The ‘Zeus’ Of Mathematics
The man who had over 3900 accomplished Mathematical results by age 32
He was from a small town which was difficult to trace
In today’s Tamil Nadu, India there is a place known as Erode where the great Indian mathematical prodigy Srinivasa Ramanujan was born on December 22, 1887. His village, for the longest of times, was difficult to trace and was unknown among the mathematics community. Ramanujan’s father used to work as a clerk at a nearby textile business while his mother was a housewife who devoted most of her time to worshipping god. He didn’t grow up in an elite family and didn’t have the luxury of a fancy lifestyle. His mother used to sing at a nearby temple. Little by little, they managed their daily lives.
A self-inspired Mathematician
Primarily, Ramanujan taught himself to be interested in Mathematics and learned about it on his own. He developed his passion for maths not through anyone but because of his own curiosity and enthusiasm. The first book that inspired him was Loney’s book on Plane Trigonometry which he borrowed from a friend, and published in 1894. Also, another book called ‘A synopsis of elementary results in pure and applied mathematics played an important role in building the foundations for him to become a great mathematician. If you want to read more about Ramanujan and his connection to the book that awakened his genius, you can read the full story here:
Had almost no formal Math training
Although he had little to no formal background in maths, he was responsible to turn the tide in the field of Mathematics. Most of the formulas and theorems he came up with are based on his intuition rather than hard and fast formal training. His formulas were written by Godfrey Hardy and about the truthfulness and consistency of the theorems, Hardy once stated,
“They must be true because no one would have had the ingenuity to conceive them if they were not true.”
Married to a 9-year-old girl
In some Indian traditions, the fixation of marriage between a bride and a groom is done at a very young age and the decision is not up to them. The same was the case for Ramanujan. He married Janaki Amal on March 21, 1899. She was the fourth daughter of Rangaswamy Iyengar and Ranganayaki Ammal of Rajendram village.
The relationship with God
He worshipped his family goddess Mahalaxmi( Goddess of wealth and prosperity). He once proclaimed,
“An equation has no relevance for me unless it conveys an idea of God”.
This was the reason why Ramanujan derived his equations and formulas based on his intuitions always putting God at the center of it all. The relationship of Ramanujan with the almighty was so intense that he used to dream about the goddess and, according to him, the goddess gave him all the theorems and formulas. I have written another story about it which you can read here:
More than 3900 accomplished Mathematical results by the age of 32
During his limited time in Cambridge, he completed as many as 3900 findings and the majority were based on identities and equations. His hypothesis caused unrest in the Mathematics community. By far, he is known the most for his works and discovery of the infinite series of pi.
He used to take notes using green ink
From the surveys and interviews of close ones to Ramanujan’s life, it is known that he always loved to jolt down ideas on a notebook using green ink. One of his journals is called ‘Lost Notebook’. It was found by George Andrews at Trinity college library in 1976. Later, it was revisioned as a book.
The Royal Society Fellowship
Ramanujan was one of the youngest mathematicians in the Royal Society. In 1918 when Ramanujan was 31 years old, he joined the Royal Society fellowship making him the second Indian to join it. While there, Ramanujan collaborated with Hardy and they wrote dozens of papers and articles together. At the time of finishing the fellowship, he had completed as many as 30 academic articles.
An entire museum is dedicated to his name
There’s a museum located in Chennai in India that contains pictures and artifacts that revisits the major parts of his life. There are also letters from his friends. The museum was opened on the account of the Late P.K. Srinivasan. He was also a well-known maths instructor who recollected all the important artifacts related to Ramanujan’s life which helped build the museum.
National Mathematics day in India
Every year in India, his birthday is celebrated nationwide with the title of National mathematics day. He is an inspiration to young Indian students that no matter the background, no matter the color of their skin, there are no barriers in this world if you just have the passion and curiosity that’s unstoppable. He has inspired many young mathematicians to follow their dream and pursue their mathematics careers.
Contributed by Rishab Karki and curated by the author.
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