Handle the Beautiful instrument of Science carefully – C.V.Raman

Sairam friends,

As Google celebrates 125th Birthday of Sir.C.V.Raman, I was inspired to relate how much Saints like Shirdi Saibaba gave respect both to life and inanimate objects. Sai was detached from wordly desires and things of every day use but he respected and cared for the things he used.

First a little about Sir.C.V.Raman from wikipedia:

Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, FRS (7 November 1888 – 21 November 1970) was an Indian physicist whose work was influential in the growth of science in India. He was the recipient of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1930 for the discovery that when light traverses a transparent material, some of the deflected light changes in wavelength. This phenomenon is now called Raman scattering and is the result of the Raman effect.

I am surprised to read that he was so sure that he will get the Nobel prize that he reserved ticket to Sweden six month in advance.

Sai’s little possession was an old Tin to get oil, some vessels to take alms every day, a Chillum with which his close devotees and Sai himself use to smoke. When Shirdi Saibaba was photographed without permission, Sai usually doesn’t appear on it and very rarely when Sai gave permission, Sai used to tell the photographer “You can sell it but sell it for affordable price”.

I am really irritated to see many black and photos circulating on the internet saying its Original Photo of Shirdi Saibaba. Oh God…idhula Facebook like vera..For Gods sake don’t release your Great grandpa’s sitting infront of your house on net. People will make that also as Saibaba.

Click here and Scroll down to see the only real Original photo of Shirdi Saibaba. There are 2-3 others but I give 100% credit to this photographer alone. I believe it was taken in 1916.

Anyway,

Coming to Sir.C.V.Raman, I was born when my Father had been to Tirupathi and he wished his son to be someone like C.V.Raman and he gave me the gift of my name. Thank God my sister fulfilled his wish. A family needs only one intelligent child. So God blessed my parents with my Sister and made her a Research Scientist and I am left to live my ordinary life. Something common between me and C.V.Raman was I also was fascinated by light. So I love photography a lot.

Though I am not a very much skilled in Photography, I respect the Art so much. Few days back, When I was packing back my camera, I touched my Old Digital Camera as if we touch a baby. My friends saw it and asked what I am doing. I said “Its like a child for me”. I bow to my Camera and even Kiss it at times.

I keep my Camera inside a long cloth and where ever I go, I make sure my Camera is safe. Once when I was in temple, the bag got cut and the camera fell down and lens is not working well. I continue to take pictures in the same camera. I learnt that I am not taking care of Camera when I am on a Pilgrimage and since then, I mostly avoid taking big camera when I go to Temples.

The reason I started to write this article is that I came across a very beautiful incident described by a Photographer who went to take pictures of Sir.C.V.Raman.

Click here to read article written by the Photographer T.S.Sathyan about his experience photographing C.V.Raman

Below words courtesy of T.S.Sathyan

The Raman effect

Sir C.V. Raman during a lecture at the Raman Research Institute in Bangalore, circa 1959.

I dutifully reported my success to Pothan Joseph, Editor of Deccan Herald, which had been started barely a month earlier. “Be punctual and conduct yourself with grace,” Pothan counselled me. He told me that Raman was a man of quick temper and so I should not throw my weight about in his presence, just because I was a newspaperman. “He may get angry if you direct him to act before your camera. He is particular about the rules he sets for himself,” the Editor warned. After listening to all these dos and don’ts, I felt somewhat nervous because I was going to photograph a celebrity for the first time.

Contrary to our fears, we found Raman extremely affable and gentle. He seemed very cooperative as I photographed him in his study, laboratory, library and the garden he loved. All this took twenty minutes and I still had ten minutes left to complete my job. Then, a bright idea struck me and I told Raman that I would love to photograph him with Lady Raman. “Forget about her. She’s not here,” he said.

And then a brighter idea came to my mind. Summoning the required courage, I asked the scientist: “Sir, may I take one last, important picture? Will you please pose for me displaying your Nobel Prize citation?” Pursing his lips, Raman gazed at me while my heart began to pound rapidly. He relaxed in a minute and, to my utter surprise, said, “Why not?” He went into a room to fetch the precious document.

Handle the Beautiful instrument of Science carefully – C.V.Raman

When I was about to pick up my camera from Sathyu who was standing in a corner, the silence in the room was shattered by the sound of metal hitting the ground. We looked around and found to our dismay that Sathyu had dropped the camera.

Raman’s face was livid with anger. He walked up to Sathyu, gripped him by the collar and thundered:

“Do you know what you have done? You have damaged a beautiful instrument of science. Why weren’t you careful?”

We were shaken and mumbled our apologies. Our minds were a melange of shame, confusion and embarrassment.

Raman’s anger subsided within a minute. Holding the camera in his hand, he carefully examined it as an experienced doctor would a patient. He wrote on a piece of paper: “Prisms out of alignment. Replace one broken piece and realign. Set right the metallic dents.” He pressed his prescription in my palm and gave us the marching orders saying, “You may leave now.” My first photo session with the Nobel laureate, Bangalore’s most famous citizen, had ended in a fiasco.

– T.S. Sathyan

Did you know why I want to present this experience of the Photographer and what C.V.Raman told him when the Camera fell down and the lens got broken? It is because Sai wants us to respect Science and Technology as it is the result of Hardwork of millions of people whom we never know or see.

Sai’s path is Karmamarga – Path of works. Sai himself was never idle. Sai kept doing something most of his lifetime for welfare of people.

My sister never allows me to waste any thing and asks “Do you know how many people it takes to manufacture this or create this?”

No matter what things, gadgets or instrument of science and technology we have in life, we must keep it safe. Now a days people simply play with their Mobile phones and other Gadgets. Do we really respect the technology and use it productively.? Do we honestly love what we have?

Are we content with what we have? We always want to upgrade our possessions. At the same time using what we have creatively also matters.

I always tell Saibaba to bless me to create a “Internet for Good”

I want to write so many divine articles and experiences of Good people. I want to celebrate Humanity and innovation. We have to inspire people with our words. We must create a more peaceful world by what we think and do every moment in our life.

I wish Sai shows me a way to do something really useful.

I am not intentionally trying to relate Shirdi Saibaba and a scientist like C.V.Raman. I am in hurry to go to work and fastly writing this. My intention is to spread good messages. Its not just reading Sai’s books. We must learn good things from every one. Like a Swan which is Vehicle of Goddess Saraswathi, we must take the good aspects of a person and leave the bad thing away.

There are so many Scientists, Professionals, Entrepreneurs and hardworking people in India and around the world trying to make our life easy. Their innovation has changed the way we live. So lets keep the “Beautiful Instrument of Science’ Carefully.

Love,

C.Venkatraman

Little Servant of Shirdi Saibaba

7/11/2013