Sachin Tendulkar - The Name Says It All

 

The man who has engulfed the whole nations sports lovers life and who is no where less than an enigma, in himself. Sachin Tendulkar, the No. 10 jersey guy, who has shouldered one billion people's hopes and aspirations every single instance he went out to play in the middle.

Words are quite less and few to say about his achievements. I have collected some of the quotes told by the sports celebrities spanning different countries and eras which speaks volumes about him but alas still fall short to explain his greatness and magnanimity.

“Beneath the helmet, under that unruly curly hair, inside the cranium, there is something we don't know, something beyond scientific measure. Something that allows him to soar, to roam a territory of sport that, forget us, even those who are gifted enough to play alongside him cannot even fathom. When he goes out to bat, people switch on their TV sets and switch off their lives."

                                                                -British broadcasting corporation (BBC)

"He can play that leg glance with a walking stick also."

 -Waqar Younis

"On a train from Shimla to Delhi, there was a halt in one of the stations. The train stopped by for few minutes as usual. Sachin was nearing century, batting on 98. The passengers, railway officials, everyone on the train waited for Sachin to complete the century. This Genius can stop time in India!"

                                                                  -Peter Rebouck, Australian journalist.

"To Sachin, the man we all want to be."

                  -Andrew Symonds signing a T shirt specially for Sachin.

"Sachin is a genius. I'm a mere mortal."

-Brian Lara.

"The number of innings of his (Tendulkar's) I have been able to sit back and watch, I think he is an amazing player. Look at his stats and records and it's quite incredible for someone to have stayed in the game for more than 20 years.. He has set benchmarks for guys like me to chase him and get as close as we can. If I had to last 20 years, I would probably be batting in a wheelchair!!"

-Ricky Ponting

I'll see god when I die but till then I'll see Sachin.

                                                           -A banner during a match in Sharjah.

"I have seen god. he bats at no.4 for India."

-Mathew Hayden

"Commit all your sins when Sachin is batting. They will go unnoticed because even the lord is watching!"

-A banner in UK.

"The joy he brings to the millions of his countrymen, the grace with which he handles all the adulation and the expectations and his innate humility - all make for a one-in-a-billion individual".

-Glenn McGrath

There was a big party where stars from bollywood and cricketers were invited. Suddenly, there was a big noise, all wanted to see approaching Amitabh Bachhan. Then Sachin entered the hall and Amitabh was leading the queue to get a grab of the genius!!

-Shahrukh Khan

Sachin was so focused. He never looked like getting out. He was batting with single-minded devotion. It was truly remarkable. It was a lesson."

                                      -Martina Navratilova after watching Tendulkar bat at Sydney.

He is 99.5% Perfect...I think he is marvellous. He can play in any era and at any level.

- Viv Richards

I was fielding in the covers Tendulkar came out to bat in his debut test at Karachi. I still remember Waqar Younis was at his peak form at that time. Tendulkar tried to drive Waqar through the covers off his very first ball in Test cricket but was beaten all ends up. But I walked to captain Imran Khan and told him that this kid looks very good and Imran agreed with me.

- Abdul Qadir

During one Bangalore Test, Michael Kasprowicz frustrated went to Dennis Lillee and asked, "Mate, do you see any weaknesses ?". Lilee replied, "No Michael, as long as you walk off with your pride that's all you can do".

 

Shakuntala Devi - Human Calculator

One person who had been widely regarded as the human calculator, the one who stunned the world with her split second answering ability to mathematical questions, involving gigantic numbers was none other than Shakuntala Devi. It is said that there were no umm's and no urr's while she answered and certainly no errors.

Shakuntala Devi was born in Bangalore to a Brahmin family in 1929, where her father used to work in circus as a gymnast. She went to school uptil Class III after which her parents could not afford the school fees. It is said that by the age of 3, she was solving University Level Mathematics book. Age 6 - she held a Masters degree in Mathematics from University of Mysore. Age 8 - she had completed her Doctorate in Maths from Annamalai University.

Some famous happenings that took her to fame was when she was asked to derive 23rd root of a 201 digit number at Harvard University. She took 50 seconds to answer while for the same calculation, UNIVAC 1108 computer took 1 minute i.e. 10 seconds longer.

On June 18, 1980, Computer Department of University of Oxford asked her randomly to multiply 2 13-digit numbers. (7686369774870 X 2465099745779). She answered in 2 seconds flat , which was correct and the answer was : 18947668177995426462773730. This event was however mentioned in the 1995 Guiness Book of Records.

She believed that hers was a God's gift and hence she had opened an institute in Bangalore which teaches Vedic Mathematics which according to her had the correct ways of learning and loving the numbers. She has authored several maths and cookery books too and was a noted astrologist and numerologist.

Shri Ashtavinayaka Tour - Mahaganapati Temple

The eighth among the Ashtavinayaka's revered shrines is the Mahaganapati, located at Ranjangaon, some 50 Km from Pune.

The idol faces the east with its trunk pointing to the left. The temple is designed in such a way that during the apparent movement of the sun to the south, the sun rays fall directly on the deity. The Lord is flanked by his consorts, Ridhi and Sidhi on both sides

It is said that the temple was built by Shiva, where he worshipped Ganesha in order to fight the demon Tripurasura. Tripurasura had built 3 powerful citadels (or forts) with a boon of invincibility given by Shiva himself. Howeever, as his atrocities in the universe grew, he had to be killed. So, Shiva prayed Ganesha and shot an arrow which pierced through the citadels and killed the demon.

Shri Ashtavinayaka Tour - Vigneshwara Temple Story

The Vigneshwara temple is the seventh of the Ashtavinayaka shines, located at Ojhar, which is about 85 kms from Pune. The literal meaning of Vigneshwara is "Lord of the obstacles" or "Remover of obstacles".

The temple features a spacious and large courtyard, a grand entrance and has lots of sculptural and mural works. The Ganesha idol faces east and has a left turning trunk. The idol is surrounded by his 2 wife's Riddhi and Siddhi and is covered with Sindur. His eyes are emeralds and forehead and navel are adorned with diamonds.

The story of Shri Vigneshwara Ganesha goes like this :
King Abhinandana performed a sacrifice in which he did not give any offering to Lord Indra. Infuriated, Lord Indra ordered Kala (Time/Death) to destroy the sacrifice. Kala took the form of a demon, Vignasura, who created obstacles in the sacrifice and ruined it.

Also, the demon started creating havoc in the whole universe and would create obstacles on the good deeds and sacrifices of sages and other beings. All the Gods then went to Ganesha for help and he battled and won over the demon, Vignasura. After the defeat, the demon agreed that he would not harass the beings of the world.

For this reason, it is said that Vigna would not dwell in places where Ganesha is worshipped. Hence the name of the Supreme Being as Vigneshwara, the One who had defeated Vignasura.

Ashtavinayaka Tour - Girijatmaja Temple Story

The temple of Shri Girijatmaja, the sixth temple of the Ashtavinayaka's - at Lenyadri, is situated 94 km from Pune near a village named Narayangaon.  It is present in one of the caves (Cave 7) of the series of 30 rock cut Buddhist caves called Lenyadri. The temple stands atop a mountain for which one has to take around 307 steps. The temple features a wide hall with no supporting pillars, which is 53 feet long, 51 feet wide and 7 feet in height.

There is no electricity inside the hall but the temple is so constructed that during the day it is always lit by the Sun rays. Ganesha idol faces north with its trunk to the left but compared to other Ashtavinayaka idols, it is not well carved off.

The name Girijatmaja literally means "Mountain-born" or "Atmaja (Son) of Girija". The story about Shri Girijatmaj Ganesha goes like this :

Once Parvati asked Shiva as to whom he was meditating on to which Shiva said that he is meditating on "the supporter of the entire universe - Ganesha". Parvati desired to have a son like Ganesha and she meditated on Ganesha for 12 years at Lenyadri.

Ganesha blessed Parvati that he would be born as her son and the clay image which Parvati worshipped came alive. Thus Ganesha was born to Parvati Devi at Lenyadri. Ganesha's escapades with childhood years, spanning around 15 years, were spent at Lenyadri during which he showed so many of his powers and innocence.

Ashtavinayaka Tour - Chintamani Temple Story

The fifth temple for the Ashtavinayaka tour, Chintamani temple is located in Theur, some
25 km from Pune. Theur, literally means Sthavar, which in turn means stable in Sanskrit. According to legends, God Brahma meditated at this place to get rid of his worries and owing to Ganesha's blessings, he was able to bring his restless minds to a stable state.

Theur Chintamani temple was built by a Ganapatya saint Morya Gosavi. Exact date is hitherto unknown. Ganesha idol faces east and is studded with jewel eyes and the trunk facing left. It is interpreted that the idol is sitting in a cross legged posture.

Another legened about the Chintamani Ganesha goes like this :
A warrior king named, Ganasura and his army once came to the hermitage of Sage Kapila, who had the wish granting jewel named, Chintamani. As the King had come to his doorstep, the sage felicitated them with delicious food. On seeing the prowess of Chintamani, the King forcefully wanted to take the jewel from the sage.

Kapila, a devotee of Ganesha, prayed to him and the God appeared and beheaded Ganasura. Ganesha returned the jewel back to sage Kapila but he asked the divine God's presence instead of the jewel. Thus, Ganesha stayed in Theur with the sage and became popular with the name, Chintamani Ganesha

Ashtavinayaka Tour - Varada Vinayaka Ganesha Temple Story

Varada Vinayaka is the fourth ashtavinayaka and the name literally means, the giver of bounty and success. The idol was found in the village of Mahad in 1690 AD in an adjoining lake in an immersed position and that is the reason why the idol has a weathered look. In 1725 AD, the Varadavinayaka temple was built in its primeval form.

The temple is located 80 KM from Pune, near Khopoli off the Pune Mumbai highway and is closest to the Mumbai city. The Ganesh idol faces east direction and its trunk is also facing east. There are 4 elephant idols guarding the 4 sides of the temple. The hall is 8 x 8 feet and the dome is 25 feet high, with golden top and having designs of cobra. There is also an oil lamp, which is said to be constantly burning since 1892.

The unique aspect of this temple, compared to other ashtavinayaka's is that this is the only temple which allows the devotees to pay their homage and respects to the immediate vicinity of the idol. It is said that during Maghi Chaturthi, if the coconut received as prasad is taken then the devotees are blessed with a son. Huge crowds get amassed during the Maghi Utsav, which is usually held during the month of February, on the temple premises.