The Man Who Knew Infinity: A Life of the Genius Ramanujan

Dakshin Gange

Kanigel highlights biographical details from Ramanujan’s early life. As a child, he lived in Kumbakonam, a town 160 miles from Madras in southern India, on the Cauvery River. Many natives of the area saw the river as a spiritual force. Kanigel details how the river was considered sacred, like India’s larger river, the Ganges, and for this reason, the Cauvery is also known as Dakshin Gange, or “the Ganges of the South” (10).

Sarangapani Sannidhi Street

Kanigel discusses Ramanujan’s birth and the traditional rituals that surrounded it, such as the fact that he was named on the 11th day after he was born. When he was two years old, Ramanujan contracted smallpox and became seriously ill. His survival was a rarity; since most people were not vaccinated against the disease, contracting smallpox was often deadly.

A Brahmin Boyhood

In this section, Kanigel provides a brief discussion of the Indian caste system and how Brahmins fit into it. Generally, Brahmins were highly esteemed in Hindu society, and professions related to the practice of the religion were occupied largely by Brahmins. Vegetarianism was part of being a practicing Brahmin, and Ramanujan held fast to this practice for his entire life.