Spirituality of numbers: Jalna man bases Ganpati celebration on Maths, models idol on Namagiri Devi

Jalna, Aug 30 (PTI) A teacher in Jalna in Maharashtra has based his Ganpati festivity on mathematics, complete with a laboratory, with the aim of removing fear of the subject from the minds of students.

Shrikant Chinchkhedkar's mandal in Hari Omnagar is attracting students, teachers and people from all walks of life eager to see the idol, based on Namagiri Devi, considered an incarnation of Goddess Lakshmi and the divine inspiration of legendary mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan. Namagiri Devi is regarded as the embodiment of intelligence, mathematics and learning.

"The mathematics laboratory we have set up here has over 100 models to demonstrate basic concepts, formulas, and puzzles in simple, engaging ways. There are portraits and works of mathematicians such as Archimedes, Euclid, Pythagoras, Mahaviracharya, Bhaskaracharya II, Swami Bharati Krishna Tirtha, Carl Gauss, Prashant Chandra Mahalanobis and Ramanujan," he said.

"The objective is to remove the fear of mathematics from young minds and to create love and curiosity for the subject. We also want to honour contributions of great mathematicians so that their life stories inspire students," Chinchkhedkar added.

Last year, Chinchkhedkar used the Ganesh festival to showcase science. He has been presenting innovative themes for the past 21 years, the teacher added. PTI COR BNM